Editing Goaltender (section)

===Empty net situations===
[[File:Delayed penalty.jpg|thumb|A delayed penalty call situation, in which the referee (top-left) indicates a coming penalty by raising his arm, and prepares to blow the whistle when a player from the team to be penalized (in white) touches the puck. Goaltender [[Jere Myllyniemi]] can be seen (right) rushing to the bench to send on an extra attacker.]]

Normally, the goaltender plays in or near the goal crease the entire game. However, teams may legally ''pull the goalie'' by substituting in a normal skater and taking the goaltender off the ice. A team temporarily playing with no goaltender is said to be playing with an ''empty net''. This gives the team an extra attacker, but at significant risk—if the opposing team gains control of the puck, they may easily score a goal. However, shooters that attempt to score on an empty net from the opposite side of the red line face getting called for [[Icing (ice hockey)|icing]] the puck if they miss the net. There are two common situations where a goaltender is generally pulled, as well as two less common situations:

:1. '''The opposing team has a [[delayed penalty]] coming against them'''
::The offended team, if in control of the puck, will pull their goaltender for an extra man. This is safe since as soon as a player on the team to be penalized touches the puck, the whistle is called, so they cannot score on the empty net. This effectively increases the one-man disadvantage beyond the standard penalty time. It is possible, however, for a team to accidentally score on their own empty net.
:2. '''A team needs a goal in order to avoid losing (such as trailing in the remaining minute or two of a game)'''
::The 6 on 5 play advantage is very risky, as it is fairly certain that if the opposing team gets control of the puck they will be able to [[Empty net goal|score on the empty net]]. Sometimes if a team is trailing in the last minutes of regulation, and has a power play advantage, they may pull the goaltender for a 6 on 4 or even 6 on 3 advantage.
:3. '''In the last few seconds of a period with a faceoff in the attacking zone'''
::Because the defending team would likely not have enough time to start an attack even if they win the faceoff, the attacking team may pull the goalie to have a short man advantage.
:4. '''In a tournament that takes goal differential into account, a team may pull the goalie with a significant amount of time left in an effort to create a more advantageous goal differential.'''
::If the team could be eliminated even if they win but could still advance with a loss based on goal differential, the team may decide it has nothing to lose by trying to score with a man advantage, similar to the second situation.
A goal scored in an empty net situation is not recorded as a shot faced or goal against on the personal stats of the goaltender who has left the ice.