Getting started: from first skate to first game.

Step one: learn to skate

Skating comes first. The NHL's Learn to Play page for the Nashville Predators strongly recommends a learn-to-skate class before a child joins the programme. In the United States, a Bowling Green State University rink page describes Learn to Skate USA as the national beginner skating curriculum sponsored by U.S. Figure Skating and USA Hockey. That description comes from a rink's page rather than the programme's own site, so we could not confirm it. Ask at your local rink which skating classes it offers.

Step two: a beginner programme

Several programmes are designed for children who have never played. They differ by country, age range and format:

The Ontario Hockey Federation's overview says First Shift was created by Bauer Hockey and Hockey Canada, that the NHL and NHLPA support it through the seven Canadian NHL clubs and alumni, and that co-ed sessions reserve places with a goal of 50 percent girls' registration. The Hockey News (1 July 2026), citing Hockey Canada, reported that 4,002 girls took part in First Shift in 2025-26. Graduates can move to a local Transition Program or a minor hockey team. USA Hockey says nearly 265,000 children and families have taken part in Try Hockey For Free days.

Dates, places and age limits change each season and from club to club, so check the current details with the programme, your local NHL club or your national federation before you sign up.

Step three: join an association

After a beginner programme, players register with a local association affiliated to their national body: USA Hockey in the United States or Hockey Canada in Canada (see governing bodies). USA Hockey's About page describes its American Development Model (ADM) as its blueprint for age-appropriate development. The player development page explains how the federations stage skills by age.

Hockey Canada's 2026-28 Playing Rules (Rule 2.1(b)) say every team's bench staff must include at least one coach who meets the Member's certification requirements and one Hockey Canada Safety Person. Under Hockey Canada's 2026-28 rules, body checking is a penalty in U13 and below and in female hockey (Rule 7.3), and USA Hockey's ADM article of 2016 puts full body checking in games at 14U; see body-checking rules.

What the rulebooks say you must wear

Equipment rules differ by governing body:

• Hockey Canada Playing Rules 2026-28 (Rule 3.6): all players, including goaltenders, wear a CSA-certified helmet with a CSA-certified facial protector attached and unaltered, on the ice and in warm-ups. A full facial protector is compulsory in all categories except Senior and Major Junior, which may use a visor; the rule makes facial protection recommended but optional in male adult recreational hockey. Players registered in minor and female hockey must also wear a BNQ-certified throat protector. Altering a certified helmet or facial protector destroys the certification.
• USA Hockey 2025-29: USA Hockey said on 16 September 2025 that its rules require neck laceration protection for all youth, girls and high school players and for officials under 18. Minnesota Hockey wrote on 4 January 2021 that HECC-certified helmets are required for all USA Hockey sanctioned activities, and that attaching anything to a certified helmet voids the certification unless the maker approves it and HECC verifies it.
• IIHF Rule Book 2026/27 (Rule 9.12): a neck laceration protector is mandatory for all players in all categories of IIHF competition.

Before buying or using any helmet, cage or neck guard, read its certification sticker and check your association's current rules. The helmet sticker checker explains what to look for, and the fitting and sizing page covers fit.

Equipment is only part of the start. A qualified coach and your association's programme are the right place to learn the game safely, and the beginner gear guide lists the categories a new player needs.