The KHL may try to recruit referees from the U.S. and Canada because Russian officials are not good enough, league president Alexander Medvedev said Wednesday.
The KHL has seen a number of high-profile arguments about refereeing this season, most notably last week when SKA St. Petersburg had a potential winning goal disallowed for kicking in the Western Conference final series opener.
In that case, a KHL disciplinary committee later ruled that the goal should have been counted.
“Our referees have some deficiencies. And they themselves know this well,” Medvedev said.
“And in the future, we will, perhaps, invite referees not just from the rest of Europe, but from North America too, from the NHL.”
U.S. and Canadian referees could work in Eastern Europe while the NHL playoffs take place, Medvedev suggested.
“They get free time before the playoffs and can take part. And lots of them want to come and work in Russia.”
The roster of KHL referees includes one official each from Belarus, Latvia and Slovakia, which all field a team in the league, leaving Finnish referee Juri Renn as the only representative from a non-KHL country.
