Men’s Olympic hockey opens Wednesday in Milan, Italy, with Slovakia facing Finland, and fans tuning in will notice several rule changes from the NHL. The Vegas Golden Knights have players on Sweden and other teams, but the tournament’s format and regulations are governed by the IIHF, not the NHL.

Group stage and points

Twelve teams are divided into three groups of four. Group A: Canada, Switzerland, Czechia, France. Group B: Finland, Sweden, Slovakia, Italy. Group C: United States, Germany, Latvia, Denmark. Each team plays three round-robin games. The three group winners and the best second-place team earn byes to the quarterfinals; the other eight teams play a qualification playoff. Points are awarded differently: three for a win in regulation, two for an overtime or shootout win, one for an overtime loss, and zero for a regulation loss.

Overtime rules

Overtime formats change as the tournament progresses. In the round-robin, it’s a five-minute three-on-three period followed by a shootout. In the quarterfinals, overtime extends to 10 minutes before a shootout. The gold medal game uses 20-minute three-on-three periods until a winner is determined.

Fighting and ejections

Unlike the NHL, fighting in Olympic hockey results in an immediate ejection, not a five-minute major. So don’t expect brawls like those seen in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Rink size

Olympic rinks are typically larger (197 feet long by 98.5 feet wide) than NHL rinks (200 by 85), but the Milan rink measures 196.85 feet long and 85.3 feet wide, similar to NHL dimensions used in the 2022 Beijing Games.