Minor hockey across the world has a great reputation for teaching kids athletics, discipline and other attributes. It also has a terrible reputation for parents who take the sport far too seriously. Hockey Montreal has launched a new program in which referees 18 and under will wear green arm bands to remind parents that these officials are teenagers and lacking experience in what they do.
“We want to make sure the parents realize who's on the ice,” said Hockey Montreal Head Referee Emmanuel-Yvan Ofoe.
“Every weekend we have stories about situations that happened where parents are screaming at referees about rules that too often they don't understand themselves,” he said.
Ofoe adds it isn't just about reminding parents.
“(We want) coaches to realize that the person that they're talking to is in charge of the rules on the ice,” said Ofoe. “He's a kid, a teenager.”
The idea has already been done in minor hockey elsewhere, as well as leagues involving other sports. So far, the program seems to be working.
“It's a great remind to the parents that they're kids,” said hockey parent Rob Shields. “They're not professional NHL referees. I have noticed with the green armbands there's a lot less aggravation in the stands, there's a lot less frustration.”
Source: CTV Montreal
NPQ
