Ringette versus Hockey
Ringette was introduced as a sport less than forty years ago in Northern Ontario as an alternative to ice hockey. Many consider ringette to be the ultimate team participation ice sport. Here's why:
Ringette was designed to encourage team play. Rules require that the ring be passed over each blue line in any direction. This means that a passing play must occur at least twice to get from one end to the other. This simple requirement encourages team play and results in highly developed passing and positional skills.
Ringette has the speed and excitement without the roughness associated with hockey. In fact, the accepted clutching, grabbing and obstruction plays commonly found in hockey will put you in the cooler for two minutes in ringette. Size and stick handling skills are not as important as skating ability, agility and hand-eye coordination.
Players of all ages and genders play using the full set of rules. There are few special rules for beginners and “old timers.” The sole exception to this rule is the 30-second shot clock which, at this time, is only used in the Junior, Belle and Open divisions but is gradually being introduced to the younger divisions.
In ringette, the player stabs the ring and concentrates on skating. As a result, ringette players develop excellent skating skills since there is no need to focus on puck-handling. In fact, the best female hockey players at almost all levels very frequently learned their skating skills in Ringette. For example, Olympic and World speed skating champion, Catriona Lemay Doan, spent many developmental years as a ringette player.
Once introduced to ringette, most players enjoy its challenge and stick with it throughout their adolescent years. Adult ringette is also growing at a phenomenal rate in B.C. On the North Shore alone, the number of adult teams tripled in 2002.
