Men's Hockey | 9/26/2016 3:46:00 PM
Moon Township, Pa. – Furman South has endured verbal lashings from coaches, unruly behavior by players and diatribes from fans that would make a Hell's Angel blush.
And this newly hired NHL official wouldn't want it any other way.
"All part of the job," said South, a
Robert Morris University graduate and a hockey player for the Colonials from 2008 to 2012. "It can be thankless. Even when you do a great job, you're rarely told that you did. But this is a passion of mine and something I love doing."
South made his NHL debut in an exhibition matchup between the Buffalo Sabres and Minnesota Wild at Penn State University's Pegula Arena Monday night.
This two-time student-athlete of the year winner offered deep appreciation to head coach
Derek Schooley and his nationally acclaimed program for his rise through the officiating ranks.
"It's a big reason why I made it to this level," South said. "The NHL looks for guys who played hockey at a high level, and I was lucky enough to play at a program like Robert Morris. I developed a high hockey I.Q. there. I learned the ins and outs of the game there. It refined me as a player, and it gave me great insight into the sport. I know everybody wishes that the first Robert Morris graduate to make it to the NHL would have been as a player, but I'm thrilled that I'm here and representing the university as a referee."
After Monday's preseason game, South will travel to Toronto, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and Brooklyn in a span of 10 days for more NHL exhibition games. It is all part of a fast-paced schedule that requires officials to call upwards of 70 games a season, sometimes 15-20 days a month.
To start his career, South will spend the majority of the 2016-17 regular season working in the American Hockey League. Then, based on performance, he could be called up to the NHL as needed. He is currently termed a part-time NHL official.
"It's a gradual process," said Al Kimmel, director of scouting and development for the NHL officiating team. "Furman will have to perform well this year and down the road to become full-time. Generally, we're looking at 2-3 years in the American League, along with some NHL assignments, before he would feel comfortable at the NHL level full-time. So, he'll start in the American League and we'll slowly integrate him into the NHL."
One of eight first-year officials hired by the NHL this season, South holds the distinction of being the lone Pittsburgh native in the 80-member profession. He hails from Sewickley, Pa., and graduated from Quaker Valley High School, where he led the hockey team to a state title as a senior in 2006.
The majority of his colleagues are of Canadian descent, including 63 of 80 in 2015-16, according to a roster provided by referee.com.
In many ways, South's rise through the officiating ranks is unique, and fascinating. His plan was to attend medical school after accumulating a 3.95 grade-point average in biology at Robert Morris. He participated in several medical research projects and internships before wading through medical-school offers.
However ...
"I should have been extremely happy about being accepted into medical school," South said. "But I wasn't. During the two-year process to finally get accepted, the opportunity in officiating came up. It was a roll of the dice, but I followed my passion for hockey. Medical school would have been great, too, but I'm happy to make my living in hockey."
A relative novice as an official, South's entrance into the profession only three years ago was serendipitous. A friend emailed him a link for the NHL's Officiating Exposure Combine, he filled it out and, surprisingly, was one of 40 invitees.
He was also a quick study.
South not only offered a great understanding of the game, a residual effect of playing four years for Schooley, but also displayed NHL-level skating skills and conditioning. In short order, he was given assignments to officiate Junior and American Hockey League games, where he routinely graded out at a high level.
"We saw a tremendous work ethic, great athletic ability and an intelligent individual in Furman," Kimmel said. "Last year, he made significant improvements and is someone with huge potential."
After two seasons of working in various leagues and tournaments as part of USA Hockey's Officiating Development Program, the offer came from the NHL on July 25. A lifelong dream of reaching the NHL had been fulfilled.
"I immediately called my parents when I found out," said South, who received the news from NHL vice president and director of officiating Stephen Walkom at the league offices in Toronto. "I talked to them and I talked to my fiancé. We didn't talk long because I didn't want to run up a big phone bill, but it was exciting. Then, I hung out with one of my good friends who live there and we got to celebrate. It was a great day."
As one of two referees in a crew that also features two linesmen, South's role is to supervise the game, while assessing penalties and making calls on goals. The linesmen handle faceoffs, icing calls and offsides infractions.
Schooley said South has the right "demeanor" and "temperament" to evolve into a highly successful official. Schooley also offered insight into what coaches look for from the men in black and white stripes.
"The guys who make the best officials are the ones who are able to communicate with coaches," Schooley said. "They have to be able to diffuse situations and admit when they make a mistake. They have to put their egos aside and say, 'I missed that call.' I think Furman offers those qualities. It's why I think he'll do an outstanding job."
South said his time working at the Junior level prepared him for pretty much anything he'll see as he enters the next phase of his career.
"I've dealt with brawls and ridiculous coaches who can be loud and disrespectful," South said. "I had a lot of tough situations to deal with. But at the same time, even though I might not see those things in the NHL, it helped in my preparation and showed me so many different sides of the sport. Now, I'm just looking forward to this next great opportunity that I have in front of me."
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