A Relationship Between Officials Developed on the Ice

After serving as an official at the 2026 Chipotle-USA Hockey Youth Tier I 18U National Championship in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania, last year, Terrell Rose contemplated retiring from officiating permanently. 

Rose began his refereeing career at approximately 14 years old, officiating local youth hockey matches in his hometown of West Haven, Connecticut. Over the past 30 years since his initial assignment, Rose advanced to officiate collegiate Division I hockey and national competitions. 

Ending his career near Pittsburgh initially appeared to be a straightforward decision for Rose. It was the same city where he officiated his first national tournament a decade ago, and some of the same supervisors were present at both events.

“At the conclusion of my last day, I’m like ‘Goodbye, thank you,’ and I’m embracing everyone. They kept saying, ‘No, we’ll see you next year, Terrell,’” he remarked.

His supervisors were not the only ones who believed that Rose had not yet finished with officiating. His girlfriend, Sarah Consolmangno, encouraged him to go skating during the offseason. 

“That’s when I thought, ‘Alright, I guess I’m back in it,’” he stated. 

Turning to Consolmangno, he added, “Now everyone’s asking, ‘How much longer are you going to do this?’ I basically point to her.” 

Consolmangno and Rose’s relationship essentially began at the ice rink. They officiated together three years ago at Pomfret School, which marked Consolmangno’s first boys’ varsity hockey game. 

“I was with one of my friends that I referee all my games with,” Rose explained. “We arrive, and she’s just sitting there quietly, not saying a word, while I’m talking a mile a minute. We’re in the locker room, and finally, I look over and ask, ‘Do you talk?’ The kid I was with said, ‘Are you trying to scare her?’” 

Two years later, the two crossed paths again. Consolmangno, who was early in her officiating journey, sought Rose’s feedback since he had more experience. From that point, they began exchanging conversations online and at the rink when they were occasionally assigned to the same game.

After one match, they had a free afternoon. With some time available, they ended up sitting in the rink’s parking lot reviewing video from that day’s game and Rose’s previous footage. After discussing hockey for several hours, Rose decided to head home. That’s when a significant sign of a promising future between them occurred. 

Consolmangno’s dog, Gizmo, an 80-pound Belgian Malinois, was in her vehicle that day. When Rose opened his car door, Gizmo jumped out and settled in the driver’s seat, waiting to be petted. 

“As my parents always say, dogs are excellent judges of character,” Consolmangno noted. “From the beginning, Gizmo absolutely adored him. He won’t willingly jump into other people’s cars.”

After several more encounters at hockey games and tournaments, Consolmangno and Rose found opportunities to connect off the ice and developed a rapport. 

In addition to hockey, Consolmangno, a native of Chicopee, Massachusetts, serves as a firefighter paramedic for the Auburn Fire Rescue Department. Rose is employed by Pure Hockey. They have been together for a year and a half, yet other referees still approach them, surprised to learn they are a couple. 

“We prefer not to make it widely known,” Rose stated. “It’s kind of like, ‘If you know, you know.’” 

“On the ice, we maintain a high level of professionalism, and you would never guess we’re together because we’ve even disagreed about calls on the ice before. I’ve approached him and asked, ‘Are you sure about that call?’” Consolmangno remarked. 

The couple mentioned that people often assume they officiate all their games together. They enjoy clarifying that it’s not every game, but they do work together frequently enough. 

They shared a convenient carpool for this year’s Girls Tier II national championships in Rockland, Massachusetts, where both Rose and Consolmangno officiated the tournament. 

Officiating at this level is significant for Consolmangno. She has participated in national events for four years, but this year’s tournament represented a full-circle moment for her.

“I was hoping to get Rockland because when I participated in my first nationals, I was actually playing in them back in 2013,” she shared. 

Not only did she officiate this year’s tournament, but it was also her first time overseeing the championship game at this level. 

“In my first year, I did officiate a (championship game), but it didn’t hold the same significance for me as this year because of all the camps I’ve attended and the effort I’ve put in, and I nearly started crying,” she said. “It was just one of those moments where it feels like all your hard work throughout the season had paid off.”

Rose officiated games during the initial four days of the tournament, but he moved to the stands to support Consolmangno during the championship match.

“Knowing what it meant to her, I was very, very happy for her,” Rose expressed.

Consolmangno is now contemplating her future and her aspirations moving forward. 

“I have hopes and aspirations to continue advancing and improving,” she stated. “I have cystic fibrosis, and selfishly, I want to be that role model for young children. Like, ‘Hey, if she can do this, I can do it too.’”

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.