The IHONC Mentor Program is for 1st or 2nd year officials that have little to no experience officiating USA Hockey sanctioned youth hockey games.
The program's fundamental aspects are as follows:
- Eligible mentor games will be Mite B and C games from all of our customers throughout the hockey season or until all officials participating in the program have graduated.
- Mentored officials will be assigned games in the Arbiter in the Referee 2 slot. The Referee 1 slot will be assigned to a more experienced 2nd or 3rd year official. The mentoring official will be assigned to the game in the Mentor slot.
- Each official should arrive at the rink in the Referee's dressing room 30 minutes before game start time to review the mentoring official's understanding of USA Hockey's Basic Manual and Rule Book. Mentored officials should use this time to ask their mentor any questions they may have.
- For the official's very 1st game, the mentoring official will ask the mentored official to shadow them for the first 5 minutes of the 1st period, after which the mentoring official will closely shadow the mentored official as he skates to each assigned position on the ice, providing verbal instructions and encouragement (if necessary for obvious missed penalty or off-sides call, the mentoring official will use their whistle to blow play dead).
- Depending upon the mentored official's skating, positioning and rule knowledge, (which may be during the 1st game or subsequent game assignments) the mentoring official may step off the ice after conclusion of a period to allow the mentored official to work the game in the standard two-man system, providing off-ice verbal instructions and encouragement.
- After completion of the game, the mentored and mentoring official will review all aspect's of the official's game (including but not limited to appearance, skating ability, positioning, signaling, rule knowledge).
- The mentoring official shall complete an evaluation report within 72 hours after completion of the game, and provide a copy to the mentored official, IHONC Mentor Program Coordinators Steve Levins and James Bennett. The mentoring official will include a recommendation to the Coordinators as to whether the mentored official requires additional mentor game assignments.
- When the official is ready to graduate from the program, the official will be notified via email from the Program Coordinators, and will be eligible for game assignments commencement with their evaluated skill and abilities.
Many thanks to our Mentoring Officials:
James Bennett, Bill Hunt, Doug Zybrands, Tyler Levy, Mitchell Klein, Marc Silva, Paul Holland, Vince McCann, Sr., Steve Pasakarnis and Ken Potter
Your time, hard work, encouragement and constructive feedback is appreciated! It's a great feeling to watch before you eyes a bud blossom into a flower!
Steve Levins; IHONC Mites, Squirts and Peewee Commissioner