Dez Loreen
Northern News Services
Friday, February 2, 2007

INUVIK - Although he still plays hockey, Daniel Allen wanted something new from the game he loves, so he became a referee.

Allen was recently certified to officiate hockey games from a clinic held this past weekend at the recreation complex.

"I heard about the clinic from my coach, I wanted to try it out," said Allen.

Allen said the clinic was in a classroom environment and challenged his knowledge of the game.

"Being a player and a fan of the game helped with the certification," said Allen.

"We went over the basic rules and some scenarios in the exam."

The exam was required testing for the certification. One needed to score 32 out of a possible 45 to be qualified as a referee.

"I scored 32 on the exam, it was tough," said Allen.

A sample question from his exam was about penalties.

"It had questions like, if Team A has two people in the penalty box when Team B scores, which player is released from the box?" explained Allen.

"Yeah, it helped to have a good knowledge of the game, but the clinic was really in depth," he said.

Allen had only one piece of advice for anyone looking to become involved in officiating hockey games.

"Just check out one of those clinics," he said with a smile.

Now, Allen is free to officiate any game that is available.

"All you do is show up and see if the players need a ref," said Allen.

"I am able to take any games, from minor league to other divisions, even tournaments."

The pay is okay for a high school student like Allen. Each game has a payout of $35 for the referee's time.

"I'm doing this to stay involved in hockey," said Allen. "I still play, but this is something new I wanted to try."