Scott Conway is the best player in the Elite League and therefore is absolutely entitled to speak his truth about the league. With that said, his comments this weekend — about officials in the UK’s top competition— are misguided, self-absorbed, and counterproductive.
“Now that the season is over, I can freely express that refs in the EIHL SUCK,” the Team GB forward wrote on social media. “The Scottish refs need gone [sic]. Changes need to be made in order for this league to take a step forward.”
Predictably, outrage and debate followed.
There are several layers to this topic, so let’s start on common ground before we skate into more controversial ice. The quality of officiating in the Elite League could — and should — improve. Every week, players take to the ice and are angered by missed or botched calls. It happens here. It happens in the NHL. It happens everywhere.
Though, to be clear, officials assigned to the Elite League do not — as Conway tweeted — ‘suck’ and it is pointless to suggest they do.
Liam Sewell, Elite League (Image: Scott Wiggins)
Referee Liam Sewell, partly developed in the United States, was a standout performer at the IIHF World Championship, keeping his spot at the tournament all the way to the third-place playoff between the USA and Latvia. He was, of course, the only representative from the UK at the top-flight competition after Team GB’s relegation last year.
Sewell, as the Elite League’s best official, is evidence that standards are slowly improving. He, alongside every stripe on the planet, will make a mistake every time he steps onto the ice next season. Nobody, not even Conway, is infallible.
In other words, the quality of officiating in the Elite League must improve, but isn’t a disaster in its current state.
Scott Conway’s comments on Elite League officials are unhelpful
Why, then, is the standard lower than it ought to be?
There are several reasons, starting with the fact that hockey is a minority sport in the UK and there just aren’t many refs here.
The Elite League, and the competitions below it, is not blessed with a wealth of options in the refereeing department and simply ices the best officials available. Why are those officials, our best, still not quite up to scratch?
There are many factors, headlined by referees’ semi-professional status. Hockey is a side-hustle for officials in the Elite League, earning relatively little to undertake a thankless task. Unlike in the NHL, they do not have access to full-time training and development programmes. They do their best with the knowledge and skills at their disposal – which is why comments made by Conway are misguided at best.
If officials in the Elite League ‘suck’, the fault isn’t theirs.
It is down to the Elite League and Ice Hockey UK to reinforce the referee development pathway – a difficult task due to a lack of new officials and resources. Again, they do their best.
Former Coventry Blaze defender Nathanael Halbert chipped into the debate and produced a reasonable position.
Nathanael Halbert, Coventry Blaze (Image: Scott Wiggins)
“He is right,” the Team GB star wrote in response to Conway. “While I’ve been at a loss for words after many games due to the quality of the refereeing, I understand they are people trying their best, who are mostly doing this part-time and we wouldn’t have a league without them.
“But fans need to understand that consistently poor refereeing is a huge deterrent for top players coming and staying in the league. As someone who wants to see the Elite League grow and build its reputation in Europe, investment needs to be put into refereeing, whether it’s more accountability, better training, or better salaries.
“A referee’s job is not to make the game about him or to try to win player of the match, but to set the standard for the game and stick to it while keeping players safe. Not every referee sucks and not every game is refereed horribly, but it’s the wild inconsistency that frustrates players.”
He added: “Improving the refereeing is a necessary step to take for the Elite League [so that] it lives up to its potential which is there for everyone to see. Help the referees help our league.”
In his statement, Halbert proved that it is possible to be critical of officiating standards while recognising that they play a crucial role in the health of the sport.
It was unwise for Conway – a star player – to voice such blunt criticism of officials in a climate where referees are driven away from the sport in their droves by abuse.
But – at the core of the issue – he has a point. The Elite League must, as Halbert wrote, cultivate a higher standard of officiating to ensure that the competition can reach its potential. In other words, back the officials to improve with the competition – because they absolutely do not suck and deserve respect for the work they have already done.
