Eastern Conference Final
Montreal Canadiens at Carolina Hurricanes
Game 2 – 8:00 PM ET
REFEREES |
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Gord Dwyer #19 |
Kelly Sutherland #11 |
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| Games ’25-26 (RS/PO) | 70 / 9 | 76 / 7 | ||||
| Career Games (RS/PO) | 1383 / 136 | 1680 / 259 | ||||
| First NHL Game | 11/19/05 | 12/19/00 | ||||
| First Playoff Game | 4/16/14 | 4/9/03 | ||||
| Birthplace | Lower Sackville, NS | Richmond, BC | ||||
| Goals/Gm | 6.2 (15) | 5.9 (27) | 6.0 (28) | 5.9 (28) | ||||
| PP Opp/Gm | 6.2 (9) | 5.3 (28) | 5.7 (21) | 5.4 (18) | ||||
| PPG/Gm | 1.2 (19) | 1.1 (32) | 1.2 (24) | 1.0 (40) | ||||
| Penl/Gm | 7.5 (17) | 6.6 (29) | 8.1 (3) | 6.8 (20) | ||||
| PIM/Gm | 19.1 (9) | 6.6 (26) | 21.1 (2) | 16.2 (21) | ||||
| % of Penl on Home | 47.3% (36) | 50.0% (29) | 49.7% (7) | 50.0% (9) | ||||
| % PP Opp for Home | 54.2% (6) | 50.0% (14) | 48.8% (36) | 50.0% (34) | ||||
| Penl Diff.* | 1.6 (1) | 1.4 (13) | 1.2 (29) | 1.2 (27) | ||||
| Home Win % | 51% (34) | 64% (14) | 64% (8) | 60% (27) | ||||
| Home Rec. | 31-30-9 | 44-25-4 | 44-24-7 | 42-27-5 | ||||
| OT/SO Games | 17.4% (34) | 20.0% (35) | 21.3% (30) | 10.0% (39) | ||||
| Team Records | 25-26 | 24-25 | 23-24 | 25-26 | 24-25 | 23-24 |
| MTL | 2-0-1 | 3-2-0 | 1-2-0 | 2-4-0 | 2-2-0 | 2-4-0 |
| CAR | 2-2-0 | 1-1-0 | 1-0-1 | 4-0-0 | 4-2-0 | 3-1-0 |
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Matt MacPherson #83 |
Bevan Mills #53 |
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| Games ’25-26 (RS/PO) | 77 / 8 | 77 / 8 | ||||
| Career Games (RS/PO) | 1039 / 132 | 592 / 44 | ||||
| First NHL Game | 10/11/11 | 11/29/16 | ||||
| First Playoff Game | 4/17/14 | 5/16/21 | ||||
| Birthplace | Antigonish, NS | Surrey, BC | ||||
Refs Gord Dwyer and Kelly Sutherland are paired up for the first time this postseason.
Dwyer worked Round 2 with Francis Charron, officiating PHI/CAR Game 2, ANA/VGK Game 4, MIN/COL Game 5, and MTL/BUF Game 6 (MTL L 8-3). He skated with Pierre Lambert during the opening round of the playoffs at MIN/DAL Game 3, UTA/VGK Game 3, PHI/PIT Game 6, and BOS/BUF Game 6. Curiously, his last Hurricanes game was on March 29 — a 3-1 loss to Montreal.
Sutherland is coming off a lengthy break, having last worked MTL/BUF Game 4 (MTL L 3-2) on May 12 with TJ Luxmore. That duo was also paired up for PHI/CAR Game 1 (CAR W 3-0), ANA/VGK Game 2, and COL/MIN Game 3. Sutherland worked with Corey Syvret in Round 1, handling UTA/VGK Game 2, LAK/COL Game 3, and BOS/BUF Game 5.
And, no, referee Gord Dwyer is NOT the same guy who played for the Montreal Canadiens (2002-04) and was signed by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2004 but never played a game with the team. Different guy. That was Gordie Dwyer, who’s currently head coach and GM of the QMJHLs’ Newfoundland Regiment Hockey Club.
MacPherson and Mills are working together for the first time in the playoffs. MacPherson skated with Travis Gawryletz in the opening round – joining up with Scott Cherrey for MTL/TBL Game 7 – and Julien Fournier in the second. Mills manned the lines with David Brisebois in Round 1 and Kiel Murchison in Round 2.
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 second round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs:
NHL Officials Advancing to Round 2 of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs
