Refereeing a hockey game, it turns out, is a bit like plumbing a building.

When the hockey game is over, and when construction on a building is complete, referees and plumbers know they've done their job when people don't notice the work they've done.

Paul Edington, 34, knows this better than anyone. He's a member of Plumbers, Pipe Fitters Local and Service Trades Local 174 in Coopersville, and is also a referee who officiated earlier this month at the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) hockey finals.

"It's a real honor to be asked to work the finals," Edington said. "You get great satisfaction from stepping on the ice, doing a good job and hopefully being part of a competitive game."

The state finals were held this year in Plymouth on March 11 at the Compuware Arena. A preliminary field of about 200 on-ice hockey officials from around the state is selected by team coaches to be in the running to officiate at the finals, and nine are selected by the MHSAA. Edington was one of those nine, working as a linesman as part of a three-person officiating crew on the Division III game: a matchup in which Cranbrook Kingswood defeated Grand Rapids Catholic Central, 4-0.

A referee at the high school level for the last 10 years, this was the second time Edington has officiated at the finals.

"It's fun to work at the finals, but for me it's all about kids enjoying the game," Edington said. "If the players and the fans didn't know we as officials were in the building, that's great for us."

Throughout a given year, which generally includes about 200 games for Edington, games are officiated by a two-person referee system without a linesman. In addition to refereeing for high school teams, he officiates for USA Hockey, which consists of leagues of teams with players under 18 years of age.

Edington works hockey games around his work for Andy J. Egan Co. He is currently their project superintendent on the 28-story Marriott Hotel going up in Grand Rapids. He doesn't get much verbal abuse there, but as a referee, verbal abuse on the job is, of course, inevitable.

"I think the key to holding any position of authority is to maintain control, do your best to be fair, and when the abuse comes, not to take it personally," he said. "I think treating it as 'water off a duck's back' is a pretty good analogy."

Edington said over the years, he's seen a few trends regarding players, parents and fans. With high school players, "they're teenagers, you're dealing with hormones, and stuff happens during the heat of a game. It's usually no problem." He said high school players and coaches are generally the best-behaved group he comes in contact with, because they're representing their school and there are rules governing their behavior.

"Parents," he said, "are another matter. They're supposed to set an example for their kids, and when they don't, it bothers me."

Edington said the ugly image of parents who are too wrapped up in their kids' sporting lives is alive and well. He said he's known of parents who have come over the glass to try to assault an official. Parents have threatened him and have come to the officials' locker room to make their case. One father confronted him after a game, "cussing up and down" about a perceived bad call on the ice - while holding the hand of a three-year-old child.

Another parent, using foul language, could be heard shouting from the stands just before a face-off. One of the young players looked up at and muttered, "that's my dad," Edington related.

Edington said anyone wanting to get their feet wet in refereeing in Michigan usually starts where he started: in the low-pressure hockey games of the mini-mites, which involve five- and six-year-olds. That's the level where his 13-year-old son also started refereeing, and his son has stuck with it, now officiating at games with kids his own age. But he said most young referees drop out after the second year of mentoring/training, often because of a bad experience with coach or parent.

"I've been to games where my son is refereeing and when I hear the abuse, I just cringe," Edington said. "But you know, depending on how you deal with it, this job can be a real character-builder, and can give a kid a lot of confidence."

He said he doesn't play hockey much, but he is a Detroit Red Wings fan. When he watches NHL games, he often finds himself looking more at the work of the officials than the players.

Referees, Edington said, owe it to the players to stay in good physical condition. He and his peers, he said, have no problem with critiquing each other's calls or non-calls in-between periods. The pay is pretty good, he said, but the hours are long and there's a significant amount of travel and commuting. He said at age 34, he's about at the upper age limit for advancing to college hockey or higher up into junior hockey.

"If I stopped reffing, I'd be totally satisfied," Edington said. "I have been able to work a couple of finals games, and I have really enjoyed my involvement in the sport."

LOCAL 174 MEMBER Paul Edington referees a game two weeks before the state high school finals. Photo by RobertCarr