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The Sheffield Steelers and Nottingham Panthers let loose

As much as the skills displayed by the players, the rough stuff is a real crowd-pleaser and can be a way to take out the opposition's best player, so skysports.com defines exactly what is fair and foul in the fastest sport of them all.

Body checks led by the hip or the shoulder are legal and are part and parcel of the game, but there are a range of offences for which players can be penalised and sent to the sin-bin for a minimum of two minutes.

Offences include charging (a deliberate move of more than two steps to body check), elbowing, boarding (throwing an opponent violently into the rink's walls), tripping, crosschecking (using the shaft of the stick to check an opponent from behind), high sticks, roughing (fighting) and unsportsmanlike conduct.

Interference is called when a player attempts to impede the motion of another player not in possession of the puck.

Misdemeanours

Hooking is an illegal use of the stick by hooking any part of the opponent's body to impede their progress.

Slashing occurs when a player swings his stick hard at an opponent, even if contact is not made. If injury is caused it becomes a major penalty (five minutes) and a game misconduct.

Major penalties are usually determined by whether an injury is caused, but there are some offences which immediately warrant a five-minute sin binning.

Butt-ending is an example of an offence that incurs an automatic major penalty and is when a player jabs an opponent with the shaft of his stick, while spearing is another, and is when a player illegally jabs, or even just attempts to jab, the point of his stick blade into an opponent's body.

Fights

Powerplays occur when one team has more players on the ice than the opposition and no substitutions can be made by a penalised team during this time, but if the non-penalised team scores a goal during this time it will bring an immediate end to the minor penalty.

Goaltenders cannot serve penalties so one of their team-mates must sit in the box in their place. A delayed penalty has to be called though when a team has only four players on the ice and will be assessed by the officials only when one of the team is out of the penalty box.

Two linesmen and a referee control the game and they will not intervene in a fight until one of those involved falls from his feet. Both players incur a major penalty for dropping their gloves and fighting, but the instigator is usually handed an extra two minutes for starting the ruckus.

Each team has an enforcer, otherwise known as a policeman, who will be the most penalised player on his team, and is someone who likes to fight. He will be expected to protect his team-mates from harm.

And finally, a penalty shot is a free shot awarded to a player who has been illegally interfered with, preventing him from a clear scoring opportunity. The shot is taken with only the goalie guarding against it.