Two young Prince Albert referees receive awards from Hockey Saskatchewan

As a referee in any sport, every decision you make is open to being criticized by an entire arena of fans that may disagree with the call, but two young hockey officials from Prince Albert have not only jumped at dealing with that pressure, they’ve thrived.

Hockey Saskatchewan has announced their yearly awards over the course of this week, and Prince Albert’s Griffin Johns was named one of Saskatchewan’s Most Promising Officials, while Lucas Boechler was honoured as one of the Most Improved Officials.

For Johns, this year was a big one. Having just turned 18 years old in March, Johns started officiating games as a linesman in the SJHL and PJHL this year, and while being a referee, he also started officiating games in the Saskatchewan Male AAA Hockey League (SMAAAHL). Among all the games he worked this year, his first U18 AAA game was a special one.

“My first U18 AAA game was the Mintos home opener, so that was awesome. That was a great game for me, a very eye-opening experience with the league. I’ve been helping lines for that league for over a year and a bit now, and wearing the bands is definitely an eye-opening experience to a whole different level of the game.

Johns has been a hockey official for half of his life now. He started in La Ronge when he was nine years old, when the local house league was short on officials. Since then, he’s had some amazing mentors.

“Dad and Mom really helped me out. Bruce Skilliter was my neighbor, he was a referee in the SJHL, and his son refs in the NHL as well, so he helped me out greatly and still helps me out lots to this day, and I couldn’t be more grateful for him and his support.”

Johns continued about Barry Schrader, who had a big impact since his family moved to Prince Albert when he turned 15.

“He never left my corner and had always, and still has, one of the biggest impacts on my reffing career to this day.”

As for Lucas Boechler, he’s been reffing for a similar amount of time as Johns. Also 18 years old, he’s been officiating for ‘around eight or nine years’, and he got into it after a few of his friends started doing it.

Although he had a great year, Boechler was surprised to hear he earned the Most Improved Award for his district. This year, he got to step up to new levels that he hadn’t officiated before, but getting to call his first game in the PJHL at the Junior B level was the highlight.

“I’ve been waiting for the PJ game, so when I got it, I got pretty excited. I got a lot more AAA this year, so that made a big difference in getting my skill level up there, just getting exposed to the higher, quicker games.”

Boechler has also had some great mentors to help him along this path so far, including the earlier mentioned Barry Schrader, but when it comes to the biggest influence he’s had, that distinction goes to his mom.

“She really helped me get out and just do my best reffing when I was younger. She used to sit me down at the table and make me practice my signals so that I knew every one before I’d go out and ref, which really helped me a lot.”

With both guys having officiated games in the PJHL, they both have stepped up to call games in leagues where the athletes are older than them. The pressures excited hockey fans put on officials can scare the younger generation away, but both Johns and Boechler look forward to it.

For Boechler, knowing that the decisions he makes can have an effect on the game with everyone watching is part of why he likes officiating in the first place.

“I like the pressure. Let’s say I don’t do a great call or something and the fans get mad, I kind of use that to try and do my best for the rest of the game and just… not even correct it, but just make sure I’m always out there, mentally ready for the next call, whether it’s going to be a quick, easy one or you got to really pay attention and get in there.”

As for Johns, he’s had a little more experience officiating in the SJHL and PJHL. He knows that even if he makes a mistake out there while officiating games when players can be as much as three years older than him, his maturity and confidence in his ability to manage a game have him prepared for any blowback he may get.

“Just being out there and knowing that I’m out there, not on a fluke, guys see me and they say ‘hey, he’s qualified for this league’. If anyone gives me crap on the ice, I just deal with it and let them know that I’m not out here to play games. I’m not out here to have fun. It’s my job. I know they’re a little bit older than me, but it’s more of a mental level and a maturity level that you have to have out there, especially if you’re a few years younger.”

Both Johns and Boechler plan to continue their officiating journeys for as long and far as their abilities will allow. With Johns already taking part in the WHL’s officiating development camp this year, he believes he’s still a year or two away from getting the call-up.

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nick.nielsen@pattisonmedia.com