Delay of game

Stalling the game (for example, shooting the puck out of play from the defensive zone, holding the puck in the hand, refusing to send players out for a faceoff, or even repeated deliberate offsides). Starting in the 2004-05 AHL season and advanced to the NHL in the a year later, an automatic delay of game penalty is charged to goaltenders that go into the corners behind the goal line (outside a trapezoid-shaped area just behind the net) to play the puck. Some delay of game offenses, such as taking too long to send players to take a faceoff, are not punished with a penalty: instead, the official may choose to eject the centre of the offending team from the face-off circle and order him replaced with another player already on the ice.