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Is it the hockey program or just some kid’s parents that make the system so bad? We keep hearing from so many sources that Canada’s Hockey Program needs so much work and we need to change this, and get rid of that. I agree it needs some tweaking but first of all let me tell you about some solutions I’ve heard of or read. 

"The best way for a referee to earn respect from the players is to show respect for the players and demonstrate in real, observable ways that you care about being there as much as the players," Andrew observed. "We have to see that you love the game and have a professional approach to your responsibilities."

A Simpler Time

As I said in the above editorial, times are a changing.  

It wasn't so long ago, my now strictly Goal Tending son, started to play the game.  He knew from the moment he put on skates he wanted to be a goal tender.  Starting in Tom Thumb, a player rotates all positions; this was no different for him.  The thing that was different is that more often then not even on one of those so seldom break-aways, he refused to shoot.  The only goals he scored were complete flukes and from my point of view hilarious.  Don't get me wrong, I love my son and knew the effort in which it to score the ultimate goal, yet the look on his face when the puck actually crossed the line was one of complete and utter surprise.  I think in the first year may have scored two goals.  No one minded.  No one cared.

His second year of hockey brought a sense of leadership; he was now a second year Tom Thumb player.  In Tom Thumb one is only allowed to score three goals, a rule I that teaches teamwork.  One boy, a friend of my sons, was forever on the scoring line.  He was beyond his years, even then, he had hockey sense.  My son had not scored any goals that year, when we found ourselves in a tournament game against the hosts in a neighboring town.

Towards the end of the game Shawn had already received his three goals, and each time he started off down the ice on a break away he'd call out to Clay.  Clay had no hope of keeping up with one such as Shawn, while the parents in the stands could not figure out what was going on, the boys played the game.  Shawn skated to the opposing end with the puck and stopped directly in front of the goaltender.  He then yelled, loud enough for even the parents in the stands to hear "Clayton", as Clay took his time making his way to the end of the ice, the play totally stopped.  No one moved.  The odd member of our own team would try to skate up and take a shot at the puck, he was met with "No, this one's for Clay!"

Often you see players diving back over the line to prevent an offside. If they dive head-first towards the line, it’s not enough that their hand touches the line. They are still off-side until any part of the skate (including the boot or blade) is on the blue-line.

When it is mentioned that the player needs one skate at least on the blue line, it is meant that the player must have any part of his skate, boot or blade on the ice in order for it to be legal. If a player has his skate in the air above the blue line then this is considered off-side (if his other skate is located inside the attacking zone) because the player needs to have his skate in physical contact with the ice to be legally on-side.

From time to time it may appear to fans in the stands that a player is on-side. In actual fact, the linesman may notice that the front skate is over the blue-line and the back skate is still on the ice on the other side of the blue-line. But when the player lifts his back skate off the ice, he is now off-side if the puck has not yet gone over the blue line. It only has to be off the ice by a fraction of an inch to put a person off-side and the linesman is in a perfect position to see this.

Slew Footing has become a common infraction throughout Minor Hockey leagues across the country. Slew footing can be a very useful move and at the same time a very dangerous move. Slew footing allows smaller or weaker players to get a larger, stronger player off balance or off the puck at the very least.

This move is very dangerous because of the way that a player who gets slew footed lands on his back or his head. When a player slew foots another player, this player being slew footed usually lands on his back/tailbone or his head and it can result is severe pain to the back and concussions to the head.

The way that a first time fan to the game of hockey can signify a slew foot is by looking at the way a player lands after being checked. First of all, the player throwing the body check is not hitting the person from the front, but from the side and more to the back of the player. The player being checked will usually have his feet up in the air when his back/tailbone or his head hits the ice as this player is forced to fall backwards from the illegal body check.

The signal for slew footing is the ‘Tripping’ signal and a slew foot will also be announced over the public address system as a ‘Tripping’ penalty.

The speed that the player’s upper body goes to the ice is increased and the player has even less chance of protecting himself, increasing the chance of a head injury to occur. These types of slew foots usually don’t go unpenalized because they are more obvious than a player just clipping the back of another player’s leg. If the Referee is in the right position to see the infraction, he will usually see the player throwing the check, throw himself a little off balance making it even more obvious.

On top of this type of slew foot, there have been occasions where the player throwing the slew foot has also thrown the player into the boards, increasing the opportunity for an injury. When Roberts is in the air, Fisher may have now push Roberts into the boards as Roberts is only two feet away from the boards. The possibility of Roberts now hitting the side of his head against the board and the back of his head on the ice, makes it even worse and usually the player is penalized appropriately if the Referee was able to witness the illegal check.

This is a little quiz for all of the "hockey experts" who sit in the stands "helping out" the referees with timely advice whenever an opponent comes close to their children on the ice. It is also for the "certified" coaches who think they know more about the rules than the officials and are quick to put on a demonstration for the fans when they disagree with a call. Finally, it is for all of the innocent minor hockey players who are always getting penalties for no reason at all.

Just for a moment, imagine that you could muster up enough raw courage to put on your skates, pull on a striped jersey and allow yourself to spend an hour and a half as a target of abuse for dozens of "responsible adults" who can’t wait for an opportunity to verbally assault you every time they disagree with one of your decisions. Under those conditions, what call would you have made in each of the two photos that accompany this article?

Think about it for a minute.

We had two members of the 2001-2002 Valley East Rebels Tim Horton Minor Atoms take part in this demonstration. The player on the left is Kirk Vendramin, while his team mate receiving the punishment is Kyle Kaven.

Wrong!

Ok Coach, One of Us Is Nuts...And I've Decided It's You!
A defining moment for Kevin Murdock, Pickering, Ontario

My name is Kevin Murdock and I am currently a Level IV official registered with the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA).  I currently live and officiate in Pickering, Ontario. 

I am also a CHOP Supervisor of Officials, a job that I very much enjoy.  I enjoy working with and developing our younger officials.  

I had been officiating for about three years in Toronto for a local “Select” league and had recently obtained my Level III when I moved to Pickering ON .  Upon moving to Pickering I joined the OMHA and started to referee for the “A, AA & AAA” levels.  This was my first experience at that calibre of hockey.  

Anyway, I was the referee for a Juvenile game and the two linesmen I had working with me were people I had just met for the first time.  

From the opening face-off the coach for the Pickering team was all over me.  Constantly yelling and gesturing at almost every call (or non-call).  No matter what I did he wasn’t happy. 

As the game went along and the coach continued his antics I was constantly having a private conversation with myself wondering what I must be doing wrong that this coach is so angry. 

I was questioning myself and my decisions.  I hadn’t warned the coach nor given him a penalty for his antics at any point because I couldn’t shake the possibility that he might be right. He’d obviously seen more AAA hockey than I had and maybe he knew what he was talking about.   

Was he right?  Was he just testing me?  I was undecided.  I knew I couldn’t ask either of my linesmen since I’d just met both of them and they’d never seen me work so I couldn’t really rely on them.  It would have been much easier if I’d had someone working with me who I was comfortable with.  Someone who’d seen me work and could tell me whether or not I was missing things.  But I didn’t.  My two linesmen were as new to me as the coach.  For all I knew they would tell me the coach was right.  

So, there I was, all alone with no one to help me figure this out.  

Well, here’s my defining moment.  I was standing in the Pickering end zone during the 3^rd period doing the line change procedure and I had my arm in the air for the home team to change, making eye contact with the coach.   Sure enough, he was yelling and complaining about something and it was at that point I thought to myself, “Ok, coach, you’ve convinced me.  One of us is nuts.  I don’t know which of us it is, but until I find someone whose opinion I can rely on, I’ve decided it’s you”.   

If, at that moment, I’d decided that the coach was right and I was the one that was nuts I would never have lasted as a referee.   

I started officiating as a 15 year old in 1979.  I “retired” as a full level 3 in Richmond Hill 15 years later.  My defining moment came from a game that really didn’t seem out of the ordinary.  

The Richmond Hill minor bantam “B” team was playing an unnamed opponent in a regular season match up.  The two teams were mismatched in size and talent.  The taller Richmond Hill players were body checking (cleanly) their smaller counterparts consistently throughout the game and beating them on the scoreboard

But these kids never gave up.  They got up after every hit and skated their hearts out in get back into the play.  Late in the third period a group of “mothers” from the opponent’s side of the rink decided that I was a big reason for the lopsided game and began to hurl insults.

They were very vulgar and very, very loud.  As usual I ignored them and stayed focused on the game at hand.  

A face-off was about to take place near this group of unhappy campers in an end zone location.  

Now these kids are 13 years old and not much fazes them.  

The center iceman from the unnamed team lifts up his face and looks at me with tears streaming down and says, “I wish they’d go home.”  

For a quick second I couldn’t breathe.  I held on to that puck probably for too long and found myself misting up.  I wanted to eject all those responsible for creating that memory for that child.  

Unfortunately, some adults don’t understand the repercussions of their actions.  

First of all, as the editors of this we site, we would like to commend any person, young or old, for taking on the challenge of being a hockey official. The job can be thankless from time to time as there will always be some fan who does not agree with what you called…..and he/she will let you know about it.  

But it is also a very rewarding job knowing that without you, hockey would not exist. The best part of the job, or any job for that matter, is that when the game is done and you skate off that ice, you have a feeling of satisfaction knowing that you did your best and tried your hardest, and that is all that matters!

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