by – David McPherson
On January 17, King Rebellion will be in Oakville to take on the Oakville Blades – Hillary will make OHA history as part of an all women’s officiating crew that will include: Lacy Senuk, Laura Gutauskas and Marlowe Schott. Watch for profiles on the three other officials in the coming weeks.
OHA Official Hillary Brennan
Cambridge, ON – When Hillary Brennan first donned the stripes, she had no aspirations that one day it might become a vocation.
“My dad convinced me to start officiating,” the OHA official recalls. “Like a lot of teenagers, I was just looking for some spending money to shop.”
Growing up in London, Ont., Hillary hit the ice for the first time at 10-years-old and played Rep hockey until the end of high school. Following her final season with the London Devilettes(U22), several schools offered Hillary an athletic scholarship, including: Oswego, Concordia and Windsor. Instead, she hung up her skates (at least as a player) to focus on her education.
Northern Bound
Hillary packed her bags and headed north to Nipissing University to pursue a BA in Psychology. In between classes, she refereed local hockey. The highest-level she had officiated in London was AAA (U18), but in North Bay Hillary rose in the referee ranks and was the first female to officiate a JHL game. She credits the mentorship and encouragement from her “northern colleagues,” who gave her progressive opportunities to officiate bigger games for this career-advancement.
“They really pumped my tires,” she recalls. “I owe my officiating resume to them.”
The more hours Hillary donned the stripes, the more her confidence grew. Gradually, her career aspirations changed; she believed, just maybe, this part-time job to earn extras spending money was also a viable vocation.
“I always focused on academics and my dad pushed me in that direction,” she says. “I also love hockey … even when I was 14 and had to get to the rink at 8 a.m. to officiate novice games. But, seeing officiating as a potential career path did not hit me until my second year of university.”
Making History
After graduating from Nipissing with an Honours BA, concurrently with applying to grad schools, Hillary entered her name into the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) Officiating Combine. On September 4, 2022, in a game between the Guelph Storm and the Mississauga Steelheads, Hillary made her OHL debut — and league history — paired with linesperson Marlowe Schott; it was the first time two women had worked on the same officiating team.
“When all this happened, I was in the middle of applying to grad schools and trying to see where I could do my masters,” she recalls. “But, for now, I’m officiating full-time and seeing where it goes … maybe I’ll grow up in the next three or four years!”
Or, maybe one day Hillary will add NHL official to her resume and make more history as the first woman to referee in the big leagues. In 2023, she attended the NHL Officials Combine in Buffalo and they gave her a lot of great feedback.
“Being an official who may be part of that selection one day is honorable,” Hillary says. “You never know until you get the paper handed to you, but as long as I keep doing what I’m doing, I know they are watching.”
Hillary takes her job as an OHA official seriously and is grateful to Director of Officiating Kevin Pollock and the rest of her fellow officials for their ongoing training, support and camaraderie — on and off the ice. These days, most of her time is spent on-ice or travelling by plane or car to a rink. Besides refereeing the OHA, other nights finds her suiting up for a PWHL game in Montreal and the next night officiating an OUA game in Kingston. On average, Hillary officiates five times a week. It’s a hectic schedule that leaves little time for hobbies, but she is okay with that, as she loves her job.
“Your job isn’t supposed to be your central focus, but fortunately/unfortunately right now, from September until the end of hockey season, there’s not much time to do anything else,” Hillary says.
Mental Health Matters
In the off-season, Hillary helps others by following her other passion: mental health awareness. She mentors up-incoming referees in London where she also works as a Crisis Worker at the CMHA Thames Valley Addiction and Mental Health Services. Hillary also teaches a course at Fanshawe College in the School of Public Safety.
“Mental health is so important, not just in athletics, but in everyday life,” she says.
One day Hillary hopes to return to the minor leagues and bring a mental-health approach to her local hockey association in London.
“Some of the stories I hear from these young officials moving up in the ranks are so sad,” she says. “Bullying on the ice and the like, which leads to them dropping out after only refereeing one or two years.”
Working in social services definitely helps this referee overcome any on-ice issues and find empathy with players. According to Hillary one of the greatest challenges to officiating a hockey game revolves around players’ mental health.
“A guest speaker at one of our officiating camps recently told us that over the next couple of years we might see a difference in the emotional maturity of some players,” she adds. “Not to keep putting the blame back on COVID-19, but a lot of kids, who are now 16 or 17-years old, had their prime pubertal developmental moments during COVID and were more isolated.
“That emotional immaturity — and the ability to regulate oneself — is something I’ve already noticed,” Hillary continues. “Just the sense that they’re not snapping out of it as quickly as they used to or maybe they’re holding grudges throughout the game. I now understand where those emotions are rooted and try to find camaraderie with them to handle these situations a bit differently.”
Wise Words from Dad
Hilary’s father not only encouraged her to try officiating when she was a teenager, but he also advised her to pursue this vocation as long as the passion remains.
“My dad always told me: ‘Do this for as long as you can and for as long as you love it. As soon as the love leaves, stop because that is when it becomes a job and when it is just work that will take the fun out of the sport that you grew up loving.’ So, just love it and that’s all you need to worry about.’”
About the Ontario Hockey Association
The Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) was founded on November 27, 1890, and is the governing body for the majority of Junior and Senior hockey in the Province of Ontario. The OHA is a Member Partner of the Ontario Hockey Federation which is one of thirteen Provincial and Regional Branches of Hockey Canada.
It is comprised of three Junior hockey leagues and two Senior hockey leagues: Junior A – Ontario Junior Hockey League; Junior B – Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League; Junior C – Provincial Junior Hockey League, Senior – Allan Cup Hockey (AAA) and Ontario Elite Hockey League (AA). For the 2023-24 season, these five leagues encompass 125 teams.
The objectives of the OHA are to foster and encourage the sport of amateur hockey, to conduct competition in the various categories established, to determine teams for entry into the inter-branch competitions that may be provided by Hockey Canada, and to provide for the affiliation of other hockey organizations.
The OHA provides administrative resources, coordinates programs, services and events for hockey participants and provides support to various Development Programs for coaches, officials, trainers and players, Safety and Risk Management Issues and offers resources for Harassment and Abuse education.
-30-
For more information or to set up an interview, please contact:
Chris McCleary
General Manager, Operations & Marketing
Ontario Hockey Association
