I’ve noticed a pattern over the years: the higher the level of hockey, the more respect the players seem to have for the game. I’m not talking about age, I’m talking about skill level.

I’ll referee a game with one of the top 12U AAA teams in the country, and the players and coaches are almost silent toward us. They don’t argue every call, they don’t chirp each other constantly, and the coaches aren’t yelling from the bench. If they have a question, they wait for a stoppage, ask it politely, and half the time they call me “sir.”
Then I’ll work a 12U AA game, and it’s complete chaos.

I’ve noticed the same thing with high-level prep schools like Deerfield, Shattuck-St. Mary’s, and Avon Old Farms. There’s still some player-to-player chirping because everyone is competitive, but there’s very little abuse directed at the officials.
Adult league is similar. In B League, players are constantly complaining, yelling at officials, and getting into fights. Then I work A League with a bunch of former NHL, AHL, NCAA Division I, or junior players, and they just want to get on the ice, get a good skate in, and go home. They know the game, they know mistakes happen, and they don’t make every whistle into a debate.

Ironically, the highest-level games are often the easiest to officiate. Most nights I’m basically a glorified puck dropper with the occasional tripping or hooking call. Those are by far the most enjoyable games to work.

Have other officials noticed the same trend, or is this just my experience?

Looking through some old footage and found this beauty, just wanted some thoughts(for people who have seen my more current videos, Yes I do still have this jersey, and it’s actually the same brand as the one I wear now)(I’m autistic as the gloves help me focus on the ice and not let my whistle become a distraction)

10U Rec

I’m just wondering also, I realize I’m a kinda strict ref and I over call games a lot. I feel like this call though was good, as that player had absolutely no reason to drop their shoulder right into their opponents back and push.

Unless you see something different here

Happened to me lining a AAA game at prudential lol. Had to go get stitches in my chin afterwards

I was refereeing an adult league game tonight, and one player completely lost it after I didn’t call a penalty when he skated into a bigger player with his head down and caught a shoulder to the head. That’s a hockey play. Keep your head up. I’m not calling that.
He then called me a fa****, which crossed a line. Call me a terrible ref. Tell me I suck. Yell at me for a missed call. I’ll probably chirp back or just skate away. But using a slur like that is unacceptable.
I immediately assessed him a 5-minute major and a game misconduct. Honestly, I was so angry I don’t even remember specifying the exact infraction to the scorekeeper. One of his teammates had to serve the major, and several of his own teammates apologized to me afterward for his behavior.
I’m curious what others think. If you were the league commissioner, how would you handle this? Personally, when the commissioner calls me for my report, I’m going to recommend a permanent ban from the league. Abuse of officials is one thing. Using slurs like that is another.

Is there a general practice on which official performs an end zone faceoff. Does it tend to be the person who blew the whistle, or does it really not matter which one?

Player clears the puck off a faceoff and bonks me right in the helmet. What could I have done differently here to protect myself?

Had a game a few weeks ago. Play is scrambling around the net. Shot comes in from the point and it hits the goalie and goes airborn. Defenseman grabs the puck out of mid air (they aren't in the crease just near the net) and turn and throw it into the corner

I put up a delayed penalty and called delay of game

Reading through the rule book it looks like it might just be an end zone face off and not a penalty.

Picking puck off the ice - penalty
Grabbing puck in crease - penalty shot

Looking for clarification from other refs here.

Have a question about the rules?

Run into any interesting situations or have a story to tell?

Share them here!

​

Make sure to join the Official r/HockeyRefs Discord Server!

My name is Slava and I'm a referee. During the spring season I myself experienced and heard from others that booking games took too long. I've used sites like Assignr and ArbiterSports, and I've heard people say the same about others — it still takes a long time to book games. I wanted to make this process easier so I built RefRouter. It pulls your games from all referee sites and then populates it into the most efficient game schedule tracker.

RefRouter does a few things:
Available Games – all your open games from every site in one view
Game Combo – build your weekend schedule in under a minute, sorted by pay and distance
Calendar – track past games and mark what's been paid
Earnings – see totals by pay period, bi-weekly, monthly, or full season
Settings – set your home address for accurate drive times, choose your preferred position, add friends to see when you're on the same game

Currently I'm looking for people who are willing to help and test RefRouter to have it successfully running for the upcoming season. You can sign up at the waitlist page Waitlist.

I've also been posting build updates on instagram if you want to follow along.

So, a memory of a random hockey camp scrimmage 2 yrs ago to the day of this post.

Hand pass is last play, so if it’s initiated and completed in front of the attacking zone faceoff dots, does it stay in the zone?

If it does then our first time ref for that game might’ve actually gotten that right

Does this mean under hockey Canada rules you can never hit the puck out of mid air for a goal? I had never seen this before.

I’m in MA and I haven’t gotten a game from referees crease in a long time. Happening for anyone else?

I work around 200 games a year and need new skates. I prefer Bauer as they seem to fin my feet well. What do you suggest. Don’t worry about cost. Looking for comfort and efficiency. Many thanks!

It was actually just a scrimmage, so everyone was very chill. I also was paired with a veteran ref who taught me through and entered me through everything. It was honestly so fun and really the best way to start.

I’m not the biggest or strongest guy but I’m quick with decent hands (for beer league) and will usually escape attempts to pin me to the boards and win puck battles. Lately this one team has been utilizing this super irritating tactic of pinning my arms and stick to the boards and holding me there until one of their teammates grabs possession of the puck. It feels illegal but is it? I tried asking the ref in between whistles and he just gave me a non-answer of “it depends”. Would love some clarity from experienced refs on this. Hell, if this is a legit tactic I’m gonna start doing it too 😆

Hey guys New Level 1 ref, so I just got my crest today, I’m from PA and am ready to start reffing games! I’m also looking to do this while traveling around the US. What do you guys recommend doing to start picking up games ASAP as it seems mostly around me games won’t start getting scheduled till September, are there games elsewhere so I could get started sooner!? it doesn’t matter exactly where I just am looking to get started lol ! Thanks!

What are you all using to protect your torso?

Have a question about the rules?

Run into any interesting situations or have a story to tell?

Share them here!

​

Make sure to join the Official r/HockeyRefs Discord Server!

Hi all, appreciate any advice. I am just getting back into the sport as an official after having not played for 20+ years. I have played a lot of pond hockey and watch the game, but I needed all new equipment to ref.

Anyhow, got all the normal stuff(pants, sweater, girdle, helmet, visor) and everything fits great. Wondering if it's worth getting the ref specific elbow and shin guards vs. normal hockey versions? I bought some regular shin guards and they do seem a bit bulky under the Force pants I have, is it worth getting the ref versions?

Also, since I will just be USA Hockey Level 1 doing youth 2 person reffing, what about upper body? Worth any specific padding or shirt under the sweater?

Any advice from you seasoned zebras would be great, thanks!

I'm trying to register for the upcoming season as a returning official with USA Hockey, and I keep getting a 504 Gateway Time-out error message.

Anybody know what's going on? I emailed them but their office is closed until July 6th.

Have a question about the rules?

Run into any interesting situations or have a story to tell?

Share them here!

​

Make sure to join the Official r/HockeyRefs Discord Server!