As much as I cherish my memories of being a professional hockey player, the best decision I ever made in my career was to pursue officiating after it was clear that my window to return as a player had closed. Let's be honest: You wouldn't be reading this blog if my hockey story had ended with 21 NHL games played with Quebec and 65 games in the World Hockey Association. The only way I'd have gotten admission to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame would've been if I'd bought a ticket to go take a photo of my grandfather's plaque.

One of the best things about becoming an official is that it opens up a whole different culture within the game. You have new teammates, and not just the other guys in stripes. You also get work with the trainers of many different teams -- these are the guys who patch you up when you get dinged and who basically know everything going on around the club -- as well as the off-ice officials, the security guards, and other arena employees. You also get to know various others who work in and near the game in a way that's different from the insular atmosphere of being a player.

As an official, you're still on the ice with the players and dealing with coaches, dealing with owners and GMs, but in a whole different light. It's not always in pleasant ways, of course, but if you are good at what you do, and vice versa, mutual acceptability is created. You're not there to make friends with one another but friendships off the ice are also possible and commonplace.

I mention all of this because one of the biggest challenges in recruiting officials is to get people to think the profession's many intrinsic rewards. There is also a financial component, of course, and this is part of the reason why we've seen more people (youngsters, former players, etc.) explore the possibility. We've still got a problem of too many games, too few refs. That means, if you become adept, you'll get plenty of work in volume. It takes a lot stamina, conditioning and mental toughness, but the checks do add up.

This year has been an encouraging one on the recruiting front, both nationally and regionally. USA Hockey moving their camp to June was a much-needed boost in bringing people in the door and providing opportunities to learn. Additionally, the commingled camps across the NCAA (including ECAC and Hockey East) have helped to begin eradicating the perception that we're not on the same page from conference to conference and region to region. We all do the same system now; it's not just the case in Canadian major junior hockey anymore.

Essentially, there is a combined effect to these mechanisms. It's a step in the right direction. There's only one way for officials to learn, and that is by working as many games as possible and across different levels of the game. As one moves upward, there are big adjustments to the speed of the game. The demands of the job, from conditioning and positioning to the communications and Rule Book sides, all go up accordingly.

At this point, we are still filling holes. There is still a learning curve to navigate as we play catch up to try to better fill all the assignments that need filling with a diverse and well-equipped pool of officials. I know that's hard to be patient through officials' development process but, unfortunately, it's not something that can be rushed if you want positive outcomes.

My mentors, such as John McCauley and John Ashley, knew what they were doing. McCauley force-fed me to work at every level of the game before I went up to the NHL. I worked in the Western League, the minor leagues and more. Have whistle, will travel. But the more chances you have to see the game at its many different levels, get your feet on the ice, and build the various relationships at work, the better you'll be for it in the long run.

For officials, how do you measure success? It is by longevity. If an official is being prosperous and adapting, you keep on working.

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A 2018 inductee into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, Paul Stewart holds the distinction of being the first U.S.-born citizen to make it to the NHL as both a player and referee. On March 15, 2003, he became the first American-born referee to officiate in 1,000 NHL games.

Visit Paul's official websites, YaWannaGo.com and Officiating by Stewart