THE DICTIONARY
Every sport has its language. Hockey has bar down, nasty, silky, sick mitts, greasy — words that mean something different inside a rink. This is the definitive guide.
A player who plays with an edge — aggressively skilled, physically imposing, and impossible to contain. Nasty is a compliment. It means you compete hard on every shift, you're not afraid to get in the corners, and the other team knows it.
"He's nasty in the corners — the other team hates playing against him."Shop the nasty. tee & hoodie →
A shot that hits the crossbar and deflects straight down into the net. The sound of puck-on-post followed by goal horn is unmistakable. Bar down is the hockey equivalent of perfection — high, hard, and undeniable.
"He ripped one bar down from the top of the circle — the goalie never had a chance."Shop the bar down. tee & hoodie →
Exceptional hands. A player with sick mitts can stickhandle through traffic, deke goalies out of their skates, and make plays no one else even sees. Mitts = hands = puck-handling ability. Sick = elite, exceptional, jaw-dropping.
"Did you see that move? Absolute sick mitts — he went through three guys like they were pylons."Shop the sick mitts. tee & hoodie →
Smooth, effortless, and elegant. A silky skater makes it look easy — fluid edges, seamless transitions, never a wasted motion. Silky can describe skating, stickhandling, or a player's overall game when it flows without apparent effort.
"Her skating is silky — she glides through the neutral zone like the ice was made for her."Shop the silky. tee & hoodie →
A dirty goal. Not a beauty — no bar down, no deke, no setup. Greasy means parking yourself in the crease, battling through traffic, and burying whatever loose puck comes your way. Ugly, scrappy, and worth exactly the same on the scoresheet.
"He camped in front, absorbed two slashes, and stuffed in a greasy one off the pad."Shop the greasy. tee & hoodie →
The top forward line — the three best forwards on the team who get the most ice time, face the toughest matchups, and are trusted to score in the biggest moments. Every player wants first-line minutes. Not everyone earns them.
"Coach moved him up to the first line tonight — he made the most of it."Shop the first line. tee & hoodie →
A term of pure admiration — for a goal, a play, a move, or a person who just gets it. "Beauty" alone is high praise. "Absolute beauty" means there are no notes, no adjustments needed. It was exactly what it needed to be.
"Absolute beauty — top shelf, glove side, didn't even flinch."Shop the absolute beauty. tee & hoodie →
Three essential hockey words: a gino is a goal, an apple is an assist, and a tilly is a fight. Each term is unique to hockey culture — the language players actually use in dressing rooms, on benches, and in rinks across North America.
"Two apples and a gino tonight — and he threw his tilly in the third to fire up the team."Shop the gino. / apple. / tilly. tee & hoodie →