Official (ice hockey)

In ice hockey, an official is a person who has some responsibility for enforcing the rules and maintaining the order of the game.

Starting in 1955 with the introduction of the black-and-white jersey, NHL on-ice officials wore numbers on their back for identification.

[1] In 1977, NHL officials removed the number and had only their surnames on the back of their jerseys for identification, normally in a single row across the shoulders.

[2]) However, in 1994, NHL officials returned to wearing solely numbers on their shirts, a procedure adopted by other sports leagues.

In the early days of hockey when the NHL was formed (1917), the referees would carry a bell, not a whistle, to stop the game in progress.

Ice hockey is a fast-paced sport with high-velocity shots of a puck that is only a few inches in diameter; therefore referees aim to position themselves so they have specific unobstructed views of plays in order to make crucial judgment calls as accurately as possible.

In some leagues, the rules allow linesmen to call some penalties (such as Too many men on the ice), while others only allow them to report the infraction to the referee.

In games governed by the IIHF, goal judges wear the same black-and-white striped shirts as on-ice officials.

In the mid-2000s, the National Hockey League relocated goal judges to higher locations (most commonly the press box, a catwalk or the lower section of the upper deck) with wireless signals.

The idea was to allow teams to sell the prime seats, but also to give officials a better view of the action as to be able to reject goals if violations (illegally kicked in, a player in the crease, offside) took place.

Arena video goal judges are used in case the communication link with Toronto is not working, and also for other situations such as timing or proper statistic attribution.