Four WHL Officials selected to work at 2023 IIHF World Championship

Four WHL officials have been assigned to work the 2023 IIHF World Championship in Tampere, Finland and Riga, Latvia.

Referees Adam Bloski and Mike Langin, as well as linespersons Brett Mackey and Tarrington Wyonzek have been selected from the WHL’s officiating pool and will don their striped uniforms to represent both Canada and the League in May.

The news came after the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) released their list of 32 on-ice officials — spanning from 13 different countries — that will participate in the tournament.

This marks the first time each of the four officials have been assigned to the IIHF World Championship.

The collective résumé from the WHL representatives is bursting with other high-profile events. Each member of the group has been spotted in at least one IIHF World Junior Championship, while three have participated in the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and two have worked the IIHF U18 World Championship and the Kubota CHL / NHL Top Prospects Game.

Mackey was also assigned to the 2019 WHL Championship Series between the Prince Albert Raiders and Vancouver Giants.

In their time as WHL Officials, the quartet has suited up for over 1,400 games in the League.

The journey to be selected for the international tournament was no easy feat. The officials’ work was closely monitored by the IIHF selection team prior to being confirmed as tournament officiates.

“Selecting top game officials for an IIHF event is a long-term process,” said Marta Zawadzka, the chairperson of the IIHF Officiating Committee. “We are very confident that the strong season performance of the selected team of officials will be reflected in the tournament in Riga and Tampere.”

While the officials’ schedule has yet to be published, puck drop on the 2023 IIHF World Championship goes down Friday, May 12 and will run until Sunday, May 28.