In this league, however, contact is usually incidental and does not necessarily equal pain, a big selling point for Happy Kawasaki. The 33-year- old Sunnyvale resident is thankful she can compete without the threat of a 200- pounder checking her into the boards. Checking is illegal in this league. Kawasaki is by no means frail, but at 5-foot-1 - 5-foot-2 on skates - she would be an easy target for a goon looking for trouble.

In the beginner's division, the player most closely resembling an enforcer would be Kawasaki herself. Last season, the labor and delivery nurse was whistled for such minor infractions as roughing, tripping and generally "being bad." She led the Green Division with 14 penalty minutes.

"That's not a lot," she said, "but that's a lot for this league."

Northern California's oldest and largest all-women's league espouses the grace, speed and skill of the sport, and deemphasizes the thuggery and brutality. Women interested in learning the fine points of a 2-on-1 break or killing off a power play are welcome. Those looking to throw down gloves or battle with guys should look elsewhere.

"It's important to give women the opportunity to play without the added pressure of competing with guys," said league President Bridget Teodoro. "It gives them the opportunity to learn the game and not be intimidated by bigger and stronger players. They learn faster that way."

The 10-year-old league, which draws women from all over the Bay Area, has room for both experts and novices. It allows players who have competed in college, high school or other recreational leagues to return to a sport they love. It also gives curious beginners a safe way to learn the game.

Just not on the same ice.

Inexperienced players are never thrown in with those who have been playing for decades. Instead, players are assessed at the beginning of each season (winter and summer) and are placed accordingly into four divisions - Green for beginners, Red for intermediates, Maroon for advanced intermediates and Blue for advanced. That is rare among Bay Area hockey leagues.

The divisions ensure that each player is in a competitive situation. Further equity is achieved by mixing up the teams after each season.

Players range from 13-year-olds to grandmothers. The oldest player so far was 62.

"We have a big variety," said Theresa Green, who founded the league. "We have a lot of young girls and a lot of first-time players who are moms. We have women in their 40s who might not have tried out the sport otherwise."

Green grew up playing hockey on frozen lakes in Connecticut and skated for the University of Connecticut women's club team. She moved to the Bay Area in the mid-1980s, when hockey was still largely ignored in California. Green remembers only five Bay Area rinks existing then. There are more than 15 now.

The arrival of the San Jose Sharks in 1991 increased the Bay Area's interest in hockey. The women's game has gotten more popular in recent years, with more colleges adding varsity women's programs and the inclusion of women's hockey in the 1998 Olympics.

"A lot more women play ice hockey now," said Green, a Pleasanton resident. "It's still a bit unusual, but the perception has changed. It's not unheard of, and a lot more is expected of women's hockey."

The league's inaugural season featured 60 players in four teams. Now 160 compete in the four divisions. (Participation reached a high of 190 after last year's Olympics.)

"You're never in a situation where your skill level is so far below that you never improve or aren't able to contribute, or are resented (by better players)," said Janet Moyer, 40, a first-season Green player. "You start at the right division and learn at your own pace."

For now, that pace would be slow for Moyer. The certified public accountant from Santa Cruz had had no experience with hockey, skating or any team sports. In November, her first skate around a rink took an hour.

"I'm not the best athlete in the world," she said, "but I'm playing hockey."

Moyer, at least, had an idea of what to expect. She has benefited from watching both her partner and best friend compete in the Red Division the past few years.

But Katherine Yoshii, 38, had to start from scratch after friends persuaded her last year to attend the league's annual "Give Hockey a Try Day."

"I barely knew the rules," she said. "I knew there were two sides, and it was somewhat like soccer." The office manager from Albany was instantly hooked.

She is in her third season in the Green Division.

At the other end of the skills spectrum is Blue Division member Angel Sheridan, 24.

The native New Yorker found the league on the Internet shortly after relocating to the Mission District last year for her job as a sports manager for the Special Olympics.

Sheridan joined the College of Holy Cross women's club team as a freshman six years ago. It became a sanctioned varsity sport two years later and joined the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference. Sheridan also played in a coed league for a year in New York before departing for San Francisco.

"It's really competitive," she said of the women's league. "The level of play is close to that of the college team I played for. They skate well, they shoot well and handle the puck really well."

Sheridan says the action of the women's league cannot be rivaled. Checking and the lack of passing often bogged down play in the coed league.

"It's a totally different game," she said. "Instead of brute force, it's a lot more finesse. Females are less selfish. Females play as a team, work as a team.

At the other end of the skills spectrum is Blue Division member Amber Moore, 14, of Sunnyvale. The Columbia Middle School eighth-grader picked up the sport seven years ago to compete with her stepbrother, who is one year younger.

Amber has competed in girls and coed leagues, but says the action in the women's league cannot be rivaled. "It's a different game than playing with guys," she said. "It's a slower pace with guys because of all the checking and there's not as much passing."

Amber comes from a family of hockey nuts. Her mom, Christina Wilson, plays in the Red Division. Three younger sisters cannot wait to join the league. Her stepfather skates, too.

Wilson, a 47-year-old nurse at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, says the league has done wonders for her daughter's game. Amber played only defense with her coed team, but the women's league gives her the opportunity to play the forward positions. Until a year ago, Amber rarely took a shot on goal.

"She's got a whole bunch of mentors here," Wilson said. "They pass to her; she's learned to shoot. In the locker room, she takes part in the conversations. She is part of a team of equals."

The league operates under the rules set by USA Hockey. This season's games and practices are being held at the Fremont Iceoplex and the Belmont Iceland. The league fee is $300.

San Jose's Teodoro attributes much of the league's success to its dedicated players, many of whom double as volunteer board members and coordinators.

"We have a whole slew of help for various things - organization of referees, scorekeepers, the end-of-season party," said Teodoro, who goaltends in Blue and skates in Red. "There's no benefit to being a volunteer. It's a matter of people wanting to give back to the league."

Foster City's Betsie Spann plays for the Maroon Division and doubles as the league treasurer. At 57, she is also the league's senior skater. She still learns something at every game.

"Every time you get on the ice, it's a challenge to see if you can do better than the last time," Spann said. "You're always trying to get better."

Kawasaki is also looking to improve. Her primary goal is to move up to the Red Division by next season. A secondary goal is to cut down on penalties.

She went penalty-free her first game this season, but was still labeled a "bruiser" and teased endlessly for knocking down her own teammate.

"I'm trying to cut down on the penalty minutes," she said, "but not on the intensity."

Even your wallet can get bruised

You can't exactly be a cheapskate if you're going to play ice hockey.

"It's the most expensive sport to play, besides polo or something like that, " said Bridget Teodoro, president of the Northern California Women's Hockey League.

The league charges a $300 registration fee per season to cover operating costs. And then there is the equipment.

According to Jason Figone, owner of the East West Hockey store in San Carlos, a new player should expect to spend $400-$700 for new equipment. Skates are the biggest expense at $70-$290. Figone says a good pair starts at $125.

Other equipment and average prices, according to Figone, include: helmet and cage ($80); stick ($28); pants ($60); gloves ($45); shoulder pads ($40); shin guards ($40); elbow pads ($30); and mouthpiece ($1.50).

For goalies, it costs even more. Their equipment includes: leg pads ($600); catch and block set ($400); skates ($250); chest and arm protector ($250); helmet ($150); and stick ($45-$140).

In addition, the league-issued uniforms (two jerseys and two pairs of socks) cost $80.

Second-hand stores such as Play it Again Sports offer the equipment at discounted prices. The league also has used equipment that it donates or sells cheaply to members.

The registration fee covers rink time ($350 for 75 minutes) and payments to referees ($45 per game) and scorekeepers ($15).

For more information on the women's league, visit www.ncwhl.com or e-mail ncwhl@yahoo.com.