abstract
| - Short handed is a term used in ice hockey and refers to having fewer skaters on the ice during play, as a result of a penalty. The player removed from play serves the penalty in the penalty box for a set amount of time proportional to the severity of the infraction. If a goaltender commits a minor, another player who was on the ice at the time of the penalty serves, often but not necessarily the team captain. The penalized team is said to be on the Penalty Kill (PK) while their players are in the penalty box. The opposing team is usually referred to as having an "advantage" until the penalized player returns to play. This situation is often called a power play for the opposing team, due to the increased likelihood of scoring during this time. Not only does the power play team have the man advantage, the penalized team is frequently trapped in their zone and often cannot make line changes, resulting in their players being on the ice for longer-than-normal shifts. As a result, the penalized team's players are often exhausted when the penalty expired and they are often scored on shortly afterwards. The team on the power play often only has one defenceman at the rear rather than the typical two, in favor of adding another attacker. Rarely, teams have often pulled their goalie for the sixth on-ice player (such as in Game 2 of the 1993 Stanley Cup Finals). Players assigned to power play or penalty killing duties are often know as "special teams". During a power play, the shorthanded team may launch the puck to the opposite end of the rink, and play will continue: icing is not called. If the team with the advantage scores a goal while the other team is short handed, the penalty is over, unless it was a major penalty. If the team on the power play scores in a penalty shot, the penalized player must remain in the penalty box.
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