Once you are completely registered (you will have
your referee crest and ID card from USA Hockey), you
are eligible to skate games. If you are unsure how
to register and become an official, see our page on
becoming an official.
If you have not yet contacted your local schedulers or joined
WPHOA, you will not be assigned games. The
local schedulers each have games at local rinks and can
assign them to you. Contact them in order to get some of these
games.
You can also contact one of the WPHOA
USA Hockey Supervisors to discuss joining WPHOA. You can
download an application below the links on the left. Once you
are a WPHOA member, you will fill out a form at the beginning
of each season identifying rinks to which you are willing to
travel for games. You also can specify your preferential rinks
(WPHOA tries to assign each official to their most desired rinks,
but this is not always possible) and your monthly availability.
The WPHOA scheduling process is
usually performed on a monthly basis. Availability forms
are available and should be filled out prior to the 15th
day of the previous month so that you can indicate days
that you are unavailable to skate.
Your officiating skills and experience will determine the
level of games that you are assigned. The USA Hockey
Officiating Program has established "levels of achievement"
for each official ranging from the beginner to the
highly-skilled. First-year officials must register as a
Level 1 official and may only officiate at the lower levels
of hockey. New officials who have past experience in
officiating ice hockey may register at a different level,
on a case-by-case basis, as determined by the District
Referee-in-Chief. The officiating levels are described
below:
LEVEL 1: May officiate
games with players age 12 & under = Pee-Wee (12 & under),
Squirt (10 & under), & Mite (8 & under).
LEVEL 2: May officiate
games with players age 14 & under = Bantam (14 & under),
Pee-Wee, Squirt, & Mite. In order to register as a Level
2 official, you must have been a level 1 official in the
prior season.
LEVEL 3: May officiate
games with players age 17 & under = Midget (17 & under),
Bantam, Pee-Wee, Squirt, & Mite. Level 3 officials are
also eligible to officiate Senior games (over 20) as well
as act as a linesman for Junior Hockey (19 & under). In
order to register as a Level 3 official, you must have
been a Level 2 official for at least two prior seasons
and pass a closed-book rules exam at your seminar.
LEVEL 4: May officiate
all levels of USA Hockey. In order to register as a
Level 4 official, you must have been a Level 3 official
in the prior season and pass the open-book exam, the
closed-book exam, and a skating exam at your seminar.
