NHL Hockey Basics – answers and explanations
Here are the answers to all 15 questions in the NHL Hockey Basics quiz, each with a short explanation. Test your knowledge of NHL teams, stars and the Stanley Cup. Haven't played yet? Take the quiz first and compare your score.
Play the quiz · 15 questions1. Which NHL team has won the Stanley Cup more times than any other?
Answer: Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens hold the record with 24 Stanley Cup titles, far ahead of Toronto (13), Detroit (11) and Boston (6). Their run included five straight championships from 1956 to 1960.
2. Which jersey number did Wayne Gretzky famously wear throughout his NHL career?
Answer: 99
Wayne Gretzky wore number 99 with Edmonton, Los Angeles, St. Louis and the New York Rangers; the NHL retired 99 league-wide in 2000, the only number so honoured.
3. Sidney Crosby has spent his whole NHL career with a team from which city?
Answer: Pittsburgh
Sidney Crosby has played his entire NHL career with the Pittsburgh Penguins since being drafted first overall in 2005, winning three Stanley Cups and captaining the team since 2007.
4. How long does a player sit in the penalty box for a standard minor penalty?
Answer: 2 minutes
A standard minor penalty is two minutes in the penalty box, and it ends early if the opposing team scores on the resulting power play; majors are five minutes and misconducts ten.
5. The Golden Knights, Cup winners in 2023, represent which US city?
Answer: Las Vegas
The Vegas Golden Knights play at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip and won their first Stanley Cup on June 13, 2023, beating the Florida Panthers 9-3 in Game 5.
6. Which NHL team has Alex Ovechkin, the all-time goals leader, played for?
Answer: Washington Capitals
Alex Ovechkin has spent his entire NHL career with the Washington Capitals, who drafted him first overall in 2004. On April 6, 2025 he scored his 895th goal against the New York Islanders to pass Wayne Gretzky as the league's all-time leading goal scorer.
7. In hockey, what is it called when one player scores three goals in a single game?
Answer: A hat trick
Three goals by one player in a single game is a hat trick, a feat traditionally celebrated by fans throwing hats onto the ice. The term is believed to come from cricket, where a bowler taking three wickets in a row earned a hat.
8. How long is each of the three periods in a regulation NHL game?
Answer: 20 minutes
An NHL game consists of three 20-minute periods of play, for 60 minutes of regulation time, separated by intermissions. If the score is tied after regulation, the game goes to overtime and, in the regular season, possibly a shootout.
9. Which was the last Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup, lifting it in 1993?
Answer: Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens beat the Los Angeles Kings in 1993 for the last Stanley Cup won by a Canadian-based club. Canadian teams have reached several Finals since, including Vancouver in 2011 and Edmonton in 2024 and 2025, without winning.
10. Which NHL team plays its home games at Madison Square Garden?
Answer: New York Rangers
The New York Rangers play home games at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, the arena they have called home since 1926. The Islanders now play at UBS Arena in Elmont, while the Devils use Prudential Center in Newark.
11. Which trophy is awarded to the most valuable player of the NHL playoffs?
Answer: The Conn Smythe Trophy
The Conn Smythe Trophy has been awarded since 1965 to the most valuable player of the Stanley Cup playoffs, and it can go to a player on the losing team, as with Connor McDavid in 2024. The Hart goes to regular-season MVP, the Vezina to the top goalie and the Norris to the best defenseman.
12. Star center Connor McDavid wears the captain's 'C' for which NHL team?
Answer: Edmonton Oilers
Connor McDavid captains the Edmonton Oilers, who drafted him first overall in 2015 and named him the youngest captain in NHL history in 2016 at age 19.
13. At even strength, how many skaters per team are on the ice, not counting goalies?
Answer: Five
At full strength each NHL team has five skaters plus a goaltender on the ice, usually three forwards and two defensemen; penalties reduce a team to four or three skaters on the penalty kill.
14. What is the official term for a pass that directly sets up a teammate's goal?
Answer: An assist
An assist is credited to the player whose pass or touch set up a goal, with a maximum of two assists per goal; goals and assists together make up a player's points total.
15. The Stanley Cup is named after Lord Stanley, a governor general of which country?
Answer: Canada
Frederick Arthur, Lord Stanley of Preston, was Governor General of Canada from 1888 to 1893 and donated the trophy in 1892 as a challenge cup for Canada's top amateur hockey club; it was first awarded in 1893 to the Montreal club.