South Dakota Amateur Hockey Association

As discussed in seminars this season, USA Hockey has emphasized calling head contact and other penalties with potential to be used as an intimidation tactic with very strict enforcement

 HEAD CONTACT

A player cannot contact an opponent in the head, face or neck,

including with the stick or any part of the players body or

equipment. The onus is on the player delivering the check,

regardless as to size differential, to not make contact in the

head/neck area of the opponent. Examples include:

• A body check delivered with any part of the body that

makes direct contact with the head or neck area.

• The use of the fore arm or hands to deliver a check to the

head or neck area of the opponent.

It's easy to start the season with the new points of emphasis fresh in our minds, but it's our reponsibilty to continue enforcing the rules of the game as USA Hockey advises us to.   Please make the effort to consitently enforce the rules and insure a safe and fair game for all participants.

From Let's Play Hockey     Hey Ref

 Cutting corners             By Duncan Ryhorchuk

Can a leopard change it spots? With enough encouragement and the proper attitude, hopefully it can! Have you ever witnessed or worked with a fellow official, teammate or employee that cuts corners? If they get the job done and no one complains, is it OK to cut corners? What effect does it have on you or the players or coaches in a game? How should you deal with it? To cut corners: To do something in the easiest, quickest or cheapest way, often harming the quality of your work. Cutting corners is plain and simply being lazy! When a player is lazy, the opposition can take advantage of the situation created by his or her laziness. An example is the opposition gets an easy breakout, or no pressure on the puck carrier, allowing that player extra time and space to make a pass, get a shot on the net or an easy goal. Officials are not competing against anyone in a game, hence being lazy cannot be reflected on the scoreboard. But when an official is lazy, it not only reflects poorly on themselves but also the assigner of that game, the officials association and other officials. Being lazy is a direct result of two functions: 1) bad conditioning and 2) not caring! Really both come down to attitude. Have you heard these statements before? “I don’t have time to exercise” or “I get my exercise in the games that I officiate.” Wow. Really? Do players only improve by playing games? Officials are athletes and conditioning is a year-round aspect of being an athlete. I didn’t say you should officiate year around. Just like an athlete attending a professional team training camp, they are not going there to get in shape anymore. You better come in shape or you will not be around at the end of the training camp! When an official’s attitude shows they don’t care, why are they there? I hate to say it, but, are they there for the money? Putting all things into consideration, time, travel costs, etc officiating is still a good-paying part-time job. But if the official is not giving their full effort, they are cheating the participants, the people who paid admission to the game and the ones paying the league’s fees. Is it a habit being lazy or are you tired, preoccupied or mentally in a rut? Ask yourself, “Do you enjoy officiating?” Recognize this and take steps to make changes. Ask your partners to give you feedback. Have a friend video the game and critique yourself. Try not to compare yourself to others; commit to being the best you can be. The caring attitude also comes down to helping the game run smoothly. Showing up on time, being prepared, helping the rink attendants are all ways officials can help the game be a finely tuned performance. An example would be moving the nets for the Zamboni driver. After the game is finished, you just skated hard for three periods, you are physically and mentally drained and you want to get going because you have to stop at a store on the way home. The last thing you want to do is wait around for the guy driving the Zamboni. That is going to slow you down by five minutes and really it is not the official’s job! But it is something that has to be done. I always seem to recall a scene from the movie “Ray.” Ray Charles is on stage performing and the audience was talking and not paying attention. One of Ray’s assistants, who was not in charge of stage lighting, took it upon himself to dim the balcony lights and turn up the spotlight on Ray Charles. The audience quieted and listened to Ray’s performance. After the performance, Ray asked who did it and why? The assistant said, “I did and it just needed to be done.” The incorrect way of looking at something is “it is not my job.” The correct attitude or way of looking at something is “it needs to be done, so I will just go do it.” If you carry this attitude, things will go smoothly, and your partner who may not want to be there or is feeling lazy, will catch the positive attitude and help the performance. Cutting corners may help you fool the untrained eye, but the knowledgable ones, the ones you want to impress, will see right through your performance. Remember, no matter the level of game, the time it is at or how much you are being paid, that particular game is important to somebody.

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Cut and paste the information below into your email browser if the link above does not work and email to drsorensen@swiftel.net

Feedback for Referee Performance

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Just a reminder- as covered in referee seminars, it is critical to enforce rule 601.   Besides enforcing proper behavior by players and coaches, it MUST be enforced correctly. 

Remember:

A player that violates the rule should get a minor for unsportsmanlike conduct.   If the behaviour continues, a misconduct should be assessed, and if it still continues, a game misconduct is the proper call.

A player that has been penalized (other than unsporstmanlike) and does not proceeed directly to the penalty bench, should receive a misconduct under rule 601d.  If the behaviour continues, a GM would be the proper call.

If a player uses obscene,profane or abusive language they should be penalized with a misconducy penalty.

If a team official violates rule 601(h), they will be assessed a bench minor.   If they persist in any behaviour that has been previously penalized, they will be assessed a game misconduct.(note that there is no misconduct penalty for a team official, after the bench minor, a game misconduct is assessed.

This is just a brief explanation of the most common instances of rule 601 violation.  It is very important to understand the rules and proper assessment of penalties, in order that we as officials are consistent in our enforcement.   Take the time to read the rule book and email me if you have any questions. 

REMEMBER!

Any game you referee that has a game misconduct or match penalty assessed REQUIRES an incident report be sent to SDAHA discipline chair and RIC within 48 hours( sooner is better).   Failure to do so will result in possible suspension from working league games.   You can simply click on the below link, fill in pertinent data and send, or download the below Word document, complete it and attach to an e mail to Dan and myself.  Contact me with any questions.

SDAHA EMAIL INCIDENT REPORT (updated)

Please review the below attachment, it's a piece from the Stripes newsletter that gives a quick guide to the rule change covering the substitution after a major penalty with game misconduct expiration. It would be a good idea to print it and have a copy with you until we all get comfortable with this rule change.

 Please feel free to contact me at below e mail address for any assistance with registration, online testing or questions about how to get games scheduled.

If you have questions about reffing, please contact Doug Sorensen RIC 605.692.9568 or 691-1875 email drsorensen@swiftel.net