I've been meaning to say a few things, and all of this talk about
ref's means there is no time but the present.
 
I would just like to comment on the quality of the CCHA referees
this year.  Before I go any further, the basis of these comments is
to COMPLIMENT them for their fine work (overall) this year.
 
From the games I have seen at Yost, at Lawson (Western Mi), and at
the Joe (GLI), there has not been one game where the refs have done
a remarkedly bad job.  The calls, while I may not have agreed with
them, have been generally consistent.
 
Since he is the ref we see most at Yost, I truly would like to
commend Matt Shegos.  While a bad reputation seems to follow him (he
is boo'ed constantly at Yost, and the fans at Yost seem to use his
name when calling every other ref bad...)  It has been enjoyable to
watch him work.  Two years ago when I started watching Michigan
hockey in earnest, Shegos was indeed one of the worst (in terms on
consistency) refs I had ever seen.  Last year, my boss (a CCHA
on-site official) and I agreed that Shegos seemed to call 2 good
periods, then "I don't know where he disappears to for the third."
 
This year, he has done a wonderful job in every game I have seen him
work.  In fact, at the GLI, he and WCHA ref Sheppard (?) did a
marvelous job working together, especially since it was probably
the first time they had done so.  The one thing that has truly
improved my impression of Matt is watchin the CCHA game of the week
on PASS.  No, the commentators haven't helped, but the live mic's
the producers put on the ref's give the viewer a point of view we
never see.
 
Only after listening to what Matt has to say in every situation can
I truly appreciate the job he does.  The man is a diplomat, a
politician, in the respect that he talks to the players a lot.  He,
as one of the PASS commentators said, "can talk anyone out of doing
anything."  He alone, by talking to the players, prevented a couple
of probable fights in the Michigan/Michigan Tech game at the GLI.
One nice thing about him, is that he seems to know every players
first names, and he treats them as people, not as things.  His
officiating has character and consistancy...  It'd be nice if more
officials could watch the job he does and learn from it.
 
IMHO, you will someday see Matt Shegos wearing an orange striped
sweater bearing the symbol of the NHL.
 
BTW -- has anyone in the CCHA world seen Steve Piotrowski?  Besides
Shegos now, I think he is one of the best CCHA ref's, but we haven't
seen him at Yost at all.  Is he still reffing?
 
 
Until next time,
 
DROP THE PUCK!
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Michigan Engineering `94                                 | \ \  / / |
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    MICHIGAN WOLVERINES -- 1993 ROSE BOWL AND BIG TEN CHAMPIONS!