Rule 6-40 article 3 states that a penalty shall be assessed to a player who intentionally or recklessly contacts a player to the head, including with the stick or by an illegal body check. Penalty-minor or major if flagrant. 

That being said, there are things you need to know before yelling at the stripes for the non-call. The key words in this rule are intentionally and recklessly. As you know by now there can be a huge height discrepancy in players especially at the high school level where you can have an 8th grader playing against a senior in some cases.So what does that mean?

If you have a 6 foot player chasing down a puck against a say a 5 foot player and the taller player keeps their hands and stick down and makes contact with the shorter player, there is not a penalty there as that is coincidental contact. Unfortunately in this case the shorter player is at a disadvantage although remember the key words, intentional and reckless because if the taller player uses his size to bully the shorter player than he will be assessed a minor for roughing or head contact and in some cases a major.

One other thing I want to touch on while we talk about height differences. I have noticed with the smaller players trying to check the bigger players, they are raising their hands and in some cases jumping into the bigger player. If you leave your feet to make contact on a player, that is a charging penalty. The other one I am seeing is the smaller player is crouching down while attempting  a hip check and making contact below the knee, that is a tripping penalty.

I hope this clarifies any confusion that you may have with this rule and although we don’t see everything, our number one concern is safety on the ice. So play safe and good luck in the rest of the season.

I know this will come to a surprise to you but there issues I have with parents and how they conduct themselves during a game. First off; you are not at a NHL game with a beer in each hand(questionable), so why do you act like the drunk in the balcony screaming at the refs about the dumbest things possible? If you really want to be a referee then go to a seminar, pass the test, do a few hundred 6am mite games and then we will talk.

I have talked about some of these in recent articles but lets talk about rules and rule changes because if you find the need to yell at a ref, at least know what you are talking about. I have always said that the squirt level is the worst to ref because of a couple of reasons; more often than not the parents of these children are new to youth hockey and do not know how the modern game is played. Too many times I hear yelling about a “two-line pass” that went away nearly a decade ago or a “hand pass” that is been allowed in your own defending zone for some time now, also if the puck goes though the crease then it is not icing. Here’s another news flash, coincidental contact is allowed even in a no-check league. Players at that age often bump into each other and fall down, that is not a penalty. Finally; if a player dives to break up a scoring chance and trips the opponent, it is tripping penalty regardless of whether the puck was touched first or not.

Now that we have talked the “referee parent”, lets talk about the “parent coach” in the stands and this is where I will take the coaches side so pay attention, it doesn’t happen very often . The same rule applies, if you want to be a coach then there are seminars for that and if you are not on the bench , your not the coach for that game so let your kid play. There is nothing more annoying than the parent standing in a corner on the glass waiving his or her arms like they are guiding a 747 to the gate. It is natural for the kids to look at their parents during a game, don’t give them anymore reason to look and distract them not to mention you can get your kid hurt and I will tell you why. I watched a kid looking at his father in the corner while chasing a puck down and in the process, the kid got leveled with a clean hit. Although he was okay, this could of had a very different outcome and guess who would get yelled at if the kid ended up on a stretcher? Whether you like it or not, the coach is in charge of your kid when they are on the ice, not you so let the coaches do their jobs.

I actually had a coach ask me to toss a father out of a game because of how big of a distraction he was during the game and some parents think it’s okay to do what they are doing. If you happen to be one of those in denial here is a few signs that you are that parent in the stands:

• you find yourself standing alone even when the building is packed.
• you constantly hear snickering behind your back
• the person your standing with said they were going out for a cigarette and they don’t smoke
• your kid refuses to walk in or out of the rink with you
• the coaches see you coming and run the other way
• you have been warned or thrown out of a game by a referee
• your making jokes that nobody is laughing at

I know we all have that urge to win but do yourself a favor, let your kid have fun, let them play, clap and cheer for them even when they make a mistake. Your role as a parent is to support them no matter what, stop being their agents and enjoy the game the way it should be played.

From the drop of the puck, the assistant coach was riding me trying to gain an edge and get a call from myself or my partner. This is very common especially if the parties have never meet since the bench will assume (ass out of you and me) that you are new because they have never seen you before. For all of the new officials reading this, don’t buy into “persuasive” chatter from the bench. Call the game as you see it, we do not have linesman on the benches. So back to the story….

As I was saying, we kept hearing our fictitious linesman making calls on the bench like “high hit, trip, leg check etc” and as his skater was on a dump and chase around the boards, he tripped over the stick he was trying to skate through and briefly got shaken up. Now the safety card is being played from the bench and let me point out that there was a similar situation that happened the other way before that with out a peep from that bench. At that time my partner and I gave them the warning for arguing calls.

Later in the game, an opposing player of our friends on the bench tried to make a hole between the net and a player and fell against the boards. Naturally he was shaken up a little and it was not a penalty situation but I couldn’t resist making a comment to my friend on the bench as I said, “why didn’t you argue that call?” Of course he starting yelling and accusing me of baiting him, I could of easily given him the gate  but I let him vent since I instigated him.

Nothing else was said until the hand shake and I got laid into as he made a point to tell me that he was a NCAA football ref and was yelling at me saying my act of baiting him will get my games pulled from me and asked for my assignors name (which I gladly gave him). I will not deny that my comment was unprofessional but this guy had it coming to him. First off; if you are supposedly an official of any sport, you do not abuse your power for an advantage. Second off; if you are playing the safety card, be sympathetic to all the kids on the ice, not just your team. Finally; if you are a professional referee, you do not talk down to an official at a lower level and don’t show up for a hockey game and wear sunglasses on the bench like you are some superstar.

Although this coach or door jockey acted like a fool, it does not excuse me from making the comment I did to him. We as officials are taught not to take things personal and to a degree I did since this guy was so off base on every call he thought he saw. My advice to coaches is that if you are looking for an explaination do it in a professional matter. Arguing or yelling at an official will get yourself a misconduct penalty which will hurt your team and the kids you are coaching.

Fast Tube by Casper

We see it time and time again on the ice, poor sportsmanship after giving up a goal. This time it proved to be costly for Florida Panther’s goaltender Thomas Vokoun. Panthers defenseman Keith Ballard pulled the dumbest stunt yet this season while attempting break his stick over the crossbar after Atlanta’s goal midway into the first period, struck his own goaltender in the head.

Vokoun suffered an ear laceration and was alert when taken off the ice on a stretcher. Although there is not a rule of high sticking your own player in the NHL, the Florida Panthers management needs to address this with either a fine or a suspension with out pay to Keith Ballard. This type of behavior should not be tolerated at any level of hockey period. Ballard is lucky that all Vokoun suffered was an ear laceration, this could of been a hell of  a lot worse. GROW UP.

Florida GM Randy Sexton said. ”There was no internal ear damage, just a laceration. They stitched him up, took a CAT scan and there’s no additional injuries.”

For all the youth players out there; I watch you kids do similar acts of banging sticks against the boards, over the net or on the ice and you look stupid. Parents pay a whole lot of money for hockey, never mind the $200.00 sticks you “have to have” and by breaking them in an act of frustration or poor sportsmanship is a total disrespect to your parents, teammates and coaches. Everyone makes mistakes on the ice, deal with it and move on. Unlike the NHL, there are penalties that go along with your broken stick and usually you will sit for a unsportsmanlike or a misconduct. Acting like a fool after a mistake doesn’t take it back, it only makes it worse. Play safe and stay positive.

For those of you that don’t know, the penalty for a hit from behind can be a minor with a misconduct for the less severe hits like at open ice or a major plus a game misconduct and possibly a disqualification or match(USA Rules). Referee’s have to look at intent, injury and whether the offending player was trying to back off of the hit as well as the area of the ice on where the hit took place.

Coaches at all  youth levels, are now trying to take these rules and use them to their advantage with some creative things they are teaching their players. At the higher levels like the EHF, travel, select,metro leagues ect. I have over heard a few coaches telling their players to turn their backs on a hit around the boards to gain substantial power play and this disturbs me. This is not what the rules were intended to do, they are in place for the players safety. Any coach that puts their player in harms way for an advantage should have their head examined and for you players that may be playing for a coach like that, find another team.

The other issue I am seeing comes at the town hockey level where the coaches are mostly volunteers and hats off to you that do it, I have been there and it is a thankless job to say the least. That being said, you need to know the rules before you get behind that bench. I had a peewee B coach over the weekend that didn’t understand the interpretation of a high hit and a quality hit since every time his players got bumped, they fell hard. A “high hit” means in the neck and head area, not raising your hands slightly. The whole game I heard chirping from the bench every time his player got buried.  A few examples of hits that coaches interpret to be dirty are, a shoulder hit to the chest area which throws a player on their back is a clean hit. Another good example, a player who spins around and backs into another player and falls forward is not a “hit from behind” when the opposing player is just standing there or possibly raising their hands( not extending) to defend themselves.

With all this talk about these rules, it has taken a lot of the  contact out of hockey. Kids are afraid to take or give a hit because they are not educated on what is right and what is wrong. Coaches are not teaching their kids how to throw a proper body check and they need to. Checking is significant part of hockey and should be used properly to keep the kids on the ice and out of the hospital.

USA Hockey, with guidance from its Chief Medical Officer Dr. Michael Stuart, has issued the following information regarding the H1N1 infection, including some basic recommendations to reduce the likelihood of spreading the infection.

1. Provide individual water bottles. Do not share water bottles.
2. Regularly wash hands.
3. Clean workout gear for each practice/competition.
4. Keep gloves on during the traditional handshake with opponents.

Individuals with influenza may develop typical signs or symptoms of: fever (102°degrees F or greater), cough, muscle aches, runny nose, headache, or sore throat with the potential for more serious complications, including. pneumonia.

This year’s influenza virus strain has particularly targeted children and young adults. Transmission of influenza virus may occur from the day before the onset of symptoms and during the 5-7 days that these symptoms are present.

Infected individuals should stay home until signs and symptoms have resolved and they have not had a fever for at least 24 hours. The 24-hour no-fever time-line should be achieved naturally, without the aid of fever reducing medications.

Additional information regarding H1N1 is available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: http://www.cdc.gov/H1N1Flu/