Power play

A power play is awarded to a hockey team when a player on the opposing team commits a foul. The offending player is then temporarily removed from the game, giving his team a penalty.

A power play can last two minutes, four minutes, or five minutes depending on the severity of the penalty. In North America a two-minute power play ends when the team with the extra man scores. In North America the shorthanded team is also allowed to ice the puck (see Ice hockey).

Recently, 'power play' has also been observed floating around in rugby league, where it refers to the act of running the ball on fifth tackle instead of kicking it.