The Stripes Could Be In Tough this Year

The 2023-2024 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League season is right around the corner, the anticipation and excitement is palpable.

From the small print on the bottom of box scores, to being berated from the stands, QMJHL officials feel the brunt of the hockey community while logging hundreds of hours on the roads across the Maritimes and Quebec each season. Unappreciated and often forgotten, their impact on the game is truly immeasurable.

Some of the games brightest star officials in the NHL got their start in the Q. Hockey dreams are hockey dreams, there not always black and white. The stress and pressure of the job coupled with the travel and time away from their families and loved ones is often overlooked and classified as “just part of the job.”

From the young up and comer to the seasoned veteran on their last circuit, these officials hate the spotlight and feel compelled to give back to the game through mentorship. Yes, they feel awful when they make mistakes and contrary to belief, they only want what’s best for the game.

Enforcing today’s game isn’t an easy task and yes, they are under a lot of scrutiny, not only from the fans, coaches, and players, but the league.

They feel the pressure, they understand what’s at stake, it takes a special type of person and character to officiate.  

Before you yell, scream and harshly criticize the officials this season,  you should remember the stripes are no doubt going to be in tougher than ever before with the recent ban on fighting in the QMJHL. Obviously, this is something that they have never experienced before at this level and enforcing the new rules has potentially placed a target on the backs of all the officials.  USports have banned fighting for years and that’s arguably one of the best leagues in North America. Will the QMJHL go in that direction?

Fighting majors and overall incidents have plummeted in the last few years which is great to see, but it remains to be seen how the players are going handle this. One could speculate that roughing minors and stick infractions could possibly skyrocket at an alarming rate.

“Shit” after the whistle will become even more common place so everyone needs to be prepared for that.

Everyone has their own opinion and let me tell you opinions vary. As the years go by my opinion on fighting in the game continues to change. Sometimes change is slow, sometimes it travels at the speed of light.

Like anything else people are always quick to criticize change especially when it occurs in the game of hockey. For many people change scares them, it threatens their belief system which scares the shit out of them. How dare you talk about change?

How dare you talk about changing the “traditions” of the game?

You see people are critical of rule changes in our beloved game because they think it will threaten the sanctity of the game. The times they are changing and so is the game. The game is changing and it will continue to change whether we all like it or not.

A matter of fact when it comes to fighting shouldn’t we be more worried or concerned about the players who feel compelled to drop the gloves rather than hurting the “traditions” of our sacred game?  Banning fighting has and will continue to be debated and the epicenter of that discussion for the time being will be the QMJHL. The “ban” on fighting in the QMJHL is subjective.

https://www.sportsnet.ca/juniors/article/qmjhl-planning-to-ban-fighting-starting-next-season/

A well-timed fight has the potential to change the momentum or even the outcome of a game and that’s potentially where the problem lies. It can change the game, but ultimately it change those players lives. You could argue the “what if” scenarios surrounding the game for an eternity. There’s just so many variables that can occur when junior aged players drop the gloves.

We are in the concussion era of the game. Kids coming up through the game are well aware of the impact and potential life changing consequences of brain injury. Nevertheless, they still believe that fighting is part of the game. The debate will continue to rage on, for now the league and it’s governors have spoken. As for the officials, there’s no question they will be in tough this season. They will be on even higher alert when it comes to scrums. Obviously, the biggest adjustment will be for the players, they will have to control their emotions in an ultra-high intensity game and understand restraint, if not the penalty boxes will be full!

The solitude of an officials job and the road are shared by one of the strongest close-knit teams/fraternities I’ve ever seen.

When the puck drops on the 2023-24 QMJHL season just remember there are three teams on the ice every night, you might not agree with everything they call, but understand one thing, it’s not always black and white, and they do get it right 99% of the time.