This week, NHL Network ran some good officiating-related segments with current NHL Director of Officiating Stephen Walkom as a guest. The clips with the referees talking to players on the ice provided a good snapshot of how referees communicate with players about how they intend to call the game.
One of the main themes that I stress with the officials I work with -- and also here on these blogs -- is the importance of communication. Officials need strong communication among themselves. They need to communicate well with players. They need to know how to talk to the coaches. As Walkom said on the show, they also need to know when it's NOT time for talk.
If readers gain nothing else from these blogs, I hope the one thing that comes through is that officials function as a team and that a good referee uses some psychology as well as his knowledge of the rulebook.
After the video segment with the on-ice audio, there was an in-studio followup in which former NHL enforcer Kelly Chase told a story about me. Chaser encapsulated a large part of my refereeing techniques in his anecdote.
Here's a bit of background. I enjoyed my relationship with the majority of players I dealt with over the years. There were players I "grew up with" as an official, as we both worked our way up from the AHL to the NHL and became established. Many of my favorite players to talk to were the ones who performed the same sort of enforcer role that I did when I was a player. Chase was the sort of player I enjoyed.
Chase's story was about something that happened during the 1993-94 season. St. Louis had a game against Toronto. I believe that I had made some casual small talk with Kelly before we got underway, and he had mentioned that the Blues were in the middle of a busy stretch of games and he'd already had a few grueling fights in the last couple games.
As a former enforcer, I could empathize. Every fighter, no matter how tough he is on or off the ice, is human. He cannot afford to fight in every single game. His hands get busted up. His endurance gets tested. Like any player on a team, there's the travel and the grind of practices to deal with on top of it. On those nights, the guy fights if he needs to, but he'd really prefer to have a peaceful game where he can contribute on the forecheck and in other ways without having to put on his policeman's hat.
The Blues had a rookie forward by the name of Jim Montgomery. He was a fairly skilled but undersized player out of the University of Maine. Monty was a little agitator, too. He was a trash talker at times and knew how to use his stick to try to gain an advantage.
In this game, after stoppages of play and before faceoffs, Montgomery was giving Maple Leafs players little jabs and taps with his stick. It wasn't quite enough for me to call a penalty but it was enough to irritate the Toronto players. After a little while, it started to irritate me, too.
Remember yesterday's blog about the Udvari Rule? If something would bother you as a player, it calls for action by the referee. If not, you let it go.
At this point, I had two options. I could either give Montgomery an unsportsmanlike conduct and penalize his team or I could apply a little refereeing psychology and put a stop to it without putting his team shorthanded.
There was a faceoff on the ice. Montgomery and linemate Chase were out for St. Louis and Toronto enforcer Ken Baumgartner was out for the Leafs.
Before the linesman dropped the puck, I made an announcement.
"OK," I said, "Chaser and Baumer are going right now!"
Baumgartner complied and Chase had no choice but to oblige and fight his counterpart on the other side. As I escorted Chaser to the penalty box, I delivered a message.
I said, "You tell Monty that every time he sticks someone, I'm going to line up another fight for you."
Chase knew I meant it, even though I was having fun with the situation. He told Montgomery to cut it out. Understandably not wanting Kelly Chase peeved at him, Monty didn't do it again. All at once, I removed an annoyance for the Toronto players who lined up against Montgomery and yet I also didn't have to penalize the Blues over it.
Video from NHL.com
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Recent Blogs by Paul Stewart
A Ref's View: Exuberance vs. Showboating
Jump in the Fire: My NHL Reffing Debut
Tales from the End of the Bench
McLeod, Lapierre and Why I Hate the Instigator Rule
Make the Right Call: My Journey from Enforcer to Referee
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Paul Stewart holds the distinction of being the first U.S.-born person to make it to the NHL as both a player and referee. On March 15, 2003, he became the only American-born referee to officiate in 1,000 NHL games.
Today, Stewart is a judicial and league discipline consultant for the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) and serves as director of hockey officiating for the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC).
The longtime referee heads Officiating by Stewart, a consulting, training and evaluation service for officials, while also maintaining a busy schedule as a public speaker, fund raiser and master-of-ceremonies for a host of private, corporate and public events. As a non-hockey venture, he is the owner of Lest We Forget.
Stewart is currently working with a co-author on an autobiography. 
Blogger •Former NHL Referee • 
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