Wisconsin Hockey Officials Association

Seminar Update

  • Registration for Sparta has closed. No other seminars in Wisconsin are scheduled. Please see the next bullet point for options.
  • Seminars conclude in Minnesota 11/17 (Two Harbors, Level 1 & Level 2 only), and Illinois 11/27 (Geneva, Level 1 & Level 2 only). Seminars in all other border states have concluded. In accordance with WAHA policy, you must receive permission to attend an out-of-state seminar. If you are considering this option, please e-mail eduction@wihoa.org
  • RETURNING OFFICIALS: You can officiate games through November 30 using your 2018-19 card/crest. Beginning December 1, you must have a 2019-20 card/crest in your possession to officiate games. To ensure you have your 2019-20 card/crest by December 1, please complete ALL requirements no later than 11:59 PM November 15.
  • NEW OFFICIALS & OFFICIALS NOT REGISTERED IN 2018-19: You CANNOT officiate games until you have your 2019-20 card/crest in your possession. Please complete your requirements as soon as possible.
  • This is the busiest time of year for USA Hockey as many officials throughout the country are completing portions of their registration. Current time from seminar to arrival of card/crest (if you have completed all other requirements) is 10-14 days. Please do not contact USA Hockey with questions - be patient! After 14 days, email education@wihoa.org with questions.
  • Follow this link https://www.usahockey.com/page/show/5124373-declaration-of-safety-fair-play-and-respect to watch a video from USA Hockey showing legal and illegal plays under the new Fair Play and Respect initiative. This video will be shown and discussed as all seminars.

Rule Change Effective 10/30/19


Effective immediately, anyone assessed a penalty under Rule 601(e)3 shall be assessed a match penalty. Please review the letter from USA Hockey President Jim Smith describing the change and rationale. If you assess a match penalty, you must file a game report within 24 hours here. If you warn either team under this rule, you must file an incident report here. Here is a link to the USA Hockey web page announcement: https://www.usahockey.com/news_article/show/1061121?fbclid=IwAR0u-SlRF46OT1Hf0F0qdlTYNY7UlouTXwkOPwC7lPpaClTzZgT8lGDY1Fw

WHOA and USA Hockey Officiating Registration Now Open For 2019

WHOA and USA Hockey Officiating registration for the 2019-20 season are now open. If you have questions about either process, contact WHOA at education@wihoa.org or 218-349-0327. Our seminar schedule can be found by clicking here.

USA Hockey & WHOA Registration


The official’s registration process consists of two to four steps based on your age as of
August 1, 2019:

1. Register with USA Hockey
2. Complete a Background Screen (if required)
3. Select a WHOA Officiating seminar
4. Complete SafeSport training (Ages 17 or older-USA Hockey will e-mail you if applicable)

General registration questions should be directed to your WHOA Region Director through e-mail. Questions regarding registration account issues, name changes, duplicate seminar registrations, etc. should be directed to Duffy Dyer (WHOA Education Coordinator). A detailed trouble-shooting guide can be found by clicking Trouble Shooting Guide.

Background Screening


All officials who are 18 years old as of August 1, 2019, are required to have a background screening done through WHOA every two seasons per USA Hockey SafeSport Policy. If your screen was done during the 2017-18 season, you must be re-screened this season. If an official does not have a current screen, he/she is ineligible officiate any USA Hockey games.

The WHOA has partnered with WAHA’s screening vendor, Protect Youth Sports, with the goal of providing timely and accurate service for officials and administrators. Effective immediately, Verified Volunteers is now replaced with Protect Youth Sports.

We have created instructions for navigating their website.

You can also view your screening date in the WHOA Screening Database.

Please feel free to view the Background Screening Policy.

Recruitment


Are you still trying to recruit new officials for your association this season? USA Hockey has created two different recruitment brochures. One for Men and another for Women. Please feel free to share these on your bulletin boards, at registration nights or on social media

USA Hockey Playing Rule Change Summaries


The up-to-date rules summary and other pertinent information that will go into the Playing Rules Book is listed below.

*NEW* USA Hockey has published some rule clarifications in this FAQ Memo on the 2017-21 Playing Rule.

Playing Rule Comparison


USA Hockey has published the 2019-20 USAH-NCAA-NFHS Rules Comparison https://www.usahockey.com/rulesandresources chart. This document lists the differences between all three rule bases.