A handful of former NHL players have gone on to have careers as NHL officials. Five of the league’s current officials, though, were selected in the NHL Draft. Only one of them actually made it to the NHL as both a player and an official. With this year’s draft nearly upon us, we look back at the draft picks who later went on to become NHL referees and linesmen.

Dean Morton – 1986

8th Round, 148th Overall – D – Detroit Red Wings

Morton is the only current official to have played in an NHL game – and scored a goal, with assists from Marc Habscheid and Steve Yzerman. Morton’s career also took him to stops in the AHL, IHL, ECHL, and the Colonial Hockey League.

Selected Ahead Of: Stay at home guys like Murray Baron (#167), Dave McLlwain (#172), Lance Pitlick (#180), and Greg Hawgood (#202).

Draft Class Highlights: Vincent Damphousse, Brian Leetch, Scott Young, Craig Janney, Adam Graves, Teppo Numinen. Oilers head coach Todd McLellan was also drafted that year.

Wes McCauley – 1990

8th Round, 150th Overall – D – Detroit Red Wings

At Michigan State, McCauley was teammates with Bryan Smolinski, Rem Murray, Anson Carter, Kip Miller, and Jason Woolley. He went on to play in the ECHL, IHL, and Continental Hockey League, where he was teammates with NHL referee Peter Feola and current Philadelphis Flyers head coach Scott Gordon.

Selected Ahead Of: Peter Bondra (#156), Alexander Karpovtsev (#158), Ken Klee (#177), Valeri Zelepukin (#221)

Draft Class Highlights: Jaromir Jagr, Martin Brodeur, Keith Tkachuk, Doug Weight, Peter Bondra, Owen Nolan, Sergei Zubov, Petr Nedved

Scott Cherrey – 1994

2nd Round, 41st Overall – LW – Washington Capitals

Cherrey was drafted out of Sault Ste. Marie, where he played alongside Joe Thornton and Dan Cloutier. The Drayton, Ontario, native spent one season in the ECHL with the now-defunct Mobile Mysticks.

Selected Ahead Of: Dave Scatchard (#42), Curtis Brown (#43), Jose Theodore (#44), Patrik Elias (#51), Freddie Modin (#64), Sheldon Souray (#71), Chris Drury (#72), Milan Hejduk (#87), Daniel Alfredsson (#133), Evgeny Nabokov (#219), Steve Sullivan (#233), Tomas Holmstrom (#257)

Draft Class Highlights: Aside from those listed above, Ed Jovanovski, Ryan Smyth, Jeff O’Neill, Jeff Friesen

Jake Brenk – 2001

5th Round, 154th Overall – F – Edmonton Oilers

Brenk played at MSU Mankato with David Backes and Travis Morin prior to being selected. He spent time in the ECHL, UHL, CHL and in Europe before making the jump to officiating full-time.

Selected Ahead Of: Ryan Clowe (#175), Marek Zidlicky (#176), Jussi Jokinen (#192), Brooks Laich (#193), Johnny Oduya (#221), P-A Parenteau (#264)

Draft Class Highlights: Ilya Kovalchuk, Jason Spezza, Jason Pominville, Mike Cammalleri, Patrick Sharp, Mikko Koivu, Craig Anderson, Mike Smith

Ryan Gibbons – 2003

6th Round, 178th Overall – RW – Phoenix Coyotes

Gibbons was suiting up for the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds when he was drafted, where he played alongside Islanders’ defenseman Thomas Hickey. He moved on to the ECHL, where he played parts of three seasons with the Chiefs, Checkers, Condors, Jackals, and Royals. Gibbons talked with FOX Sports about making the transition.

Selected Ahead Of: Joe Pavelski (#205), Tobias Enstrom (#239), Dustin Byfuglien (#245), Matt Moulson (#263)

Draft Class Highlights: Eric Staal, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Thomas Vanek, Zach Parise, Patrice Bergeron, Brent Burns, Marc-Andre Fleury, Corey Crawford

Travis Gawryletz – 2004

8th Round, 253rd Overall – D – Philadelphia Flyers

Gawryletz was the first player with the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters to be drafted right out of the league. He went on to play college hockey at the University of Minn-Duluth with future NHLers Matt Niskanen, Mason Raymond, Jason Garrison and Alex Stalock. A physical, defensive defenseman, Gawryletz suited up for the ECHL’s Elmira Jackals from 2008-2010, where he played alongside future fellow linesman Ryan Gibbons. Gawryletz moved up to the AHL’s Lake Erie Monsters from 2009-2011, then spent three seasons in Europe before making a brief return to the ECHL with the Bakersfield Condors in 2014.

Selected Ahead Of: Pekka Rinne (#258), Mark Streit (#262), Daniel Winnik (#265), Jannik Hansen (#287)

Draft Class Highlights: Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Blake Wheeler, Devan Dubnyk, Cory Schneider, David Krejci, Alexander Edler,

Corey Syvret – 2007

6th Round, 181st Overall – D – Florida Panthers

Syvret was drafted while playing with the Guelph Storm; one of his teammates was future NHL/AHL official Conor O’Donnell. He went on to spend seven seasons in the ECHL, with occasional callups to the AHL. In the ECHL, Syvrety took the ice with the Kalamazoo Wings, Trenton Titans, Alaska Aces, Florida Everblades, and Atlanta Gladiators. His AHL career was spent with the Rochester Americans, Portland Pirates, and Toronto Marlies – where he played with Morgan Rielly and Jake Gardiner. In Alaska, Syvret suited up alongside future NHL/AHL referee Michael Markovic, as well as Brandon Dubinsky and Scott Gomez (during the 2004-05 NHL lockout.)

Selected Ahead Of: Carl Gunnarsson (#194), Justin Braun (#201)

Draft Class Highlights: Patrick Kane, Jakub Voracek, Logan Couture, Ryan McDonagh, Kevin Shattenkirk, P.K. Subban, Wayne Simmonds, Jamie Benn



Kory Nagy – 2008

5th Round, 142nd Overall – C – New Jersey Devils

The Walsingham, Ontario, native spent four years in the OHL, where he played for the Oshawa Generals alongside John Tavares, Cal Clutterbuck, Calvin de Haan, and Michal Neuvirth. Afte rthe draft, Nagy spent three season splitting time between the AHL and ECHL in the New Jersey Devils’ organization, taking the ice with Adam Henrique, Steve Bernier, and Keith Kinkaid. He made additional stops in the ECHL’s Trenton Titans and Orlando Solar Bears before closing out his minor league career with the Toronto Marlies in 2014.

Selected Ahead Of: Matt Martin (#148), Cam Atkinson (#157), Tommy Wingels (#177), Zac Rinaldo (#178), Jason Demers (#186)

Draft Class Highlights: Steven Stamkos, Erik Karlsson, Braden Holtby, Roman Josi, Drew Doughty, Alex Pietrangelo, John Carlson, Gustav Nyqvist, Jordan Eberle, Adam Henrique, Josh Bailey, Derek Stepan,

As the names are announced at this year’s draft, just remember that only a select few will make it to the NHL. There’s always the chance they might get there in stripes.

Originally published 6/22/16. Updated 3/20/19.