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As an official, one is accountable for anything unusual that happens during the game. Filing incident reports is part of the turf but not one of the more enjoyable tasks that arise. To paraphrase Yogi Berra, the hockey game ain't over til the refs finish the paperwork.

I'll set the scene for you with one of the funnier incidents that popped up during my career.

It's New Year's Eve 1987 in Vancouver, BC, and I'm reffing a Canucks game against the Winnipeg Jets. I'm in great spirits. Vancouver is a great city and I have a date with a beautiful blonde planned for after the game. My tux is ready to go, and I can't wait to ring in the New Year in grand style.

The game is a physical one with several fights, but nothing out of the ordinary. That is until after I escorted the Jets' Steve Rooney, a friend and fellow Bostonian, to the penalty box.

I made the mistake of turning my back on the Dorchester boy (we're all a bunch of miscreants). Suddenly, I turn around and there's Rooney, rolling around on the ice again.

My first thought: "Uh, oh. This one is going to be lots of fun to explain."

Rather then spending my New Year's Eve out on the town wining and dining a beautiful woman, I spent it back at the hotel filing an incident report with the NHL. My "date" was linesman Randy Mitton. We were eager to get the tedious process done as soon as possible.

So long as I live, I will never forget my phone conversation with NHL officiating director John McCauley.

"So you are telling me that Rooney just fell out of the penalty box?" McCauley asked, incredulously.

"That's right," I said. "Strange, huh?"

After a long pause, John said, "You know, they just don't make those damn doors the way they used to."

As a ref, I couldn't hate the players for trying. I understood their reasons but I needed to keep in mind that it was my job to keep it fair and to keep it safe. When a player might go really, really overboard, with a stick swing or something equally stupid, I had to draw the line. I had to get firm and hang tough. I'd call a penalty in a game and then a day later, sit across from Marty McSorley, Dave Brown, Stephane Richer or some other guy who wandered too far and got a MATCH penalty (which necessitated a report to the league).

Facing a suspension and listening to my unemotional and factual report, inevitably the heat would rise in the hearing room. More than once, I got challenged to "step out side." With a laugh and without blinking, I would say that stepping outside wouldn't bother me but that would only add to the other guy's problems and his misery.

Inevitably, Brian O'Neil would get things calm and my final and personal response after my report would be when the player would say to me, "Jeez Stewy, you used to play tough. You should know why I hit him."

I would always respond with this, "I don't mind that you hit him, but next time, leave the stick out of it. I never used a stick, just my fists."

Believe me, these reports and hearings were things I'd gladly have lived without.

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Paul Stewart holds the distinction of being the first U.S.-born citizen to make it to the NHL as both a player and referee. On March 15, 2003, he became the first American-born referee to officiate in 1,000 NHL games.

Today, Stewart is an officiating and league discipline consultant for the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) and serves as director of hockey officiating for the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC).

The longtime referee heads Officiating by Stewart, a consulting, training and evaluation service for officials. Stewart also maintains a busy schedule as a public speaker, fund raiser and master-of-ceremonies for a host of private, corporate and public events. As a non-hockey venture, he is the owner of Lest We Forget.

In addition to his blogs for HockeyBuzz every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, Stewart writes a column every Wednesday for the Huffington Post.