This is the second part of the most recent press release from the PWHL which includes not only rule changes but also an updated list of officials some of whom are from the lower mainland.
Congrats to everyone. The league is here so let’s reach out and support the newest franchise!!
Rulebook
In conjunction with these enhancements to the PWHL’s Officiating Department, the League has also introduced updates to its official Rulebook for the 2025-26 season.
There are two primary changes to the Rulebook related to a team’s third goalkeeper and the removal of the coach’s challenge to video review triggered by the PWHL Central Situation Room (CSR). A summary of the changes is as follows:
Rule 5.1 / Rule 5.3:
• A Team shall be composed of three (3) goalkeepers who shall be under contract to the Team they represent.
• The moment a goalkeeper is injured and incapacitated and therefore unable to play further, she shall be immediately replaced by the second goalkeeper on the listed playing roster for that game.
The injured goalkeeper shall be retired from the playing roster and will no longer be eligible to return to play.
A new substitute (third goalkeeper) should be immediately replaced on the players bench with full goalkeeper privileges.
Rule 38:
• In addition to Goal Review Procedures outlined in Rule 37, the CSR Official or the On-Ice Officials may initiate a review of the following scenarios:
o Missed Game Stoppage Event in the Offensive Zone Leading to a Goal.
o Scoring Plays Involving Potential “Interference on the Goalkeeper”.
o Penalty situations for “Delaying the game – puck over the glass”.
• A Team is not permitted to request a review, therefore the process for initiating a Coach’s Challenge, including the right to initiate a Coach’s Challenge and the results of an unsuccessful Coach’s Challenge are no longer applicable.
For more information about the application of the rule changes, click HERE to access a downloadable PDF of the 2025-26 PWHL Official Rulebook.
2025-26 PWHL Officiating Team
Leadership:
• Bill McCreary (Director of Officiating, Strategy & Performance)
• David Taveroff (Director of Officiating, Operations)
• Katie Guay (Director of Officiating, Training, Development & Recruitment)
Referees:
• Grace Barlow (Vancouver, BC) #22
• Kyle Bauman (River Falls, WI) #18
• Brandy Beecroft (Sault Ste. Marie, ON) #33
• Andrew Bell (Downingtown, PA) #6
• Jenn Berezowski (Quinte West, ON) #4
• Hillary Brennan (London, ON) #40
• Jarrett Burton (Kingston, ON) #8
• Alexandra Clarke (Griffin, SK) #7
• Kelly Cooke (West Roxbury, MA) #29
• Marie-Eve Couture (Chambly, QC) #20
• Jared Cummins (Williamsville, NY) #14
• Melissa Doyle (White Bear Lake, MN) #48
• David Elford (Kitchener, ON) #11
• Damian Figueira (Toronto, ON) #32
• Beatrice Fortin (Sherbrooke, QC) #26
• Sydney Harris (Monument, CO) #28
• Jack Hennigan (Toronto, ON) #44
• Samantha Hiller (Gurnee, IL) #12
• Chad Ingalls (Woodstock, ON) #25
• Jake Kamrass (Cumming, GA) #3
• Tatu Kunto (San Diego, CA) #17
• Bobby Jo Love (Corvallis, OR) #5
• Elizabeth Mantha (Longueuil, QC) #15
• Amy Martin (Winnipeg, MB) #31
• Michelle McKenna (Regina, SK) #10
• Cianna Murray (Saskatoon, SK) #13
• Shauna Neary (Halifax, NS) #49
• Laura Schmidlein (Quincy, MA) #23
• Lacey Senuk (Toronto, ON) #39
• Amanda Tassoni (Bradford, RI) #21
Linespersons:
• Ali Beres (Brant, ON) #67
• Melissa Brunn (Kelowna, BC) #73
• Sarah Buckner (Plymouth, MN) #66
• Antoine Bujold-Roux (Ottawa, ON) #72
• Colleen Butler (Sunshine Hills, BC) #59*
• Jenny Cameron (Northborough, MA) #71
• Jessica Chartrand (Val-des-Monts, QC) #63
• Patrick Dapuzzo (Rutherford, NJ) #77
• TJ Dockery (Lockport, NY) #70
• Joanie Duchesneau (Montréal, QC) #74
• Chase Eising (Wilden, BC) #87*
• Stephanie Gagnon (Princeville, QC) #76
• Katie Glover (Seattle, WA) #89
• Erika Greenen (Sugar Grove, IL) #88
• Laura Gutauskas (Woolwich, ON) #68
• Harrison Heyer (Carlsbad, CA) #79*
• Spencer Knox (Clarington, ON) #81
• Anthony Lapointe (Montréal, QC) #78
• Amy Laroche (Port Coquitlam, BC) #62*
• Dustin McCrank (Guelph, ON) #84
• Heidi Niskanen (Natick, MA) #58*
• Greg Offerman (Fitchburg, WI) #95
• Luke Pye (Belle River, ON) #80
• Marlowe Schott (Elmira, ON) #86*
• Sophie Thomson (Halifax, NS) #75
• Justine Todd (Kawartha Lakes, ON) #50
• Kirsten Welsh (Conway, PA) #64
• Matthew Williams (Courtenay, BC) #61*
• Erin Zach (Cambridge, ON) #60
*Denotes New PWHL Officials
The 2025-26 PWHL season opens on Friday, Nov. 21 and will include a total of 120 regular season games.
