The task of filling 266 pages with stories from his 33 seasons dressed in a National Hockey League linesman uniform should have been as easy as whistling down an offside for Ray (Scampy) Scapinello.
But when first-time author Rob Simpson approached Scapinello about a book after his retirement two years ago, the speedy official was hesitant.
"I didn't think I was a very interesting person until I read the book," he quipped.
"I really couldn't remember anything or at least that much about my career. But once Rob came to my house and started asking me questions, the stories came back and he interviewed others about their recollections."
The book is called Between the Lines: Not-So-Tall Tales From Ray "Scampy" Scapinello's Four Decades in the NHL.
Scapinello, 59, who lives with his wife, Maureen, on the same street in Guelph, Ont., on which he was raised, began officiating hockey after his final season playing right wing in Junior C in Guelph.
His dream of playing in the NHL expired because of his smallish frame, 5 foot 7 and 163 pounds. But the Guelph Referees Association encouraged Scapinello to stay in the game as an official.
Scapinello was soon elevated to the Ontario Hockey Association and then the NHL in 1971.
"Scotty Morrison took a chance on me and I owe it all to him," Scapinello said of the former NHL referee-in-chief. "[Then NHL president]Clarence Campbell asked [Morrison]why he kept hiring these vertically challenged officials, but I lasted 33 years."
Among Scapinello's highlights was officiating, with referee Terry Gregson and linesman Kevin Collins, the New York Rangers' dramatic 3-2 victory at Madison Square Garden against the Vancouver Canucks in the seventh game of the 1994 Stanley Cup.
"To be picked for that game was such an honour and what a game it was," Scapinello said.
Scapinello's favourite player was former Detroit Red Wings power forward Darren McCarty, now with the Calgary Flames.
"I just found him to be such a gentleman," Scapinello said. "He was the same guy if they were winning 10-1 or losing 10-1. When I went to the players' bench during the television timeouts, he would be the first player to hand me a Gatorade bottle.
"When Detroit won the [1997]Stanley Cup in its building, he walked into our dressing room after the game with running shoes on, but still dressed in his uniform, offering us some champagne. I have all the time in the world for him."
Scapinello was often the best skater on the ice when he worked a game. But his lack of size was never a deterrent in breaking up fights.
"The heavyweights were never a problem," Scapinello said. "I just waited for them to slug it out and then asked them if they were done. They would pat each other on the butt and break it up themselves."
Scapinello now supervises officials for the Ontario Hockey League and Central Hockey League. However, he misses his NHL job, dearly.
"I miss it drastically," he said. "These are world-class athletes and people and to see them perform up close for 33 years was a treat. It was a unique perspective.""I said it in the book that I don't know who coined the phrase find a job you like and you'll never have to work a day in your life, but that's what officiating was for me. I have no hair on my head, but every time the national anthems were played, the hair on my neck would stand up."