Katie Guay is a hockey referee.
A trailblazer? Guay is more comfortable just being known as a person trying to get all the calls right.
A Westfield, Mass., native who played four years of college hockey at Brown University (2001-05), Guay made history Oct. 16 when she became the first female referee to work an American Hockey League game.
It was the season opener between the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Lehigh Valley Phantoms in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. There were 5,785 fans in attendance at Mohegan Sun Arena, and the pressure was substantial.
“I feel nervous before every game, really. Definitely, the adrenaline was flowing,” Guay said. “Once the first puck went down, I felt prepared for it. Any time you work in a new league, that level of confidence is void until you get your feet wet. I thought the game went pretty well. It’s a little faster and a little bit more physical, but all my training I feel prepared me for that night.”
The NBA and NFL both have women’s officials making calls at the highest level. The NHL has never had a female referee work a regular-season or playoff game. That might change in the near future.
The NHL is committed to developing strong referees, and if they happen to be female, that’s fine. Guay is one of 10 women scheduled to officiate games in the AHL, which is just one rung below the NHL, this season. This is the first year the AHL has had female referees and linespeople.
“If you can see it, you can be it,” said Guay, who hopes young girls take notice of the doors the AHL is opening.
The night after Guay made history, Kelly Cooke served as a referee for the Rochester at Utica game.
“I was with a real good team,” Cooke said. “I was definitely more nervous for my first (AHL) game, but my partners were great. They answered all the questions I had.”
Cooke wasn’t the only female referee to debut as an AHL referee Oct. 17. Jacqueline Zee Howard worked the Lehigh Valley at Hershey game that night.
Before the AHL regular season concludes, Samantha Hiller, Elizabeth Mantha, Amanda Tassoni and Laura White also will have worked as referees, while Alexandra Clarke, Kendall Hanley and Kirsten Welsh will have served as linespersons.
“It was just time,” said AHL president Scott Howson. “The feedback has been good.”
Howson was in attendance for the Oct. 16 game. He came away impressed with Guay, who made a tough call late.
With Lehigh Valley trailing 2-1 and the seconds ticking down, the visitors pulled their goaltender. Guay called a too many men on the ice penalty on Lehigh Valley. Howson, looking on, thought it was a courageous call. It was not an obvious call. He wondered if Guay was right. A replay confirmed she was. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton held on for the win.
“She was right. Good for her,” Howson said. “Kate settled right in.”
Howson, who served as general manager of the Columbus Blue Jackets from 2007-13, said all 10 of the female officials have compiled a lengthy list of accomplishments. Now it’s just a question of whether they can master the AHL level. One thing’s for sure — the NHL will be watching.
“It was a lot of fun. It was a lot of attention leading up to the night,” Guay said of her history-making night. “It was special for a lot of people throughout the hockey community. It was a lot of hype leading up to it, but it went well.”
Brandon Schrader, who also works NHL games, made her life easier, said Guay, who called Schrader “incredibly supportive.”
Guay said the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Lehigh Valley players also were supportive.
“Overall the guys were really supportive,” she said. “A couple of them came up to me before the game and congratulated me.”
Asked if she considers herself a trailblazer, Guay, who now lives in Mansfield, Mass., said, “I’m definitely just trying to do my job out there. The timing has just been right for me. I’ve had so many mentors who carried me.”
Cooke admitted to feeling a “little bit of added pressure” prior to her AHL debut in Utica, N.Y., the night after Guay’s first AHL game.
“It was definitely extra special,” she said. “My focus at the end of the day is it’s still hockey and my job is to go out and call the game.”
Like Guay, Cooke said the Rochester and Utica players were “amazing” toward her.
“They were very respectful,” she said. “A few came up to me and congratulated me on being there.”
The goal of any referee is to “fly under the radar,” Cooke said, though that was difficult with the media attention. Not that she’s complaining. Cooke said if she can be a role model for even just one young girl to get into officiating, she would be thrilled.
An Andover, Mass., native, Cooke, 31, began officiating games when she was 12, following in the footsteps of an older brother. Earning money was nice. Getting up for 6 a.m. Mite games? Not so much.
“I was kind of a rink rat,” said Cooke, who now lives in West Roxbury, Mass. “It was the perfect part-time job.”
A 2013 graduate of Princeton, Cooke played pro hockey for the Boston Blades (2013-15) and Boston Pride (2015-16). She also served as the NWHL’s director of player safety.
In 2019, she was one of four women chosen to officiate an NHL Prospect Tournament in Nashville, Tenn., where she worked three games. It was an eye-opening and door-opening experience. Guay also worked the tournament, the first NHL-affiliated event women have officiated.
“At the time it was kind of a different experience. I hadn’t refereed men’s hockey. It was an awesome experience,” said Cooke, who said she was playing at Princeton the first time a female official worked one of her games. “The guys were extremely respectful. It was a springboard into realizing how fast the men’s game was. Our job is to go out there and be as close to perfect as we can.”
The 2019 event also was pivotal to Guay’s career.
“That really opened my eyes to a new path,” she said.
The following year, Cooke was selected to work an elite women’s 3-on-3 event at the NHL All-Star Game. She also worked at the IIHF Women’s U-18 championship. In addition to her referee duties, Cooke is a corporate lawyer at Morgan Lewis, a Boston law firm.
“It’s definitely a challenge. I love both of the careers. They’ve been very supportive as long as I get my work done,” she said of management at Morgan Lewis.
“The most important thing in hockey is skating, and that’s something I’ve always focused on. The pace has never been a problem for me,” she said.
Howson said female officials deserve the right to work at the highest level. Top prospects often need AHL seasoning. The same is true for officials.
“The league is a stepping stone, not just for players and coaches, but for officials, too,” he said. “It was time.”
Howson said it’s “really important” for officials, male or female, to feel they have the opportunity to work at the top levels. The AHL is supportive of the 10 female officials and, Howson said, though it’s early, club officials, coaches and players have been complimentary.
“It’s really important for me to put officials on the ice who can do the job,” he said.
Guay and Cooke aren’t the only ones with New England roots. Rhode Island native Tassoni tallied 72 points in 100 games for the Rhode Island Rams. In 2019, Tassoni, Cooke, Guay and Delaney Harrop formed an all-female officiating team at the women’s NCAA Frozen Four.
All 10 of the female officials have participated in the NHL Officiating Association Mentorship program. In August, all but Clarke attended the NHL’s Exposure Combine.
Guay and Cooke made it clear that the NHL is not on their radar right now. The AHL is enough of a challenge. They know if they’re going to ever be elevated to work NHL games, it’s because they mastered games at the AHL level, no easy task.
The pace of high school games can be fast. Junior games are faster. College hockey games are even faster. Pro hockey games can be a blur. It’s all about positioning, about learning where to be, as plays develop. That takes time. That takes work. And there’s the physicality aspect. AHL players are a lot more physical than those at the lower levels, making the jobs of officiating crews more difficult.
“I’m just taking it day by day,” Cooke said.
Cooke stays busy working women’s Hockey East games and was excited about traveling to Sweden for a women’s Olympic qualifier tournament.
Cooke said her goal is to be selected to work women’s games at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. She expects to learn in late November whether she’ll be picked.
“As far as the women’s game, the ultimate goal for us is the Olympics. That’s the pinnacle for us,” Cooke said.
Guay, who began officiating games in 2006, has made history before. In 2014, Guay and Erin Blair became the first females to referee a Southern Professional Hockey League game. Guay keeps busy refereeing youth, junior and ECAC women’s games.
Guay feels indebted to female referees who came before her, those who didn’t have the same opportunities she’s taking on now.
“Hopefully it allows young girls to dream bigger,” she said.
Guay and Cooke have extensive local ties. Guay played at Deerfield Academy and formerly coached at Noble & Greenough School. Cooke played at Nobles before taking her talents to Princeton.
“Our job is to go out there and be as close to perfect as we can,” Cooke said.
Cooke stands just 5-foot-1, something she doesn’t feel is a detriment.
“I can’t change that,” she said. “If you can do the job, it doesn’t matter what size you are.”
Or what gender you are.
