During an atom rep game at Kerrisdale Cyclone Taylor Arena on a Friday night, a shot deflected over the head of the referee and grazed the out-of-bounds netting before bouncing loudly off the glass and back onto the ice.
Two coaches on competing benches shouted at the officials, the oldest who鈥檇 only turned 14 a week earlier and was only a few years older than the rep players on the ice.
From across the rink, the coach whose team was on defence threw his arms in the air. 鈥淚t hit the net!鈥�
He was right. But since the whistle wasn鈥檛 blown, play continued.
Watching from a corner of the near-century-old rink, 麻豆传媒映画Thunderbirds Amateur Hockey Association assistant referee in chief Dan Hanoomansingh made a few notes. He was supervising the game as part of the T-Birds three-year-old mentoring program to help develop novice officials.
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Linesmen and referees with only one year鈥檚 experience are more effective than older peers who haven鈥檛 been shadowed on the ice or supervised from the stands, said Hanoomansingh. The attrition rate has also dropped slightly, meaning fewer teens are being driven away from the job.
After the peewee game (in which the first period lasted 20 minutes, eight minutes too long) the referee and two linesmen were told what they did well 鈥� one made a deliberate wash-out sign at a clutch moment when fans were certain there was a goal 鈥� and what they didn鈥檛 鈥� failing to stop play when the puck went out of bounds, for example.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 primarily your job to catch that,鈥� Hanoomansingh, 21, told the two linesmen. He praised them and also explained the reasons behind his feedback. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want him [the referee] looking up into the sky for the puck. He鈥檚 watching the players and the puck went out right behind him.鈥�
Jeffrey Hemlin, 14, started officiating games last season. Also a bantam rep player for the T-Birds, the Grade 8 student at Hamber secondary signed up to wield the whistle to make a little cash. As a 12-year-old player, he said he saw a referee cry because of abuse from the stands and benches.
The pressure and outrage can be overwhelming, but Hemlin said a good official will withstand the burden of making a ruling 鈥� like other decision-makers.
鈥淵ou have to be unbiased. It鈥檚 almost like being a judge,鈥� he said, adding that it takes work to cope with the heated scrutiny of spectator criticism and still stay focused. 鈥淵ou just have to face it head on. That鈥檚 what they teach you.
鈥淟et鈥檚 say there is a trip and you didn鈥檛 see it. The fans will go crazy, the coach will go crazy. You have to stand there and take it. You didn鈥檛 see it. You have to fight for you.鈥�
Some of the worst heckling Hemlin heard came after what he considered a 鈥渄irty鈥� hit from behind and for which he ejected the peewee player.
鈥淒on鈥檛 crack under pressure 鈥� you have to stand for your call,鈥� he said. 鈥淪ome coaches get angry, some yell you. It鈥檚 pretty harsh.
鈥淭hey teach you, if a coach ever yells at you for something like that, you go up to them and say, 鈥業 don鈥檛 want people getting injured. Do you?鈥欌��
Trevor Boudreau created the Western Canada Referee School after a 13-year career as a WHL and AHL official and is also the referee in chief for the T-Birds, where he works with Hanoomansingh. He said the passion Canadians feel for hockey is an important aspect of the country鈥檚 national winter sport.
鈥淗ockey is a game of emotion game so we don鈥檛 want to take that emotion out of the game. That鈥檚 what makes it the best game in the world,鈥� said Boudreau. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 where the confidence comes in for referees to know they鈥檙e doing the right thing. Having an adult 鈥� a parent or maybe even one you鈥檝e had as a coach 鈥� tell you you鈥檙e wrong when you鈥檙e 12, 13 or 14 years old, is very difficult.鈥�
Teaching confidence begins with knowing the rules of the game, said Boudreau. Applying that knowledge, effective communication skills and correct on-ice positioning are the backbone to good officiating. But little can prepare a young referee for personal attacks and verbal abuse, which are some of the reasons the 麻豆传媒映画Island Amateur Hockey Association earlier this month proposed banning all spectators from all minor games over the one weekend.
In the worst cases, spectators wait outside the locker room to berate officials or launch racist, personal attacks, or even 鈥渂een told to go die,鈥� as one 17-year-old told the broadcast news last week.
The Thunderbirds mentoring program is unique in the province for an association its size. Thousands of players are scheduled in as many as 140 games a week, including league matches and tournament play. Keeping a roster of good referees is crucial.
Hemlin, a second-year T-Bird official and bantam rep player, said confidence goes a long way to maintaining control in the rare occasion a spectator or coach loses it.
鈥淚n reffing, you have a lot of power,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou can kick people out. It鈥檚 a good thing to learn.鈥�
