Butt-ending
is very similar to Spearing except that the opposite end of the stick is
being used. Butt-ending
occurs when a player slides his upper hand (the hand closest to the top
end of the hockey stick) down the shaft of the stick a few inches, and
uses the remainder of the exposed stick above the upper hand to hit an
opponent.
DOUBLE MINOR
PENALTY EXAMPLE
Butt-ending
if rarely called, and when it is, it usually results in a Match penalty,
however there are some instances when a double Minor penalty will be
assessed. One such example is
when an attacking player is in the corner digging for the puck against an
opponent that is located behind and to the side of him.
This attacking player out of frustration slides his upper hand down
the shaft of his stick and hits the opponent in the chest with the
butt-end. This is what would
be considered a double Minor penalty.
The
only problem with this situation is that it is much more difficult to
catch a Butt-Ending infraction than it is to see a Spear because players
are sneaky and they tend to only pop the butt-end of the stick out at the
last second, hit the opponent, and then slide their hand back up the shaft
of the stick all within a second or two.
Unless the referee is close to the infraction it is difficult to
catch this type of penalty.
Most
of the double Minor Butt-ending penalties occur when there are many
players close together. Sometimes
you may see an elbowing penalty assessed instead of a Butt-Ending penalty
because players tend to hide the butt-end of their stick with their elbow.
MATCH PENALTY
EXAMPLE
This
is much more obvious than the double minor situation because it usually
results in an injury to the player receiving the butt-end.
One very common Match penalty that is called because of a butt-end
occurs when a player gets butt-ended in the neck as this is a vulnerable
area with little protection.
This
infraction tends to occur as a player is about to throw a check on an
opponent. The checker skates
towards the opponent and just as he is about to hit him the opponent tries
to dodge the check. By doing this, the checker now has to readjust in a
split second. When the
checker readjusts he tends to bring his arms up to in an attempt to hit
the player who is now about a stride away.
When he does this he slides his fist down the shaft of the stick
and contacts the opponent in the head region with the butt-end.
If the butt-end hits the opponent on the facemask or helmet it will
cause little damage and may be called a double Minor penalty.
However, if the stick contacts the neck region there tends to be an
injury and this helps the referee determine that a butt-end occurred.
BUTT-END
HOOKING
This
is a common occurrence and it is also considered a stick infraction for
the purpose of enforcing the multiple stick infraction game ejection rule.
Butt-end hooking is exactly what is sounds like. The extended end
of the stick is used to hook some portion of an opponent’s body in order
to impede his progress. The possibility of injury is increased because of
the sharp end of the stick penetrating a vulnerable spot on the body. This
can be called hooking and given a two-minute minor, or it can result in a
double minor for butt-ending, depending on the discretion of the referee.
