How to Run a Full Hockey Game with the Rink Board

The Forecheck Hockey rink board isn't just a play designer. It's a complete game management system that handles scorekeeping, shift tracking, penalty logs, faceoff stats, and even arena music. This guide walks you through running an entire game from warmup to final buzzer.

Before the Game

Set Up Rosters

Open the Rosters panel (Panels > Rosters or Alt+3). Add your home and away teams:

1. Click the Home tab
2. Enter each player: jersey number, name, and position (C, LW, RW, LD, RD, G)
3. Add notes if needed — these show as tooltips when players are on the rink
4. Repeat for the Away tab

Build your lines: Switch to the Lines tab. Create forward lines (LW/C/RW) and defense pairs (LD/RD) for each team. These power the one-click line change buttons in the shift tracker later.

Set goalies: In the scoreboard, use the goalie dropdown under SOG to select the starting goalie for each team.

Configure the Scoreboard

Open the Scoreboard (Panels > Scoreboard or Alt+1):

1. Enter team names — click the name field above each score
2. Set team colors — click the color dot next to each name
3. Set the period to "Warm" for warmup
4. Set the clock to your warmup time (usually 10-15 minutes)

Set Up Arena DJ (Optional)

Click the DJ tab in the scoreboard:

1. Toggle DJ ON
2. Paste a YouTube playlist URL for Stoppage music
3. Paste a different URL for Intermission music
4. Type the DJ name if someone is managing the music

Running the Game

Start the Period

1. Set the period to 1st
2. Set the clock to your period length (10, 15, or 20 minutes)
3. Click the play button to start the clock

The clock counts down. Shifts track. Music cuts. You're live.

On Every Whistle

When play stops, click the pause button on the period clock. The whistle sound plays. If Arena DJ is enabled, stoppage music fades in.

While the clock is stopped:

• Log goals: Open Scorekeeping (Alt+2) > Scoring Log > "+ Goal". Select team, type scorer name (the datalist suggests from your roster), add assists, and click "Log Goal". The score auto-increments and the horn plays.
• Log penalties: In the Scoreboard's Penalties tab, select team, player, infraction, and click "+ Add Penalty". A timer starts automatically. The player's shift ends and they move to the penalty box in Game View.
• Track faceoffs: Open Scorekeeping > Faceoff Tracker > "+ Faceoff". Select zone, team, player, and result.

Managing Shifts

Open the Shift Tracker in the Scorekeeping panel. Players are grouped by position (Forwards, Defense, Goalies).

• Click ON next to a player's name to start their shift
• Click END to end it
• Use the line-change buttons above the player list (if you defined lines) — one click ends the current group and starts the new line

TOI only accumulates when the period clock is running. When you pause for a whistle, shifts pause too.

Between Periods

1. Let the clock reach 0:00 (buzzer plays automatically)
2. Set the period to Int (Intermission)
3. Set the intermission clock and start it — intermission music plays
4. When intermission ends, set the period to 2nd and reset the clock

Game View

Press GV in the toolbar at any time. The rink transforms into a live game visualization:

• On-ice players appear at their positions with live stats (G, A, PTS, TOI)
• Bench players sit on their team's bench
• Penalized players are in the penalty box with their timer
• Active goalies are in the crease with saves and SV%

This updates in real time and is visible to anyone watching via a spectator link.

After the Game

Print the Game Summary

Go to Menu > Export > Game Summary. This opens a printable page with:

• Box score (final score, teams, period)
• Scoring summary by period with goal scorers, assists, and types
• Penalty summary
• Shots on goal
• Goalie stats (saves, goals against, SV%)
• Player stats (G, A, PTS, PIM) for both teams
• Time on ice report
• Faceoff stats by zone
• Officials

Save to Season

Open the Season panel (Alt+7) and click "Save Game". The result is added to your season record with W-L-T-OTL tracking and cumulative player stats.

Back Up Your Data

Go to Menu > Export > Backup All Data to download everything as a JSON file. This saves rosters, game data, season records, boards, animations, and all settings. You can restore this backup on any browser.

Tips for Game Day

• Use a tablet or laptop at the scorer's table — the rink board works on any screen size
• Open Scoreboard + Scorekeeping side by side — scoreboard for the clock/score, scorekeeping for detailed logs
• Assign roles — one person runs the clock, another logs goals/penalties. With collaboration, both can edit everything — rosters, scoring, shifts, faceoffs, and the scoreboard all sync in real time between connected devices
• Share a spectator link — parents and fans can follow the scoreboard live on their phones
• Use collaboration — open the Online panel, create a room, and share the code with your assistant coach. Everything syncs: rosters, goals, penalties, shifts, faceoffs, clock, and the full scoreboard. No more shouting across the bench
• Print the game summary immediately after — coaches want stats while the game is fresh

The rink board was built for exactly this workflow. Everything saves automatically to your browser. No accounts, no cloud, no subscriptions. Just open the Rink Board and play hockey.