-About Floorball

-Purchasing discounted floorball equipment

-Checking out the shared Floorball gear

-Where to play

 

About Floorball

Floorball hockey,  called Bandy in Sweden and Unihoc in Switzerland, is a simple, safe, fast and FUN hockey variant played in a gym.  It is great dry land training for ice hockey players, and for that reason it is played at more than 150 Hockey Canada Skill Academies.  

 

Sticks are shorter (come up to the belly button), lighter and rounder than traditional “floor hockey” sticks, to reduce the risk of injury.  The ball is a light “whiffle” ball, for the same reason.

 

Rules are slightly different from floor hockey, mostly for safety reasons: 

 

No “stick checking” – you may not Hit, Kick, Block, Lift or push down opponent's stick 

High sticking #1:  You can’t play the ball above knee level (with stick or foot) 

High sticking #2: You can’t lift your stick above waist level 

No reaching your stick between the legs of your opponent. 

No playing on the ground - you can’t play with any part of your body (except your feet) on the ground.  (The goalie is exempt from this rule.) 

No hand balls (The goalie is exempt from this rule.) 

You can’t kick the ball twice in a row. 

The goalie doesn’t use a stick (but does need a mask). 

Here are some videos to help you visualize the game:

http://www.floorballpro.com/shop/pages.php?pageid=17 

Includes 3 videos

  *promo video set to music 

  *"What Is Floorball" informational video

  *Sweden vs Finland (2008 Worlds)

 

http://www.xfloor.tv/  (a website entirely devoted to floorball videos)

 

 

Purchasing Discounted Floorball Equipment   

Our partners at Floorball Planet have offered us a great deal to help promote the sport:  Anything you order from www.floorballplanet.com results in a 10% discount for you, a free ball with every new stick, and a 5% donation back to MidCoast.   Just enter  coupon code "MCYHA" at checkout to activate your discount and the donation.  And if you bought a stick, in the comments simply add "please include free ball for MCYHA member".   

 

Remember: floorball sticks are shorter than hockey sticks!  They should only come up to your belly button.  For best results, measure from floor to your belly button, in centimeters, and find the best match.

 

Checking Out The Shared Gear

MCYHA has purchased 2 sets of 12 sticks and several balls that can be reserved and signed out from Play It Again Sports during business hours. 

Please do not bend blades of shared sticks. 

Please do not use shared gear on asphalt. 

Other gear to consider – goals (standard hockey dimensions) and helmet with cage for goalies, possibly pinnies … that’s it!

 

Where To Play:

 MCYHA will typically obtain permission and an  insurance cert to conduct dry-land training at  any SAD 75 (Topsham-Bowdoin-Bowdoinham school district) facility. 

Coaches may schedule additional floorball sessions for their teams by contacting the front office of a SAD 75 school and filling out a use form.  (Do not expect "prime time" hours, rec and school basketball have alredy reserved the best spots.)

Coaches are directly responsible for rental fees on a pay-as-you-go basis ($10 or $20 per hour depending on gym size.  It is suggested that you ask families to chip in $1 or $2 per player to cover this charge.)