The Nexus

Ethan Likes (12) couldn’t see the puck. Too late. The puck zoomed past the goalie and into the net before he could call it.

“It was difficult, but the play was [out of my control],” he said. “It’s one of the challenging situations I’ve encountered as a ref.”

Likes has been an ice hockey referee for three years at the San Diego Referee Association. Once a week, he referees for five hours from little league to club teams.

To become a referee, Likes had to take an open-book test, attend a seminar and then take a closed-book test. Likes referees for the recreational level, which are levels one through four. Level five and beyond is professional, which is equivalent to refereeing for the NHL.

“I have been approached by some people to become a professional [referee], but I haven’t decided what career path I want to take yet,” he said.

To make room to referee every week, Likes said that he dropped everything.

“I gave up my free time to see my friends who lived in different towns,” he said. “When I got my car license, I wanted to go to a lot more places, but I had to [arrange] my schedule [around being a referee].”

Likes also said that his ability to argue and problem-solve helped him qualify as a referee. A month ago, he was able to use one of these abilities.

The goalie was injured. Just a moment ago, a player illegally skated into the goal in an attempt to block the goalie from catching the puck. As a referee, Likes called it immediately, but did not penalize the player. After looking over the injured goalie, the coach yelled at Likes for his call. An argument ensued. As a result, the coach was thrown out of the game for his abusive words. Likes knew that his call was justified, and he argued successfully.

After seeing Likes’ personality, a recreational coach recommended he apply to become a referee.

Likes also said that being a referee challenges him and makes him play better as team captain for his roller hockey team called the San Diego Rockets.

“You know what you can and cannot do in a game,” he said. “I became more of a diplomatic player. For instance, since I was team captain, I learned to reduce the number of penalties that my team made, and to get more easily around them. I knew the rulebook well, and I helped my teammates not be in the box for so long.”

Likes said that he also appreciates referees more, but is more critical of them also.

“I can evaluate referees, and see how they call plays,” he said. “If they make a bad call, I actually get more upset. I can discuss with them the play, while the referee gives me an explanation of why they called the play like that. I’m more in the know because I’m a ref.”

Being a referee has also taught Likes to keep his composure in times of stress.

“I’ve learned to handle difficult situations, and I now think of plays in a different and better way,” he said.