Jim’s Intro to the Video Review Officials
Hi folks, Jim here, the only commentator who brought popcorn, 3D glasses, and a throw pillow to a video review session.
What are video review officials?
Video review officials are off-ice officials who use multiple camera angles, slow motion, and frame-by-frame analysis to help referees make accurate decisions on goals, offsides, penalties, and other critical plays. They operate from a centralized video booth or control room (often in the arena, sometimes remotely), and their job is to provide clear visual evidence to confirm or overturn on-ice calls.
In modern hockey, where plays happen at lightning speed and pucks can cross the line by millimeters, video review officials are the final layer of accuracy and fairness in the game.
How does it work?
Video review officials influence the game through technology, precision, and collaboration:
Collecting and Analyzing Footage
- They have access to multiple synchronized camera angles, overhead, goal line, broadcast, and specialty feeds.
- Using replay systems, they scrub back and forth frame by frame to pinpoint the exact moment a puck crosses the line, a skate breaks the plane, or a stick makes contact.
Assisting Referees on Close Calls
- When a play is challenged or reviewed, video officials relay evidence to the on-ice referees, who make the final ruling.
- In some leagues, video review officials can initiate reviews themselves for specific situations (like goal line decisions or game clock issues).
Clarifying Complex Situations
- Video officials examine goaltender interference, offside entries, puck-in-netting scenarios, high-sticks, kicked pucks, and other fine details that are hard to judge in real time.
- They provide clear visual confirmation that supports rule enforcement objectively.
Ensuring Accuracy in Timing
- They can reset the game clock if video evidence shows that time expired earlier or continued to run incorrectly.
- This is crucial in late-period or overtime situations where seconds decide outcomes.
Maintaining Game Integrity
- Their role is not to referee but to provide the evidence that ensures critical decisions are right, reducing controversy and maintaining trust in the results.
Common Situations Involving Video Review Officials
- Goal Line Decisions: Determining if the puck fully crossed the line before the whistle.
- Offside Challenges: Checking whether a player’s skate was still on the blue line before puck entry.
- High-Stick Goals: Establishing the puck’s contact point relative to the crossbar.
- Goaltender Interference: Reviewing collisions and positioning in the crease.
- Puck in Netting or Out of Play: Catching what on-ice officials may have missed before a goal.
- Game Clock Corrections: Adjusting time after reviews of late-period plays.
How do you make good decisions with it?
Great video review officials rely on clarity, neutrality, and communication.
- Check All Angles: Don’t rely on one camera. Verify from multiple perspectives.
- Slow Down the Chaos: Frame-by-frame analysis turns speed into certainty.
- Apply Rules Rigorously: Interpret what’s on screen through the rulebook, not assumptions.
- Be Decisive: Officials on the ice are waiting; clear calls keep the game moving.
- Communicate Precisely: Relay evidence clearly and concisely to referees for accurate rulings.
How do you master it?
Mastering the video review role requires deep rule knowledge, technical fluency with replay systems, and the ability to stay composed under pressure. Video officials train to identify key camera angles quickly, interpret plays correctly, and work seamlessly with on-ice crews. Experience helps them know where to look and what to prioritize in complex reviews.
What does it look like when done right?
A great video review official isolates the perfect overhead angle, identifies the puck crossing the line a fraction of a second before the whistle, and relays that evidence clearly. The referees announce the correct call, the crowd reacts, and the game moves forward with confidence. Their work is clean, quick, and decisive, often invisible to fans but essential to the outcome.
Commentator’s Corner
Jim’s Take
Video review officials are like forensic scientists. When the play gets messy, they break it down to the millisecond and find the truth hiding in the pixels.
Parent Tip
If your player loves hockey but also loves tech and analysis, this role blends rule knowledge with modern tools. It’s an underrated but fascinating part of the sport.
Player Tip
Play to the whistle, but remember the cameras see everything. Smart players know how their actions look on review.
A Final Thought
Video review officials are the silent arbiters of precision, using technology and expertise to ensure the game’s biggest moments are called right. When mastered, the role blends technical skill, rule interpretation, and collaboration, turning modern hockey into a fairer, more exact sport.
