What is NHL?
NHL is the National Hockey League. NHL was first formed on November 26, 191. You have to understand that NHL is not the field hockey they do on drylands. NHL is a sport played on ice. The National Hockey League is also referred to as Ice Hockey. Ice Hockey is not played in all countries, but it is still famous throughout the world. The countries with huge craziness for ice hockey are Canada, Northern Europe, Eastern Europe, and the US. Ice hockey is played in many other countries like Russia, Japan, Finland, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, and China. There are many other countries where ice hockey is gaining popularity professionally as the game and with the people. Ice Hockey is the national winter sport in Canada. In this article, we are going to discuss the NHL Referee Salary complete guide and how to become one over here.
NHL Referee
The National Hockey League sport has four referees. The four referees are two professional referees, and the other two will be the linesman. The linesmen are the assistant referees in the game. The NHL referee must know the rules and regulations of the game by heart. The referees give penalties for the foul score or illegal action in the game by the players. They solve or try to manage the disputes between the teams. They have the responsibility to keep the game going and to avoid any unnecessary situations in the game. The referees will have to follow the rules, but they also have to make the players and their coaches follow the rules. The referees also attend so many training sessions. The referee must be good on the ice as they have to cope up with the team players. They are sometimes good in sports as a professional player does.
The referee train in athletics also has to be healthy and maintain their fitness to a certain level as expected. The referees attend and participate in all the athletic and fitness events and sessions. The referee will coordinate with the coaches and the sports staff to follow the instructions in the game. The referees also go through the pressure of promotion for the game. The referee will attend the media events, sometimes along with the players. They have the same responsibility as the coaches and the players of the sports. They will be traveling to different NHL arenas and the other international hockey arenas with the players.
The Pressure the Referees Carry
The referees do not just go bossing around the players. They do more than that. They deserve more than the hate which is, a little bit of understanding. The referees will have to decide, and anything he chooses to do will favor one team and disappoint the other team. What else can the referee do? There is only one trophy which means either one of the teams has to fail. In the end, the referee is hated by 70% of the audience and even by the players at times. The referee has to make the fair result quickly. The result should not be out of the rule book or enforcing any mismatched rule. The referee decides in front of so many people waiting for their team to win, so he has to make the decision reasonable. Whatever the result the referee may announce in the end, he is getting hated by either one of the team’s fan group. However, they do what is needed to be done, and they don’t deserve too much hatred. The worst thing about being a referee is that you have to keep doing your job when you know already everyone hates you.
How much does an NHL referee earn? – NHL Referee Salary
NHL referees earn a lot than you can imagine. They earn more than enough but still, their salary is less when compared to the players of the team. The NHL referees earn around $ 165,000 to $ 400,000 per annum. Their pay difference is based on the experience they have in the profession. The linesman is also known as the assistant referee, earns pretty well. Not all the assistant jobs get paid this decent salary like the NHL linesman. The NHL linesmen earn around $ 110,000 to $ 235, 000 per annum. In the beginning, they might get paid on a game basis and might get paid less. If the referees are getting paid per game, they earn around $ 1,500 to $ 3,000 per game.
I know the pay is too good for a referee. And some people think the pay is too much for a referee. But do they see that the referees put so much hard work into the role he has taken? He does all the technical and the physical process, the same as the players. The referees do the entire process of body management. They have to control their food diet, follow health advice, train regularly to be in good health. They also get mental stress because of the hatred. They must focus on mental health and do not make that effect in the game because they are the ones who give the winners. Well, the players get paid more than the referees. The payers do not get hated whether the game is winning or losing, and they still get paid. The referees only get hit with loads of hatred. Their payday is the only peaceful day that they can ever receive. It is not easy to keep up with the best players who are at times opposing you. They have to keep up with the players mentally and physically.
How to become an NHL referee?
To start with, it is not an easy job to start with it at all. With no passion and respect for the job, you will never survive in this field. This job requires dedication and passion. You will have to work hard on both physical and mental health. To become a professional referee, you must have a lot of experience on the job. You should’ve been the best in all your previous works and any hockey-related works. To start with, you will have to reach the local officiating governing body, which is, USA Hockey League and Canada Hockey League. Or you could reach to any local hockey league departments you are comfortable with.
Once you have reached them, you will have to submit your profile to them. The more important thing about your profile, it should cover your sports interests. You must be good at sports. Any previous experience in ice hockey is much better. The office will forward your profile to the ice hockey officials to discuss your job as the referee. So, your role in the game is way more important, so your profile is checked and overlooked by the officials. Once you get hired, you will get all the training that will be required for the job.
Other Jobs Options in the NHL Sports
If you are an NHL person, you must know there are so many other jobs you can get hired for. Your options for a job at NHL are so many. To conduct a single NHL game, there is a huge crew working behind it. I hope you could find a job that is best suits you. So, keep reading to know some other job options available in NHL sports.
- Therapist
In many sports we play, we happen to get injured. Getting injured in the games is the basic rule. So to keep the player feel better and help them out in recovery, the therapists play a responsible role. For the player, the muscles are the core part to be taken care of. So the therapists must know the weak part in every player’s body. The therapists will also be traveling with the team. To get the job, the person must have a therapist license. They must be ready and available to travel with the players. The therapist having sports knowledge is more appreciated.
- Social Media Coordinator
To say, social media is everything. Now no industry is traditional. Even if the business is at the top or a startup, it has its social media techniques. Social media is the only thing that pulls fans for the sport or a particular team. The person’s work would be to pick the interesting thing that happened in the game and post it on social media. Only through social media, the game gets more reach. They also engage with the fan base and take care of the tweets. You may think this is the job you do on your casual days. To be working here, you must be the best. The social media coordinator must be good at all the relevant skills. The skills will be creating videos, editing photos and videos, and knowledge of SEO techniques.
- Manager
Well, the manager job is hard to get. You must have a management background. The manager will help the players with their needs and scheduling their events. They will be handing press events and promotional events. They also are connected to each player personally and professionally. If not the manager role or any permanent role, you can try for an internship. Doing an internship will give you chances of getting hired in the NHL in the future. By the way, even internships are not easy to get. You must be qualified for the role. Only with a lot of networking will you get inside the NHL.
