Need to keep the kiddos occupied and cheaply? This DIY Board Game is just the ticket. You can have a Nickel Hockey Tournament at home with this awesome game! All ages can play and enjoy this fun DIY Game.
Why make a DIY Board Game?
- It’s affordable! I made mine from scrap material I already had.
- Who wants to fight over Monopoly rules (again) when you could play this simple game?
- It’s customizable! Paint your hockey sticks with your favorite team colors.
- And, who doesn’t have a little extra time on their hands right now?
Right now is a great time to try your hand at some DIY projects! A DIY Board Game is a great way to slow down, incorporate some Hygge creativity into your life (check out this post on Hygge Spring Ideas!), and a Nickel Hockey Game Board also makes a great birthday or Christmas gift!
Check out the video below for the process and watch as I make one from scratch.
If this video inspires you to create something this weekend, leave me a comment and give this video a thumbs up!
I made my board about 32 inches long, 16 inches wide. But remember, it’s customizable to the supplies that YOU have.
Supplies:
Used laminate flooring
Milled scrap wood (side rail pieces)
Building Instructions
- After acquiring all the material, you’re going to go to the table saw, and you’re going to rip a 1/4″ inch deep dado groove into your side rail pieces that’s the thickness of whatever laminate flooring you’re using. You want to leave about 3/4″ inch of material above the laminate flooring.
- Now the tongue and groove of the laminate flooring need to be ripped off with the table saw; otherwise, it’s ready to click into another piece of flooring and won’t fit when you try to place it into the dado groove you made in your side rail pieces. Click the ripped laminate flooring together.
- Now, you’re going to cut the goals for the nickel hockey. Cut a half-circle, about 1 3/4″ inch in diameter. You can use a jigsaw, or a hole saw. Take a permanent marker and darken the inside of the goal holes.
- Insert the laminate into your grooved side rails and miter the corners together. Repeat on the following corners (it’s very similar to building a picture frame.) Glue the miters, you can also use screws or a brad gun to reinforce the edges. I used both. Now, you have two pieces of laminate flooring, framed by side rail pieces, with a hockey goal on either side.
- Now the fun part! Marking off your penalty lines and starting circle. On a game board this big, the penalty line should be around 5 inches from the bottom of the back rail. Again, a permanent marker works well for marking laminate flooring. The starting circle is centered in the middle of the board and roughly two inches in diameter.
- And for the hockey sticks. I used paint sticks for this; Home Depot has the best 5-gallon paint sticks. It’s roughly 4″ inches long and 2″ inches along the bottom (or width of paint stick.) Cut your hockey sticks out with a jigsaw. Print out the PDF for the pattern! Hockey Stick Pattern PDF
Rules of the Game
- Drop the nickel onto the middle of the board and let it begin!
- Don’t forget to utilize the side rails for ricocheting the nickel into your opponent’s goal.
- If you cross your opponent’s penalty line, they get a free unguarded shot on your goal from the penalty circle and vice/versa.
- The first person to make ten goals wins the game.
- Hint to all players, if you play too aggressively, you leave your goal unguarded…
You can come up with your own rules and variations, have fun, and customize it!
If you want to make a more advanced version for veteran players, try shortening the board. It increases the speed of the gameplay and makes for a more challenging win.
I hope this game provides you and your family the hours of fun that it has for mine. This board is perfect for vacation, the cabin at the lake, holiday gatherings, camping and so much more!
Where would you take this game board?
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