Wes McCauley

Wes McCauley (born January 11, 1972) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and current National Hockey League (NHL) referee. He is the son of John McCauley, who was also an NHL referee, and his wife Irene.

Wes McCauley
Born	(1972-01-11) January 11, 1972 Georgetown, Ontario
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb)
Position	Defence
Shot	Left
Played for	Las Vegas Thunder Knoxville Cherokees Muskegon Fury Fort Wayne Komets
NHL Draft	150th overall, 1990 Detroit Red Wings
Playing career	1993–1997

A defenceman during his playing career, McCauley became a referee after injury forced his retirement from playing in 1997. He refereed his first NHL regular season game in 2003 and became a full-time NHL referee in 2005. He has worked in five consecutive Stanley Cup Finals from 2013 to 2018.

Early life and amateur career

McCauley was born on January 11, 1972, in Georgetown, Ontario.[1] His father was John McCauley, a former NHL referee and the NHL's Director of Officiating at the time of his death in June 1989.[2][3]

McCauley entered Michigan State University and played as a defenseman for the university's team, the Spartans. He spent four years playing alongside his best friend Bryan Smolinski and together they co-captained the team in their final year.[4] McCauley won the inaugural Terry Flanagan Memorial Award at the end of his final season in 1993.[5]

Professional playing career

After his first year at Michigan State, McCauley was drafted by the Detroit Red Wings in the 8th round of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft.[4] After graduating from university, he played minor league hockey with the Las Vegas Thunder and Fort Wayne Komets of the International Hockey League, the Knoxville Cherokees of the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL), the Muskegon Fury of the Colonial Hockey League and Milan in the Italian Serie A league.[6] He ended his playing career in 1997 due to injuries.[4]

Officiating career

After retiring from playing, McCauley followed in his father's footsteps by becoming a referee. He started off refereeing minor league matches in Ontario, before progressing to the ECHL.[4] In 2001, he was hired by the NHL to officiate in the second-tier American Hockey League (AHL).[7] While with the AHL, McCauley refereed his first NHL game on January 20, 2003, a 5–1 win to the Columbus Blue Jackets against the visiting Chicago Blackhawks.[4][8][9] After being selected to officiate the AHL's Calder Cup Finals in 2004 and 2005, he was promoted to a full-time NHL referee for the 2005–2006 season.[7] After two seasons as a full-time NHL referee, McCauley refereed his first playoff match in the 2007 Stanley Cup playoffs, in the first match of the conference quarterfinal series between the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders on April 12, 2007.[8][10] In June 2013 he was selected as part of the officiating team for the NHL's 2013 Stanley Cup Finals between the Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks.[2] McCauley has subsequently officiated the Stanley Cup Finals in 2014,[11] 2015,[12] 2016,[13] 2017,[14] and 2018.[15] He currently wears uniform number 4.[16] McCauley officiated his 1,000th NHL game on December 23, 2018.[17]

When coming to center ice after penalties and video reviews of goals, while mic'd up, he is known for sometimes dramatically announcing results in an exaggerated manner.[18][19][20]

Personal life

McCauley is married with three children and lives in South Portland, Maine, where his wife Bethany grew up. His younger brother Blaine McCauley also played professional hockey. Wes was one of the referees in Blaine's professional debut in 2000.[4]

References

1. "Wes McCauley". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
2. Fraser, Kerry (June 12, 2013). "Ref McCauley Making His First Trip to Stanley Cup Final". TSN.ca. Retrieved June 15, 2013.
3. Matsumoto, Rick (June 3, 1989). "NHL's John McCauley was 'a players' referee'". Toronto Star. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
4. Lenzi, Rachel (June 8, 2010). "NHL ref at home in South Portland". Portland Press Herald. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
5. "CCHA Tournament". collegehockeynews.com. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
6. "Wes McCauley". hockeydb.com. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
7. "NHL promotes referees from AHL ranks". American Hockey League. August 23, 2005. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
8. "Wes McCauley". nhlofficials.com. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
9. "Box score". Chicago Tribune. January 20, 2003. Archived from the original on 15 April 2003. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
10. "Game Summary". nhl.com. April 12, 2007. Retrieved November 16, 2016.
11. "NHL Referees & Linesmen for Stanley Cup Final". Scouting the Refs. 2 June 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
12. "Referee Wes McCauley Mic'd Up for Game 1 of Stanley Cup Final". Scouting the Refs. 4 June 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
13. Fraser, Kerry (30 May 2016). "C'Mon, Ref: The Stanley Cup final's third team". TSN.ca. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
14. http://scoutingtherefs.com/2017/05/19384/nhl-referees-linesmen-2017-stanley-cup-final/
15. "NHL Referees and Linesmen for 2018 Stanley Cup Final". scoutingtherefs.com. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
16. "Current NHLOA staff". nhlofficials.com. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
17. "Kings defeat Golden Knights on Toffoli goal in OT". National Hockey League. December 23, 2018. Retrieved December 24, 2018.
18. Wyshynski, Greg (March 28, 2016). "NHL ref Wes McCauley with the most dramatic goal call ever (Video)". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
19. Randall, Dakota (December 20, 2017). "NHL Ref Wes McCauley Back With Another Hilariously Dramatic Goal Call". New England Sports Network. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
20. Schlager, Brandon (February 12, 2017). "Watch: NHL ref Wes McCauley gets extra pumped about fighting call". Sporting News. Retrieved February 4, 2018.

External links

• Wes McCauley career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Award Created	Terry Flanagan Memorial Award 1992–93	Succeeded by Craig Lisko