Ever since seeing the list of the members of the Hockey Hall of Fame as a kid, I always wondered why referees were included in the hall of fame. By no means am I trying to discredit the importance of officials throughout the game, I just don't understand why they would be considered for the HHOF.
Currently there are 16 on-ice officials in the HHOF:
Fred Waghorne
Chaucer Elliot
Mickey Ion
Cooper Smeaton
Mike Rodden
Bobby Hewitson
Bill Chadwick
Red Storey
Frank Udvari
John Ashley
Matt Pavelich
George Hayes
Neil Armstrong
John D'Amico
Andy Van Hellemond
Ray Scapinello
Bill McCreary
In my opinion, unless the referee made a significant innovation in regards to the game, they should not be inducted. Simply being good at refereeing should not get one inducted as thats pretty much what you're supposed to do as a ref.
Of all the referees listed above, the only now I feel should be in the HHOF is Fred Waghorne. Not only did he come up with the idea of using a whistle install of a hand-held bell, but he was also the first to drop the puck at the face-off, and is also credited with inspiring the idea for the one-piece puck. None of the other referees on the list have had the impact that it appears Waghorne had. Coincidentally, Waghorne was not inducted as a referee (despite being one), he was inducted as a builder.
What do you guys think? I'd love to hear all of the different opinions out there
Currently there are 16 on-ice officials in the HHOF:
Fred Waghorne
Chaucer Elliot
Mickey Ion
Cooper Smeaton
Mike Rodden
Bobby Hewitson
Bill Chadwick
Red Storey
Frank Udvari
John Ashley
Matt Pavelich
George Hayes
Neil Armstrong
John D'Amico
Andy Van Hellemond
Ray Scapinello
Bill McCreary
In my opinion, unless the referee made a significant innovation in regards to the game, they should not be inducted. Simply being good at refereeing should not get one inducted as thats pretty much what you're supposed to do as a ref.
Of all the referees listed above, the only now I feel should be in the HHOF is Fred Waghorne. Not only did he come up with the idea of using a whistle install of a hand-held bell, but he was also the first to drop the puck at the face-off, and is also credited with inspiring the idea for the one-piece puck. None of the other referees on the list have had the impact that it appears Waghorne had. Coincidentally, Waghorne was not inducted as a referee (despite being one), he was inducted as a builder.
What do you guys think? I'd love to hear all of the different opinions out there