This week’s episode features Vanessa Stratton. Vanessa is a Level 4 certified hockey official with 20 years of refereeing experience. She has served at various levels of minor hockey, from grass roots to junior, and has also officiated at 8 National Championship Tournaments and 7 IIHF World championships, including the Women’s Worlds in 2016.
Vanessa holds a Bachelor of Sport Management, A Master of Business Adminstration, and a Master of Science in International Management, as well as a Project Management Certificate.
She is currently serving as an Officiating Coach with BC Hockey and Hockey Canada, and is a Co-facilitator of the Female High Performance Excel Program which works with experienced referees looking to advance beyond National Competition and serve at the International level.
From 2015-2017, Vanessa also served as a coach at the competitive minor hockey level, giving her a unique perspective of the game, having served as a player, a referee and a coach.
In our conversation we cover several topics, including:
How she got into refereeing and why
How her experience coaching impacted her perspective as a ref and vice versa
Mentors who had a meaningful impact on her reffing journey
What coaches and referees have in common
