five hole

Also five-hole

noun

Ice Hockey Slang.

1. the opening between a goaltender's parted legs.

Word History and Origins

Origin of five hole¹

First recorded in 2000–05; the four corners of the goal being the other four holes

Example Sentences

Arvidsson went five hole with a wrist shot from the left faceoff circle after getting the puck near the blue line and making a spin move to get past Oilers defenseman Vincent Desharnais.

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“I have to be honest. I first couldn’t believe it, because I had this pump-fake, five hole move in my head but I thought I’m way too far out, but somehow I didn’t see it going in and it still got in so it was pretty cool,” Hischier said.

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Grubauer earned some love from the crowd near the game’s midway point when he hit the splits but kept his five hole closed, sliding across the crease to deny Vancouver’s Tyler Myers.

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“I love having him in the five hole. There’s going to be RBI opportunities in that spot. Last year when we first acquired and early in this season, this guy can hit all the pitches. He uses the whole field to hit. So it really has made a difference for us offensively.”

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“It’s impossible, even if you wanted to, to stand up with the pads that they’re wearing today because if you stood up and tried to make a save, you can’t get your heels together to close your five hole,” goalie-turned NBC Sports analyst Brian Boucher said.

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