USA Hockey: How did you get started as an official more than 50 years ago?

Weaver:  I never played hockey growing up and the first time I skated I was in college at Duquesne University. I got interested in the game because I went to school next to the Pittsburgh Arena and watched NHL games there with my friends. A friend of mine was looking for officials and I kind of jokingly said I’d do it. He ended up being a mentor for me that whole year. I just really enjoyed it. It’s good exercise, and I enjoy being involved with the sport. Since then, I’ve officiated at many different levels. The ECHL was the highest. I’m also a video replay official for the NHL. So being involved in the sport, I’m getting to live out now what I didn’t get to do as a kid.

USA Hockey: How did the Try Officiating for Free event in Ohio get started?

Weaver: Columbus, Ohio was the host for the Level 5 Coaches Symposium. At the district board level, we thought we could make it bigger and asked if we could include officiating somehow in conjunction with that event. We decided we could have our local supervisors as a part of it. The Blue Jackets were able to give us an hour of ice time at the rink. We decided on a maximum of 20 participants and asked the Blue Jackets if we could get their 12U team to scrimmage and have our 20 new and first-year officials get some experience officiating. We figured it would be the right age of kid to have out there. 

It was seamless working with the Blue Jackets. They handled the registration links and took care of getting waivers handled ahead of time, like they did for the other events that day. I’m really thankful for the District and the Blue Jackets organization and the local officials who helped. I enjoy any time we can celebrate officiating and look at it in a positive light. 

USA Hockey: What was the itinerary for the event?

Weaver: Once we got there, we had our 20 officials, four girls and the 16 boys, who were primarily between ages 14-17, as well as our nine local supervisors to serve as mentors. We got to the rink about a half hour before the start time and had the officials in one of the dressing rooms to put their skates on. We provided referee jerseys for them to wear. We took 10 minutes to talk through with them, and the 12U team, what we would be doing on the ice. 

Once we got started, we had on-ice supervisors guiding groups of four officials at a time, with the rest on the benches. There were coaches on the bench to talk over what they experienced each time they were out there, what they were seeing, and answer questions. I was able to sit in the stands with the parents and led a parent meeting and answer any questions they had. We rotated the groups of four over the course of the hour, and then did a little debrief at the end. 

USA Hockey: What were the goals of the event? 

Weaver: We want to put officiating in a light where people want to try it and then give them the opportunity. Ultimately, our goal is to recruit new officials to the game. Personally, I want to include officiating any chance I get in any kind of hockey promotion or educational event. The event exceeded all of my expectations and I hope we can incorporate something like this over the next year throughout the District, now that we have a model.

Our hope is that they enjoyed it enough to want to keep doing it and also maybe let their friends know. This type of event, with the parents there, can help get the parental buy-in that you need for the younger officials. We need more officials and we’re all there for the same reason – to make for a better, safer, more fair game for the players. 

USA Hockey: Why are events like these so important to an officials' overall development journey?

Weaver: It’s a daunting experience to be on the ice for the first time as an official. So, I think it’s helpful if you can give them experience in this kind of an environment where there’s a game going on but it’s not highly competitive, and if you miss calls nobody will be upset about it. So, when they do become an official, they’ll have had the experience of being on the ice with players and the whistle on their finger, making calls. It will help build their confidence.

USA Hockey: What advice would you have for someone who has maybe thought about being an official but hasn’t taken the leap yet?

Weaver: I would say give it a try. It’s a great way to stay involved in the sport. When you get toward the end of your competitive playing career, think about getting into officiating. There’s a lot of opportunities there that can take you a long way. And you can do it for a long time.