When you want to know who will be in charge of an NHL game, Scoutingtherefs.com is the place to go. According to the website, Morgan MacPhee and Jake Brenk will officiate tonight’s game between the Montreal Canadiens and the New York Islanders, while Shandor Alphonso and Jonny Murray will be the linesmen on duty.
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One thing jumped at me when I saw the names: Morgan MacPhee’s limited experience. The referee was signed to a minor league contract back in 2022 and officiated his first NHL game on April 8, 2023, seeing more action in the AHL than in the NHL.
He gained a bit more experience in the big league last year but has only been on duty for 38 regular-season games; tonight’s his 39th. Needless to say, he’s yet to see any action in the playoffs. The second referee on duty will be Jake Brenk, who skated in 517 NHL regular-season tilts.
I’ll be keeping an eye on number 43 in black and white tonight to see how smoothly he runs the show. Some Montreal fans would be quick to say that, at least, it’s not Chris Lee.
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