Make the NHL great again! Election 2016

With so much talk about which crazy person is going to run the US of A- we decided to ask the fans, in your mind, what would make the NHL great again?

Send your ideas to refusuck@gmail.com or by social media @RefYouSuck

New Soccer Referee t-shirts from RefYouSuck.com just in time for World Cup 2014!

Get your special edition World Cup 2014 green soccer referee t-shirt at RefYouSuck.com!
This color will only be available during the World Cup so get yours today! $19.95 plus shipping
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World Cup Referee stories in the news!

World Cup referee gets snubbed for handshake, reacts pretty smoothly

 World Cup 2014 referee Joe Fletcher suffered the embarrassment of having a handshake fail with a FIFA official televised around the world during the Spain v Chile match last night, though to his credit he handled it pretty coolly. Read more here

World Cup 2014: What is that foaming spray used by referees?

If you're watching the FIFA World Cup this year, you may have seen a free kick where the referee took out a spray can and proceeded to draw a line on the grass in front of the players.

Read more here

Paul Devorski calls Vancouver Canucks coach John Tortorella a f@#$#@#$!hole!

 by John Dujay

During last night’s epic 9-1 blowout loss to the Anaheim Ducks, the Vancouver Canucks began losing their collective cool as the penalty minutes multiplied.
In addition to players losing it, referee Paul Devorski, was caught on camera mouthing some choice words about Canucks coach John Tortorella. Watch the GIF and see if you can figure out the two words Devorski uses to describe Torts.

In case you missed it, Devorski is telling fellow referee Dan O’Rourke that Tortorella is a “f@#$ing a$%hole.” Now far be it from me to disagree with Devorski (Torts being called an a$%hole is about the tamest thing he has been called in past and of course, Devorski probably had good reason) but shouldn’t officials be above the fray?

Read more here

Cindy Crosby Dive Team Hoodies and T-shirts are here!

In 2014, RefYouSuck.com will be launching our brand new "Diver series" designs! First on the list of course, is for #87! For fans outside of Pittsburgh, this was by far the most popular request. As the season goes on, we will be watching for the next NHL diver! Special edition hooded sweatshirts will be available for orders received before January 2nd 2014 or feel free to reserve your t-shirt! To purchase your hoodie or t-shirt, click here

Ref You Suck t-shirts (free shipping promo code!)

Carpet on the ice is almost as good as a solid REF YOU SUCK chant!! If you haven't picked up your t-shirt yet, now is your chance! Every season opener, we pay for shipping! All you have to do is pick out your favorite shirt at REFYOUSUCK.COM, then enter the promo code "gamekillers" for free shipping! What are you waiting for? Check out our latest designs for guys and girls!

Gary Bettman says the NHL referees are ‘the best in the world’

 by Mike Halford Pro Hockey Talk
To nobody’s surprise, Gary Bettman was asked about the quality of playoff officiating during his Stanley Cup Final press conference.
And, also to nobody’s surprise, the commissioner was ready to answer.
In a reply that sounded like it was prepared for that very question, Bettman stuck up for referees and linesmen, saying he felt NHL officials were the best in the world — regardless of sport.
“The officials in this league are the best in the world, I believe – not just in hockey, but in any sport,” Bettman said. “I believe they have the most difficult job, and it always seems to undergo even more intense scrutiny this time of year.

continue reading here

New from REFYOUSUCK.com

Basketball player assaults referee during game!

One way to deal with calls not going your way... I doubt this guy is playing these days!



A Kuwaiti basketball player hits the referee in the Asian Cup game after losing to Saudi in a game that should have been easy for them and would've qualified them to 2nd round, unnecessary & stupid act.
More at http://bahrainbasket.blogspot.com

Why do NHL officials suck this bad?

by sean gordon Globe and Mail Update

Here’s a touchy one, hope we don’t get fined by the league.

But several incidents over the last few days have dredged up a persistent, vexing question: why are NHL officials so bad?

The most egregious blunder this week was the non-call on Corey Perry’s overtime winner for the Ducks on Wednesday night after he plainly tripped Carolina’s Jussi Jokinen behind the net to create a turnover.

There were a couple of phantom goalie interference calls against the New York Rangers and Boston Bruins that negated goals - in the Blueshirts’ case a late tying goal against a division rival, New Jersey.

On Thursday night, the zebras missed at least one high-stick goal (on Long Island) and probably another in Newark.

That both stood up after replay makes it all the more puzzling.

And do we even need to bring up Clock-gate in L.A.?

In any case, some people in hockey are doing their best Peter Finch impression: they’re mad as hell, and they’re not going to take it any more.

But they’re also going to speak elliptically so as not to get socked in the wallet by the humourless suits at head office. To wit, one John Tortorella.

It’s always easy to blame incompetence, but what if the issue is the game itself?

Everyone always talks about how much faster the NHL has become since the lockout, and maybe it’s now moving too quickly to be adequately officiated by two refs.

What is already a fiendishly hard job is rendered nearly impossible to do well despite the best efforts of men who, by and large, are top professionals.

One offshoot of trying to keep up with the chaos is that refs develop an unusually close proximity to some players, usually veterans.

None of the foregoing in any way excuses blowing easy calls like the Perry situation.

But that incident does show how people will modify their behaviour - Perry had been slashed on the hand a few moments earlier but there had been no call.

Former NHL ref Kerry Fraser, he of the Alain Cote disallowed goal (1986) and Wayne Gretzky high-stick-that-wasn’t (1993) incidents, pulled the cover back on that whole can of worms in his TSN column.

Money quote: “In an attempt to be ‘fair’ you ultimately become an accountant trying to balance the books instead of a referee. Usually the second infraction you feel you must allow is worse than the first one.”

Footage from HBO’s 24/7 is particularly revealing - refs have conversations with players, who are often referred to by nickname, that have the feel of negotiations.

The NHL is a reputation league, and refs also sometimes make flash judgments influenced by a player’s rep.

Best example: Dan O’Rourke calling Erik Karlsson a diver in a conversation with Ottawa coach Paul MacLean - nice work Rourkie.

At least MacLean has big brass ones and smashed the usual omerta by going public and ratting him out.

So in addition to having competence issues with certain refs - ie. Tim Peel, Stephane Auger and, most egregiously, Chris Lee - the NHL is dealing with complicated psychology.

There are no easy fixes to this, but there are a couple of things the NHL could do.

First, they could be more transparent about ref discipline - the English Premier League issues lists of which refs and assistants have been dropped and why.

Teams can send players to the minors if they don’t perform, why shouldn’t refs suffer the same treatment?

Why not give refs from a lower league a little hope that they might gain access to the exclusive NHL club?

That seems callous and antithetical to hockey tradition, but maybe it’s a way to create distance between ref and player (although soccer players disrespect officials at least as much as hockey players).

More refs could be hired from European leagues, more resources could be spent on training and professional development at all levels - the minor pro and major junior leagues are also dealing with a dearth of top officials.

Another option would be to mike the refs like they do in international rugby - a sport where players rarely, if ever, talk back at the officials any more.

Rugby refs also explain how certain subjective rules - like the breakdown - are going to be called so it’s clear to both sides and the viewing public.

Make the soundtrack available to the television networks to use in replays - it might even clean up some of the homophobic and bigoted language that is tolerated all to often on the ice.

None of this, of course, will ever happen.

But here’s something that might, or at least should: remove some of the discretion and judgment calls that make refs’ lives harder.

Do away with touching the puck with a high stick or kicking it or punching it into the net.

Enforce unsportsmanlike and misconduct offences, make all contact with the head an automatic minor penalty, give a game misconduct to players who fight, enforce the instigator rule.

This will be met by fierce resistance by the refs, who it should be pointed out, nearly went on strike a season or two back.

But something needs to happen.

Credibility is hard-won but easily frittered away, the reputation league should want to avoid gaining a reputation for poor officiating.

Being a hockey ref isn't always easy...

originally posted at thestar.com

They have been spat upon, cross-checked in the head and sucker-punched. They have suffered sexual and homophobic comments and been grabbed by the throat.

Players have fired pucks at them and parents have threatened them, sometimes making good on their violent promises.

Those are just some of the incidents of abuse listed by hockey referees — almost all from Ontario amateur leagues — who took part in a survey whose findings are published in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine.

Some 374 of 632 anonymous respondents, 92 per cent from Ontario, listed specific examples that ranged from a parent breaking a referee’s finger to a fan threatening to “carve out a linesman’s eye” and an ejected player head-butting an official.

The study — titled Violence in Canadian Amateur Hockey: The Experience of Referees in Ontario — was co-authored by Dr. Charles Tator, a Toronto neurosurgeon at Toronto Western Hospital who is founder of the group ThinkFirst Canada, a charitable organization dedicated to the prevention of brain and spinal cord injuries.

The other co-authors were Dr. Alun D. Ackery and Dr. Carolyn Snider.

The study’s objective was “to determine the perception and roles of referees about violence and injury in hockey games.”

“We found that hockey referees in Canada perceived a lack of discipline and obeying of hockey rules leading to an increased aggression and injury,” the study concluded.

“Referees suggest that they are both physically and verbally abused. Referees feel that coaches are the most important individuals for determining player safety. This potential lack of respect and hostility for referees from coaches, parents, and fans creates an environment that may put all on-ice participants at higher risk for injury.

“These responses give new insight on the potential need to give referees more support, authority to discipline, and ability to educate participants with respect to on-ice safety.”

The authors used a web-based study, contacting 21 referees-in-chief from all provincial and territorial Hockey Canada organizations as well as several private adult hockey leagues from April 1 to May 18, 2010.

Nine agreed to distribute the survey link to their referees. The NHL did not allow its officials to participate, the authors said.

read entire article

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Boston Bruins rack up some serious penalty minutes and lose to the Canes

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By Mike Loftus
The Patriot Ledger

BOSTON —

If it’s remembered and discussed today solely for things like coach Claude Julien getting ejected, Zdeno Chara spending 17 consecutive minutes in the penalty box after instigating a fight, and goalie Tuukka Rask skating the length of the ice to challenge Carolina goalie Cam Ward, the point has been missed.

Last night’s 4-1 loss to the Hurricanes was really more a case of the Bruins turning from a team off to a poor start to one that made itself look bad.

“We have to take responsibility for our own actions here,” said Julien, who was at first mystified, then infuriated when he learned he’d been assessed a 10-minute misconduct with just 3:44 remaining.

“What I see is frustration setting in, and the minute we start getting frustrated we lose focus on our game, and then it gets worse and worse. And that’s been a bit of a pattern this year.”

True enough, but the 2-4-0 Bruins had never reacted as they did last night – and their worst behavior was saved for the worst possible time. Although outplayed well into the third period, they cut Carolina’s lead to 2-1 when Rich Peverley scored a power-play goal with 9:01 to play – and then went on to spend most of the time left trying, often unsuccessfully, to kill unnecessary or retaliatory penalties.

“We stuck up for each other; that’s important,” Peverley said. “But at the end of the day we lost the game, and we’re 2-4.”

The Hurricanes iced their second win over the B’s in less than a week with a pair of 5-on-3 goals at 13:26 and 14:58.

The key penalties went against winger Nathan Horton, just 31 seconds after Peverley scored. Angered, as linemate Milan Lucic had been earlier and would be again, by Hurricanes defenseman Jeff Gleason, Horton took four minutes worth of roughing penalties. Chara followed with a high-sticking penalty on Jeff Skinner, and Dennis Seidenberg then ensured that Boston would remain two men short by taking a boarding penalty.

On or around the same time, Brad Marchand (11:49), Lucic (16:16, after an unsuccessful attempt to get Gleason to fight) and then Julien were assessed misconducts.

“When they announced the misconduct on Lucic, I just shook my head,” Julien said. “I guess that was the merit for being kicked out.”

Read more here

Free REF YOU SUCK or UMP YOU SUCK t-shirt offer for first 50 people!

Football and Hockey seasons are upon us- so RefYouSuck.com has decided to send some love to you sports fanatics just in time for the 2011-2012 season!



Buy 1 shirt for $14.95 - Get another for FREE! Choose from any of our shirts, any size! (add $3 for 2XL) ENTER COUPON CODE "freeshirt"

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Dutch Grandpa Hooligan tries to run over referee with his scooter

Foxsports.com

The angry would-be hooligan wasn't happy with the performance of Edwin van der Graaf, who handed out six yellow cards to FC Oss in their 4-3 loss to Almere City.

Rather than pen a letter or call to make a complaint, the three-wheeled footy fan took aim at the man in yellow and attempted to run him down.

FC Oss ply their trade in the Dutch second division and are currently 13th.

full story

Sid the kid- a baby, or Captain Canada?

By Shannon Proudfoot, Postmedia News

Sidney Crosby: Humble Canadian superstar who carries his team on his back through big games and isn't afraid to get his hands dirty in the corners, or prima donna who lived in Mario Lemieux's house just a little too long and whines to the refs about a paper cut?

Pundits and fans have branded the Pittsburgh Penguins captain with both reputations over his six seasons in the National Hockey League, and a new study examines those different versions of Sid the Kid and how Canadians see their national identity reflected in him -and those Tim Hortons commercials.

"He is celebrated as the saviour of hockey. There's a lot invested in him as the replacement to Wayne Gretzky and in terms of national identity. It's been a long time since we've had a true Canadian superstar hockey player that we can rest a lot of national hopes on," says Kristi Allain, a sociologist at Trent University in Peterborough, Ont.

"The way he's presented in the media, in some ways, tells a story about what we think it means to be Canadian: hardworking, honest, softspoken, polite, tough when we need to be, fair."

For this study, Allain combed through newspaper and online articles, Hockey Night in Canada and Coach's Corner broadcasts and online fan comments during the 2008-09 season, which culminated in Pittsburgh winning the Stanley Cup.

The official version of Sidney Crosby is the best of Canadian identity on skates, she says, with No. 87 lauded as a hardworking, heartfilled role model who's attained near-superhero status since scoring the "Golden Goal" at the Vancouver Olympics a year ago.

But at the same time, some fans and pundits have critiqued Crosby as "a whiny, emasculated character who is dependant on his paternalistic relationship with Mario Lemieux," Allain writes.

Gretzky was the target of similar criticism during his career.

Coach's Corner host Don Cherry scornfully dubbed Crosby "Golden Boy" when he first entered the league and criticized him for "yapping at the referees" and not knowing his place. (This is not the first academic paper to cite Cherry; others have examined francophones, immigrants and discrimination in hockey.) HBO's four-part series 24/7 Penguins/Capitals: Road to the NHL Winter Classic aired earlier this year, offering unprecedented access to players and on-ice action, including a front-row seat for a shrieking, profanity-laced tirade Crosby let fly on a referee over a disputed play.

"His role as the redeemer of professional hockey has not been without challenges," Allain notes mildly.

But Tim Hortons and Crosby -who appears in the coffee chain's commercials and is spokesman for their Timbits minor hockey program -go together like a double-double and a cruller when it comes to Canadian identity, she found. The company's ads with the hockey star are packed with pine-trees-and-snow Canadiana, depicting a nation "full of unassuming heroes who are either oblivious or at least unchanged by their celebrity status," Allain writes.

"If Canadians were looking for a pro athlete to be proud of and to be an ambassador for their game, Sidney is the perfect guy," says Garry Galley, a former NHL player and Hockey Night in Canada analyst.

"His passion for the sport -which is a religion in Canada almost -is similar to what Wayne's was."

read the entire story here

BallHyped.com Presents the Super Sucky Sweepstakes

Super Bowl Week is here and it’s time to kick off our next giveaway: the Super Sucky Sweepstakes, sponsored by RefYouSuck.com.

Our first BallHyped giveaway was such a success, with @JustinDOY and @philrsquared winning an NHL Guardian jersey and a Guardian Project Graphic Novel, respectively, we've decided to go even bigger for the Super Bowl.

15 yards for a sucky contest!

This week, BallHyped will be giving away RefYouSuck swag to the BallHyped.com members who:

• Pick the winning team and score of Sunday’s Super Bowl between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers.
• Hype the best blog post to the new “Super Bowl” category on BallHyped.com.
• Write the best guest post leading up to the Super Bowl for the Straight Ballin’ Blog. If you have a unique guest post you’d like featured on the official BallHyped blog, email us at editor@ballhyped.com.
• Have the best takes during BallHyped.com’s live Super Bowl blog, which we’ll be posting a link to this weekend.

So start submitting your Super Bowl posts, scores and takes, and be sure to check back at BallHyped.com all week for more on the Super Sucky Sweepstakes.

BallHyped will also be producing unique Super Bowl content, including Q&As with bloggers who cover the Packers and Steelers throughout the year, so stay tuned for those …

- The BallHyped Team

The Pronger Rule.

Maybe the worst NHL call of the year

Chris Pronger reacting to call after the game

by Stephen Whyno on Nov 26, 2010 - 04:25 pm | 0 comments

It was mostly a sleepy afternoon in South Philadelphia as the Flyers slogged their way into overtime against the Calgary Flames. Until it looked like the Flyers scored the game-winner on the power play.

Except it was waved off, with officials whistling Chris Pronger for unsportsmanlike conduct after the defenseman made a gesture in front of Miikka Kiprusoff before the goal. Mike Richards’ shot – which didn’t hit Pronger – went into the net but didn’t count, and the Flyers went on to lose the game 3-2 in a shootout Friday afternoon at Wells Fargo Center.

On replays, it’s clear that Pronger waves his left hand in front of the face of the Flames goaltender. Richards and others said they thought Pronger was calling for the puck on the play, as he was stationed in front on a 4-on-3 power play. It was an enforcement of a Rule 75 interpretation put in place a couple years ago after Sean Avery stood facing Devils goalie Martin Brodeur and tried to distract him by waving his arms.

Pronger said he wasn’t given an explanation on the ice as to why he was sent to the box and the goal disallowed. It was referee Ghislain Hebert who made the call. Head referee Don VanMassenhoven declined comment to reporters afterward.

“They know they screwed up, that’s why,” Pronger said. “… I’m not gonna get into he said, she said with the refs. I’m the he.”

Whether it was Pronger’s intent to distract the Flames goaltender or just call for a shot, the call came very late – well after the incident.

“It went in the net, and it was five seconds before the puck went in the net. I wasn’t turned around at him, waving in his face,” Pronger said. “I was right here, I had my arm out, put my arm back on my stick, the puck went in the net.”

Boos rained down from the crowd as Pronger went to the penalty box and the Flyers were incensed by the call. Sergei Bobrovsky gave up goals to two of the three Flames he faced in the shootout, and the Flyers left their Black Friday matinee with just a single point to show for their efforts.

According to the players, they didn’t deserve that point to begin with.

“I didn’t think we played well enough to deserve it,” Richards said. “We didn’t skate well enough to win.”

Though the Flyers outshot Calgary 36-30, they went 0-for-5 on the power play and were outplayed for much of the afternoon.

“I think that we played a hungry hockey team [Friday afternoon in Calgary that skated hard and worked hard,” coach Peter Laviolette said. “We’re capable of playing better; I don’t know if we stole a point – I wouldn’t go as far as to say that.”

It’s a quick turnaround for the Flyers, who return to action Saturday afternoon for another 1 p.m. start, this time at the Devils.

“It would’ve been nice to get the two points,” Richards said. “A little bit frustrated, but we got a game [Saturday], so we gotta turn right around and focus on that.”

read original article here

RefYouSuck.com helping kids play hockey

Ref You Suck™ Helping Kids Play Hockey


For Immediate Release

Orange County, Ca (Oct. 19, 2010) - Orange County based apparel company, Ref You Suck™, has found many of it's biggest fans on and around the ice rink. As a way to give back to the sport that has helped them grow into the company they are today, Ref You Suck™ has made a commitment to donate $3 of every T-shirt sold to the Assist2Play Fundraiser.

Founders of Ref You Suck™ recently met a talented, dedicated, and hardworking hockey player who has played his whole life and currently plays for the Long Beach Bombers, a Jr. ‘A’ team. This level of hockey requires a significant amount of funding each season to play. Due to the bad economy, his parents can no longer afford to support his dream and passion of becoming a professional hockey player. Ref You Suck™ decided to help by hiring him in order to assist with financing his dream. This lead to the Assist2Play Fundraiser.

Ref You Suck™ will now donate $3 to Assist2play every time we sell a t-shirt! You can also donate directly to the fund here. We hope you can help us make a difference in this young athletes career. Let's keep him on the ice, donate today!

About Assist2play

Sports provide a healthy physical outlet for kids, teaching them lifelong character building skills. Unfortunately, many kids are unable to play sports due to financial hardships. Assist2Play Fundraiser was created to help well deserving kids in Orange County participate in the sports they love in order to provide them with the opportunity to gain important life skills. Let’s assure more kids get to keep playing. Any donation, large or small, is greatly appreciated!

Play Today For A Successful Tomorrow
Click here to donate!

press inquiries:

Brian Gilmore

714.454.5462

brian@refyousuck.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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Refs are robbing us of a great NBA Finals

by Mitch Lawrence, Special to FOXSports.com

BOSTON

We’ve got a nice Finals here. We’ve got the NBA’s two flagship franchises.

We’ve got the Celtics and the Lakers, with more history than the 28 other teams combined. We’ve got Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Boston’s Big Three, and some kid named Rajon Rondo who’s turning out to be as much of a game-changer as all the big names up on the marquee.

Now, would somebody over at the league office kindly inform the refs who are working this series to stop screwing it all up?

Because if the refs continue to make a mockery of the games, the NBA is going to see its fans start abandoning the Finals and switching over to Flyers-Blackhawks.

Or NCAA women’s softball games.

I can’t say I really blame ‘em if they do.

Here’s what we’ve seen in the first two games of what should be a memorable Finals:

We had Game 1 go an interminable 2 hours and 48 minutes. That was not even an overtime game. Yet it dragged on longer than a hair restoration commercial at three in the morning. It featured 54 fouls and 67 free throws by both teams.

Right after the crew of Joe Crawford, Joe DeRosa and Derrick Stafford put its imprint on the opener, a memo with the game tape should have been sent to the Game 2 crew of Monty McCutchen, Mike Callahan and Ken Mauer, reading: Gentlemen, do not give us a repeat, under any circumstances!

read more

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Instant Replay – By Ian Kennedy

In the sporting world, we often want to yell three powerful words. Words that no coach or player can utter without fear of suspension. Words, however, that fans can say with freedom: Ref, You Suck.

Being one of the blind mice on the ice or field is never an easy job. I’m sure every referee has heard their fair share of taunts and insults. I myself was once suspended three games while coaching for a few choice words with a referee. For the record, that ref really did suck.

Sometimes, fans will terrorize referees just for calling a good game, other times; the booing and name calling is well deserved. Remember Phil Luckett? No, well he’s the ref that couldn’t tell “heads” from “tails” in a coin flip during a Thanksgiving Day NFL game.

How about that goal Brett Hull scored while in the crease to win the Stanley Cup? The entire city of Buffalo let out one long profanity after that obviously missed call. Some referee’s really must be blind to make (or miss) the calls they do.

Remember when the New York Yankees’ Chuck Knoblauch supposedly tagged Boston Red Sox runner Jose Offerman in the 1999 ALCS? Wow. I think every 80-old-grandmother in the last row of Fenway Park knew Offerman was safe.

My list could go on of infamous blown calls. Being a referee in sports is one of the toughest jobs on the planets. These men and women are forced to make split second decisions and live with the consequences. That doesn’t however; give them a free pass to make the wrong call.

Fans, media, and league officials should be vocal when a call is wrong. In minor sports, when the referee is often only a teenager, we need to cut them some slack. In professional sports though, when this is your role, your employment, and your profession, there needs to be consequences for making bad calls.

Referees and umpires should be fined, suspended, or flat out fired for consistently bad calls. Crowds can be merciless and rightfully so. If I pay good money to watch a professional game, I’m going to yell and scream when some bozo can’t get a coin flip right or can’t follow the rules they’re paid to enforce.

Fans should be allowed to make their feelings known (within reason). Recently, some faithful Anaheim Ducks fans held a referee protest. Why? They felt that their experience was cheapened by the bad calls during the Ducks vs. Toronto Maple Leafs game the week before. They had had enough of bad calls, in this case, bad calls that cost the Ducks the game and helped the Maple Leafs to their first win of the season.

What was the response? The Honda Center banned the group of protesters, all wearing “Ref You Suck” t-shirts, from the arena; most of whom were season’s tickets holders. In fact, entire websites, such as the one they purchased their shirts from, www.refyousuck.com have popped up devoted to this topic. According to the arena, it wasn’t the fact they protested, but the fact they were wearing “Ref you suck” t-shirts that caused the ban. Check out the shirts at www.refyousuck.com. They’re neither crude, nor offensive in any way. Unless you take offense to the word “suck.” And if you do, you’re probably rather offended by this column.

I’m not telling everyone to start a protest, I’m not saying to curse or throw things onto the ice or field. I’m saying, without fans, there would be no professional sports. Just as players are penalized for not following the rules, referees should face similar penalties when they fail to enforce the rules. It’s about integrity in the game, and upholding that integrity for the fans.

As paying spectators, it’s our right to boo, or yell during a game. It’s definitely our right to wear a t-shirt to a game that says “Ref you suck;” because frankly, quite often, a referee does stink up the place. No umpire or referee will ever make all the right calls, but when they mess up, there needs to be consequences.

Until then, feel free to scream at the TV and from the stands. Not that the referees will hear you. Remember, they often can’t hear buzzers, rational explanations, or their own whistles.

Let the games begin.