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how long is an ice hockey match

An ice hockey match is 60 minutes of game time , but in real life you should plan for about 2.5 to 3 hours from puck drop to final whistle in most professional leagues.

Official game length

  • A standard ice hockey game has three 20‑minute periods of stop-time play, for a total of 60 minutes on the clock.
  • The clock stops for whistles (offsides, icing, penalties, puck out of play, goals), so each 20‑minute period usually takes around 35–40 minutes of real time.

Real-world duration (what you actually sit through)

For a typical pro game (like the NHL):

  • Regulation play: 60 minutes (3 × 20 minutes).
  • Intermissions: 2 breaks of about 15–18 minutes between periods.
  • Total time in the arena / on TV: usually 2 hours 15 minutes to about 3 hours , depending on stoppages, reviews, and commercials.

So if you’re planning your evening: booking around 2.5 hours is a safe bet for most ice hockey matches.

Overtime and special cases

  • If the game is tied after 60 minutes, many leagues play overtime (for example, 5 minutes of sudden death in regular-season NHL games, then a shootout if still tied), which can add roughly 10–15 minutes total.
  • In playoffs (like the NHL), overtime is full 20‑minute periods of sudden death until someone scores, so marathon games can run well over 3 hours and, in rare historical cases, much longer.

Youth, amateur, and TV differences

  • Youth and some amateur games may use shorter periods (often 3 × 15 minutes), so total real time can be closer to 1.5–2 hours. This structure is commonly shortened compared with pro formats.
  • TV broadcasts often add extra time for pre-game shows, commercial breaks, and post-game segments , which is why hockey often occupies a roughly three-hour TV slot.

SEO-style quick facts (for “how long is an ice hockey match”)

  • Standard ice hockey match length (game clock): 60 minutes (3 × 20-minute periods).
  • Typical real duration in pro leagues: 2.5 to 3 hours including intermissions and stoppages.
  • With overtime: add 10–15 minutes in regular season; potentially much more in playoffs due to repeated 20‑minute OT periods.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.