Ice hockey games can vary in length depending on the league and level of play. Professional hockey games are generally longer than amateur or youth games. The Solar Bears are a professional hockey team based in Orlando, Florida that plays in the ECHL (formerly known as the East Coast Hockey League). As an ECHL team, Solar Bears games follow the league’s guidelines for game length.
Regulation Time
A regulation ECHL hockey game is divided into three 20-minute periods, for a total of 60 minutes of regulation play. This does not include any overtime or shootout time that may be required if the score is tied at the end of regulation. So at minimum, a regular season Solar Bears game will go for 60 minutes of play time.
Intermissions
Between each period there is an intermission break to allow the players to rest and recover. The intermissions between periods last for 17 minutes. Here is a breakdown of the intermission lengths:
- Between 1st and 2nd period – 17 minutes
- Between 2nd and 3rd period – 17 minutes
So with two 17-minute intermissions, an additional 34 minutes is added to the game length.
Regular Season Overtime
If the score is tied at the end of the 3rd period, a 5-minute sudden death overtime period is played. This adds approximately 5-10 extra minutes to the game.
Overtime during the regular season is played 4-on-4 (only 4 skaters plus the goalie for each team on the ice). The first team to score during overtime is declared the winner.
Shootout
If no goal is scored during the 5-minute overtime period, a shootout will take place to determine the winner. In a shootout, each team takes turns attempting penalty shots on the opposing goalie. Three skaters from each team alternate shots until one team converts and the other does not.
The shootout usually lasts 3-5 minutes, sometimes longer if additional rounds are needed. So combine overtime and the shootout, and you can expect around 10 extra minutes added to the standard game time.
Playoff Overtime
In the playoffs, overtime is extended and there is no shootout. Instead, 20-minute sudden death overtimes are played until a goal is scored. Since playoff overtime periods are full 20-minute periods played 3-on-3, they can sometimes go on for an hour or more!
Here are some examples of extremely long playoff overtime games:
- 2016 – Lake Erie Monsters vs Ontario Reign: Game lasted 122 minutes, 3 seconds
- 2008 – Philadelphia Flyers vs Albany River Rats: Game lasted 142 minutes, 58 seconds
So while playoff overtime can dramatically lengthen the game, lasting over an hour in some cases, during the regular season overtime typically adds no more than 10 minutes to the standard game time.
Television Timeouts
One other factor that can extend the time of a hockey game is television timeouts. For televised games, there are scheduled commercial breaks referred to as “television timeouts.” These short breaks allow the network to air commercials during the game.
In the ECHL, there are two television timeouts per period. These TV timeouts add around 4 minutes to each period, or about 12 minutes to the total game time.
Summary of Game Length
To summarize, here are the contributing factors to the length of a regular season Solar Bears ECHL game:
3 regulation periods | 20 minutes |
2 intermissions | 34 minutes |
Overtime (if needed) | 5-10 minutes |
Television timeouts | 12 minutes |
So a typical Solar Bears game lasts between 2 hours 10 minutes up to 2 hours 30 minutes, depending on whether overtime is played. Playoff games can last significantly longer due to the extended overtime format.
How Long Do Fans Need to Commit?
For fans attending a Solar Bears game, it’s a good idea to block out 3 hours in your schedule. This accounts for:
- Pregame warmups – 30-45 minutes
- Game time – 2 hours 10 minutes to 2 hours 30 minutes
- Staying for celebrations if your team wins
By planning for approximately 3 hours at the arena, you ensure you’ll have plenty of time to enjoy the entire game experience even if overtime or lengthy intermissions extend the game length.
Other Game Length Factors
While overtime, intermissions, and TV timeouts add to the scheduled time of the game, there are a few other potential factors that could alter game length:
- Injuries – If a player gets injured and play has to be stopped for medical evaluation, it can pause the game for several minutes.
- Video review – Referees may review goals and penalty calls, delaying the game while they watch video replays.
- Fights/brawls – Rarely, on-ice fights between players can break out and lead to several minutes of game delays and penalty assessments.
- Weather delays – For outdoor games, inclement weather like heavy rain or snow could force delays to the game.
However, these types of delays don’t typically add a significant amount of time. The scheduled intermissions, overtime and TV timeouts are the primary factors extending games beyond the standard 60 minutes of regulation play.
Average Game Length Statistics
Looking at league-wide statistics, the average length of an ECHL game is around 2 hours and 24 minutes. This accounts for some games extending into overtime and shootouts. By comparison, NHL games tend to run longer with an average length of 2 hours and 30 minutes.
According to QuantHockey, here are the average ECHL game lengths over the past 10 seasons:
Season | Average Game Length |
2022-23 | 2 hours 27 minutes |
2021-22 | 2 hours 25 minutes |
2020-21 | 2 hours 21 minutes |
2019-20 | 2 hours 26 minutes |
2018-19 | 2 hours 24 minutes |
2017-18 | 2 hours 19 minutes |
2016-17 | 2 hours 23 minutes |
2015-16 | 2 hours 25 minutes |
2014-15 | 2 hours 19 minutes |
2013-14 | 2 hours 21 minutes |
This shows that on average, Solar Bears and ECHL games run between 2 hours 20 minutes to 2 hours 30 minutes including overtime and intermissions. The pace of play and amount of stoppages impact the exact game length night to night.
How Game Length Compares to Other Sports
Compared to other popular pro sports in North America, ECHL hockey games are longer than NBA basketball games which average 2 hours and 15 minutes, but shorter than MLB baseball games which clock in around 3 hours on average. NFL football games tend to fall between the two, averaging over 3 hours typically.
The stop-and-go flow of hockey with line changes, offsides, icing and penalties makes it slower paced than basketball’s constant motion. But hockey has fewer commercial breaks and more continuous play than football.
Here is a chart comparing the average length of pro sporting events:
Sport | Average Game Length |
---|---|
NBA Basketball | 2 hours 15 minutes |
ECHL Hockey | 2 hours 25 minutes |
NFL Football | Over 3 hours |
MLB Baseball | Over 3 hours |
Conclusion
To summarize, a Solar Bears ECHL hockey game typically lasts around 2 hours and 25 minutes on average. The regulation 60 minutes of play time is extended by intermissions, potential overtime, shootouts and television timeouts. Fans should block out 3 hours in their schedule for a complete game experience. While hockey has more continuous action than football, the various stoppages make it slower paced than basketball. But hockey strikes a nice balance between the faster pace of basketball and longer duration of baseball games.