Refs

PG referees adapting to new protocols and rules for 20/21 season

Oct 14, 2020 | 4:46 PM

While hockey is starting to slowly pick up in the City of Prince George, one area of the game which people may have forgotten about during the return to play is the officials.

Like everyone, there are going to be some adjustments for the men and women wearing stripes this year, which includes some new rules which they are going to have to follow.

“One of the challenges we face that hockey players don’t have is that we can’t be in a cohort,” shared Referee in Chief for PGMHA Tyler Garden.

“That creates some complications for us in terms of making sure we have proper protocols in place and everyone is comfortable with moving into gameplay.”

Among new rules which referees are going to have to deal with is how they will handle certain situations on the ice.

“Dealing with scrums. This year referees are going to have to be more vocal. We don’t want to introduce more bodies into the scrums,” shared Garden.

Usually, by now referees in Prince George have already been on the ice for a number of games and knocked off any off-season rust.

However, there has yet to be any games just yet in the City and as a result, refs have yet to get their reps in, but that will hopefully change soon as games begin for PGMHA.