Referees Wes McCauley and Chris Rooney get the call for opening night of the 2026 Stanley Cup Final:
REFEREES |
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| Jean Hebert #15 | Garrett Rank #7 |
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| Games ’25-26 (RS/PO) | 63 / 11 | 76 / 11 | ||||
| Career Games (RS/PO) | 887 / 126 | 749 / 46 | ||||
| First NHL Game | 3/30/11 | 1/15/15 | ||||
| First Playoff Game | 4/16/15 | 5/17/21 | ||||
| Birthplace | Bouctouche, NB | Elmira, ON | ||||
| Goals/Gm | 6.6 (4) | 6.0 (23) | 6.4 (7) | 5.7 (39) | ||||
| PP Opp/Gm | 5.9 (14) | 5.5 (14) | 6.1 (10) | 5.3 (25) | ||||
| PPG/Gm | 1.4 (6) | 1.2 (13) | 1.3 (9) | 1.0 (38) | ||||
| Penl/Gm | 8.0 (4) | 7.6 (6) | 8.4 (2) | 7.0 (18) | ||||
| PIM/Gm | 19.3 (8) | 7.6 (5) | 21.3 (1) | 16.2 (21) | ||||
| % of Penl on Home | 50.1% (11) | 50.0% (4) | 48.2% (18) | 50.0% (36) | ||||
| % PP Opp for Home | 52.3% (17) | 50.0% (39) | 51.2% (26) | 60.0% (5) | ||||
| Penl Diff.* | 1.3 (21) | 1.2 (34) | 1.5 (2) | 1.3 (18) | ||||
| Home Win % | 58% (23) | 67% (7) | 47% (38) | 60% (30) | ||||
| Home Rec. | 39-27-9 | 46-21-7 | 32-37-7 | 40-26-8 | ||||
| OT/SO Games | 15.9% (37) | 20.0% (29) | 26.7% (12) | 20.0% (12) | ||||
| Team Records | 25-26 | 24-25 | 23-24 | 25-26 | 24-25 | 23-24 |
| VGK | 0-0-1 | 4-3-0 | 2-1-0 | 2-0-1 | 3-1-0 | 3-1-0 |
| CAR | 3-3-0 | 1-3-0 | 3-1-0 | 2-2-0 | 2-1-0 | 3-3-0 |
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Scott Cherrey #50 |
Trent Knorr #74 |
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| Games ’25-26 (RS/PO) | 42 / 13 | 78 / 9 | ||||
| Career Games (RS/PO) | 1275 / 184 | 850 / 51 | ||||
| First NHL Game | 10/6/07 | 11/13/13 | ||||
| First Playoff Game | 4/15/11 | 4/12/17 | ||||
| Birthplace | Drayton, ON | Powell River, BC | ||||
Tonight’s pairing of refs Jean Hebert and Garrett Rank have been together since the Conference Finals, working MTL/CAR Game 1 (MTL W 6-2), VGK/COL Game 3 (VGK W 5-3), and MTL/CAR Game 5 (CAR W 6-1).
Hebert previously worked alongside Furman South in the opening round, handling MIN/DAL Game 1, OTT/CAR Game 2 (CAR W 3-2 2OT), PHI/PIT Game 4, and MTL/TBL Game 5. Hebert was partnered with Trevor Hanson for the second round, working ANA/VGK Game 1 (VGK W 3-1), MTL/BUF Game 2, and MIN/COL Game 4; he also officiated MTL/BUF Game 7 with Wes McCauley.
Referee Garrett Rank skated alongside Kyle Rehman together for the first two rounds of the postseason. In Round 1, they officiated PHI/PIT Game 2, BUF/BOS Game 3, DAL/MIN Game 4, and VGK/UTA Game 4 (VGK W 5-4 OT). Round 2 saw them in stripes for MIN/COL Game 1, PHI/CAR Game 3 (CAR W 4-1), MTL/BUF Game 3, and VGK/ANA Game 6 (VGK W 5-1).
Both teams are undefeated (4-0) in the 2026 playoffs under tonight’s refs.
Games: PS (Preseason); RS (Regular Season); PO (Playoffs)
Stats/Numbers: ’25-26 avg. (’25-26 rank) | ’24-25 avg. (’24-25 rank)
Number in orange/parentheses indicated referee’s rank among active officials.
* Penalty Differential represents the absolute value of the variance of penalty calls by team per game. If Team A takes two more penalties (or two fewer) than Team B, this is a 2. Lower numbers indicate less variance between total penalties in a game – that is, a closer number of calls for both teams.
We’ve also got new rules, new refs, promoted officials, and an updated pronunciation guide for 2025-26.
The NHL officials working the Conference Finals of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs:
NHL Officials Named for 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Finals
