Wisconsin Hockey Officials Association

Since 1980, the Wisconsin Hockey Officials Association (WHOA) has been registering, educating, and developing USA Hockey officials with the highest standards for the betterment of hockey in Wisconsin. As a proud partner with the Wisconsin Amateur Hockey Association (WAHA), our 1,500 members strive to make the sport of hockey safe and enjoyable for everyone. Our association's members serve the various levels of USA Hockey (youth and adult) and the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA).

Nominations for WHOA Region Director positions

The 2025 WHOA Annual Meeting will be held on Saturday August 2 at 9:00 AM at the Holiday Inn Stevens Point - Convention Center, 1001 Amber Avenue, Stevens Point, WI 54482. During this meeting elections will be held for expiring WHOA Region Director position terms for Regions #1, #2, #3 and #5.

Nominations for Region Director positions will NOT be accepted during the WHOA Annual Meeting. Persons interested in running for one of these Region Director positions must submit the WHOA Declaration of Candidacy Form no later than June 30, 2025. 

Questions can be addressed to the WHOA Nominating Committee Chair at [email protected]

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2025-26 Registration Information

USA Hockey Officials Registration Update.
​Exciting news for all hockey officials! Registration for the 2025-26 season is officially open. Don’t miss your chance to be part of the action on the ice!

For Wisconsin Officials:
If you’re living in Wisconsin, we’ve made it easier for you. The Wisconsin Hockey Officials Association (WIHOA) fees are now conveniently included in the total when you register with USA Hockey.

Registration for 2025-26 ends November 20, 2025.
All requirements must be complete by December 31, 2025.

You can access registration instructions by clicking here.​

Important Updates

   NECK LACERATION PROTECTOR GUIDELINES FOR OFFICIALS
 
The following guidelines should be used for only the 2024-25 hockey season starting on 8/1/24 to determine if a neck laceration protector is acceptable to wear in a USA Hockey sanctioned game.
All neck laceration protectors must be commercially manufactured for the purpose of neck protection of skaters during a game. They must be worn in the manner for which they were designed and cannot be altered in any way.
Further:

• The common foam neck-loop, turtleneck shirt or dickey-collar neck protector are acceptable.
• Hanging goalkeeper throat protectors do not serve as a substitute for a neck laceration protector.
• If a player (including goalkeeper) loses their neck laceration protector during play it is treated the same as a mouthpiece. Play shall be allowed to continue until the next stoppage. At which point the player must replace the equipment or be substituted for by a teammate.
• If a player enters the game (during a stoppage) while missing a neck laceration protector they will be ordered back to their team bench and substituted for. Furthermore, the team will be issued an equipment violation warning, and any further equipment violation by a player on that team will result in a misconduct penalty.
• A head sweatband or common turtleneck shirt will not satisfy this rule. Game officials are instructed to use good judgement while determining if the equipment is legal, and to always err on the side of protecting the player.

Please refer any questions to either BJ Ringrose or Dave LaBuda.

WAHA Specific Officiating Guidelines

In addition to USA Hockey guidelines, WAHA requires all participants to observe additional guidelines for officials:
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1. Any player or coach who enters the officials' dressing room at any time shall be assessed a game misconduct penalty which shall be reported using the WHOA Game Reporting system. The report is submitted to the WAHA Disciplinary Committee for review and further action.
2. Any team manager or spectator (fan) who enters the officials' dressing room at any time shall be reported to the WAHA Discipline Committee via the WHOA Incident Reporting system. WAHA Region Directors are notified and MUST hold a MANDATORY hearing with the team's coach and a representative of the association's board to discuss disciplinary action.
3. All teams registered with WAHA/USA Hockey must properly registered USA Hockey/WAHA/WHOA registered officials for all games. To be "properly registered" an official must be in possession of their current USA Hockey card/crest (as defined by USA Hockey registration guidelines) and must hold a current season's registration with WHOA.
4. Officials wishing to officiate during WAHA play-offs or state tournaments must be completely registered with USA Hockey (all applicable requirements) and WHOA (paid the current season's WHOA registration fee) by 11:59 PM December 31 of the current season. In addition, officials must be Level 2, Level 3, or Level 4. Level 2 officials may officiate Bantam level and lower games only. Level 1 officials are not eligible for state play-off and tournament games.
5. The official method for officiating games in Wisconsin is one referee and two linespersons. However, local associations may use the two-referee system at their discretion. The two-referee and two-linesperson system may be used at the Youth 16U, Youth 18U, High School, Girls 16U, and Girls 19U only after receiving approval from the appropriate WAHA Vice-President.