OWHA Officials

The Ontario Women’s Hockey Association (OWHA) is implementing the Green Armband Initiative this season.

This initiative is for on-ice officials under the age of 18 and draws attention to OWHA coaches, parents and other game participants that the Official wearing it is a minor.

The objective of the Green Armband Initiative is to create a more positive atmosphere in OWHA games while reducing harassment and abuse of hockey officials. The initiative will offer all officials under the age of 18 the opportunity to wear a green armband on their left arm to raise awareness that they are valuable participants in the game and are doing their best to provide a fair and safe environment for all players and teams.

Many officials registered with the OWHA are under the age of 18 and are vital to both the present and future of the OWHA Officiating Program.

The Green Armband Initiative has been successfully implemented with other associations across Canada with great success. All Officials under the age of 18 will be encouraged to wear a green armband beginning in the 2024-2025 season. This includes brand new Officials (under the age of 18) as well as Officials who are returning from officiating in previous seasons. The armbands are being distributed at certification clinics and will be mailed to officials that cross over at no cost to the official.

The initiative will further support Officials and the OWHA with increased discipline for spectators and team members who abuse or harass Officials wearing green armbands. It is important that OWHA spectators and participants are aware that some of our Officials are minors, and that harassing and abusive behaviour is not acceptable. It is also important to remember that some on-ice officials are new to officiating and are new students of the game, similar to players and coaches. It is important to remember that judgement calls are subjective and are different for everyone. Everyone participating brings a different perspective to the game and we should remember that in the end we are all teammates in the game of hockey.

The OWHA would like all hockey stakeholders including parents and other spectators, coaches, players, and all officials to play a role in creating a positive hockey environment and in reducing abuse and harassment of all under-aged Officials and everyone in the game.

Additional Information:

All Officials under the age of 18 will be provided the opportunity to wear the green armband regardless of their skill level or the level of hockey that they are officiating. Wearing a green armband is not mandatory for officials under 18 years of age in the OWHA. We respect that individuals’ circumstances vary and that parents of officials who are minors may want to have input on this decision.

Any Maltreatment penalties assessed, or Code of Conduct violations reported during games where an official is wearing a green armband will result in a Discipline Committee review where the matter will be treated as severe and subsequent discipline will be applied.

The OWHA looks forward to the positive outcomes from this program. As always, the OWHA encourages all participants to enjoy a positive and respectful season.