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rule change

A referee makes a call during semi-final hockey play between the Sticks and Stones vs. the Hellfire in the True North League at the Powerade centre in Brampton, September 1, 2011.J.P. MOCZULSKI/The Globe and Mail

The American Hockey League will test a version of no-touch icing to start the 2012 regular season.

In the event of a potential icing violation, the play will be blown dead if a defending player is the first to reach the end zone face-off dots, provided the puck has crossed the goal-line at that point.

The test of the rule is at the request of the NHL and will be in effect until Nov. 19, 2012, at which time its continued use will be determined by the AHL's board of governors, the league announced Thursday.

The AHL also adopted two recent rule changes made in the NHL.

A player who "places his hand over the puck while it is on the ice in order to conceal it from or prevent an opponent from playing the puck" will be assessed a minor penalty.

Meanwhile, players who use their hands to bat the puck in an attempt to win a faceoff will also be assessed a two-minute infraction.

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