Referee Liam Maaskant will work his first National Hockey League game on Thursday – the final day of the regular season – as the Buffalo Sabres host the Philadelphia Flyers.
Maaskant (#45) will take the ice alongside referee Peter MacDougall (#38) and linespersons James Tobias (#61) and Brad Kovachik (#71). Maaskant is the league’s newest official, while Kovachik leads all active officials with 1,904 regular season games worked.
The Clinton, Ontario, native was hired prior to the start of the 2024-25 season with ref Alex Lepkowski, who made his debut nine days ago.
Maaskant, 30, played four seasons in the OHL, skating with the Erie Otters, Barrie Colts and Kitchener Rangers, alongside Lepkowski, Ekblad, Schiefele, Mackenzie Blackwood, and Andreas Athanasiou. He then headed to Nova Scotia’s Acadia University to play five years with the Axemen.
He attended the NHL Officiating Combine in 2022, going on to don the stripes in the ECHL, AHL, and PWHL.
Earlier this season on the Scouting the Refs Podcast, we spoke with Maaskant’s former coach to talk about his time on the ice:
Scouting the Refs Podcast #215: New Season, New Rules, New Refs!
Congratulations to referee Liam Maaskant on the start of his National Hockey League career!
