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You may have watched many ice hockey games where teams of skaters run around chasing, passing, and shooting a hockey puck. However, while many look at the players, what about the puck? What is the puck like, and how much does a puck weigh?
An ice hockey puck generally weighs around 5.5 to 6 ounces (156 – 171gm). For youth-level games, pucks may only weigh between 4 – 4.5 ounces (113 – 127gm). Ice hockey pucks are often made of vulcanized rubber and may be colored in black (full size) or blue (youth.)
This article discusses the weight of hockey pucks, as well as some other questions that you may have about hockey pucks themselves. For example, why they are called hockey pucks and what they are made of.
How Much Does A Hockey Puck Weigh?
Adult-sized ice hockey pucks generally weigh around 5.5 to 6 ounces (156 – 171gm). A lightweight puck is used for youth-level games, weighing approximately 4 – 4.5 ounces (113 – 127gm). It is recommended that the light puck is used for games with players under age 10 to compensate for their lack of strength.
Ice hockey pucks may be made and manufactured by many companies. Still, ice hockey pucks come only in two standard sizes, adult and lightweight. Adult pucks usually come in black color, while lightweight pucks are in blue color.
Adult-sized ice hockey pucks weigh around 5.5 to 6 ounces (156 – 171gm). A lightweight puck is used for youth-level games, weighing about 4 – 4.5 ounces (113 – 127gm). Despite the weight difference, the size remains the same. All hockey pucks are in a perfect circle disk shape, with a one-inch thickness (2.54cm) and a diameter of three inches (7.62cm).
USA Hockey encourages all games with players under 10 years old to use lightweight pucks. This is because lightweight pucks may allow younger players to play the game well, despite their lack of size and strength.
You may like this article: How Long Are NHL Games?
Is A Hockey Puck Heavier Than A Baseball?
A hockey puck is heavier than a baseball. A full-sized ice hockey puck weighs around 5.5 to 6 ounces (156 – 171 gm). A baseball weighs between 5 – 5.25 ounces (141-149 gm). However, a baseball is heavier than a lightweight hockey puck, which weighs around 4 – 4.5 ounces (113 – 127gm.)
Hockey pucks are surprisingly heavier than baseball, despite their slightly smaller size. This is probably because it is made with solid vulcanized rubber. Baseball, in turn, is mainly made of cork and is then wrapped in yarn and covered with hides.
However, a lightweight ice hockey puck would be lighter than an actual baseball. A lightweight ice hockey puck weighs around 4 – 4.5 ounces (113 – 127gm), which is lighter than a baseball.
It might not be a fair idea to compare a lightweight puck against an adult baseball, but this is done because there is no lightweight baseball. For lower-level baseballs, players may play with similar baseballs. The only difference is that lower-level baseballs tend to have a higher seam. The idea is to make the ball more durable.
What Is The Heaviest Puck?
The heaviest ice hockey puck would be the XHP Pugi Heavy Weight Hockey Puck. It weighs 41.6oz (1.18KG), about seven times the weight of a regular full-sized puck. The puck is also larger than usual, at 2.5 inches (6.35cm) tall and 3 inches (7.62cm) in diameter. The puck is not meant for gameplay but for practicing.
For gameplay, only two types of ice hockey pucks are allowed – the adult size or the lightweight size. However, ice hockey pucks of different weights were also created, primarily for purposes such as training.
For example, Viceroy made a training puck that is 10oz (284gm) in weight. The puck is intended to allow players additional resistance when shooting and passing. This, in turn, may help to improve their shooting and passing skills. Viceroy colored the puck brown to differentiate it from game pucks.
The heaviest game puck these days is the XHP Pugi Heavy Weight Hockey Puck. It weighs 41.6oz (1.18KG). The puck is also larger than usual, at 2.5 inches (6.35cm) tall and 3 inches (7.62cm) in diameter. The weight is almost seven times heavier than the regular, full-sized puck.
The puck is also not used for games but for practice. The reason for such additional weight is to allow players extra resistance during passing, shooting, receiving, and stick handling. XHP also suggested that the pucks can be used for stickhandling drills.
It is believed that by constantly using heavier pucks, players develop more strength. As a result, when they transfer back to regular pucks during games, they can easily shoot, pass and handle pucks since game pucks are much lighter.
What Is Hockey Puck Made Of?
Modern ice hockey pucks were made of solid vulcanized rubber. However, in the earlier days, the hockey puck could be made of rubber, wood, and even frozen cow dung wrapped in liver leather.
The first ice hockey pucks have a much more humble origin than the pucks today. The first pucks made for the game were from frozen cow dung, wrapped in leather liver pads.
Owing to their materials, these early pucks do not last long. The pucks had a lifespan of about one game. Usually, they become too soft or too hard to play with, depending on the weather.
Attempts were made to improve the puck by switching to wood. By the 1870s, most pucks were made of wood and rubber. Some of the earlier wooden pucks were made in the shape of a square. In fact, for the first indoor ice hockey game, a wooden puck was used.
The first rubber pucks were made by modifying the rubber ball. Makers will slice the ball and trim the edges to arrive at a disk square. The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Canada, made and used the first round rubber pucks in the 1880s.
Why is a Hockey Puck Called a Puck?
The term ‘puck’ may either originate from the character Puck in William Shakespeare’s play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream.’ The word may also stem from Scottish and Irish settlers in Canada, who used the term ‘puc’ or ‘poc’ to push or deliver a blow.
Several origin stories may bring about the term puck.
First, the word may have originated from William Shakespeare’s play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream.’ One of the characters is called Puck, a mischievous sprite and jester. Puck has a habit of flying around at a high pace and frequently switching directions.
People started to associate the ice hockey puck’s movement with Puck itself, since during a game, the ice hockey puck is also traveling fast, bouncing around, and may switch direction unexpectedly. Eventually, the name stuck.
Another relates the name to the earlier Scottish and Irish settlers in Nova Scotia, Canada. The word ‘Puck’ may have originated from the Scots Gaelic ‘POC’ or the Irish ‘puc,’ which means ‘to push, and deliver a blow.’
These terms were initially used in the traditional Gaelic game of Shinty or hurling. Still, they may have been introduced into Canada by Scottish and Irish settlers. As ice hockey developed, it may have been played primarily by these people as well, eventually adopting the term into the game.
Aside from the word puck, you may also hear the term ‘biscuit’ used to describe a hockey puck. You may also hear the phrase ‘put the biscuit in the basket,’ which means to score a goal in an ice hockey game.
