Chris Schlenker (born 9 July 1984) is a Canadian ice hockey

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...

, currently working in the National Hockey League. He has worn sweater number 3 since being promoted to the NHL before the start of the 2018-19 season; prior to the promotion, he wore 48.

Playing career

Schlenker made his junior playing debut with the

St. Albert Saints The St. Albert Saints were a junior ice hockey franchise based in St. Albert, Alberta, Canada, for twenty-seven seasons from 1977 to 2004. Before 1977, the team played in nearby Spruce Grove as the Spruce Grove Mets, and in 2004 the team again mo ...

of the Alberta Junior Hockey League in 2000, playing in three games before making the jump up to the Western Hockey League during the 2000-01 season. He joined the Regina Pats, and played his first game on 1 December 2000, when Regina played against the Brandon Wheat Kings. It would be the only game he would play that season, as he was sent to the Alberta Midget Hockey League to play for the MLAC Maple Leafs. He would be a part of the Pats roster until 2003-04, when he was sent to the Prince Albert Raiders in a January trade. At the time of the trade, he was the captain of Regina. Schlenker would remain with the Raiders until the end of the 2004-05 season. In 2005, he signed with the Stuttgart Wizards of the German Oberliga, playing 11 games in his lone season in the league.

International tournaments

In 2002, Schlenker was named to Canada's inaugural roster for the U18s.

Officiating career

Western Hockey League

In 2012, Schlenker rejoined the WHL, coming onboard as a referee. He was named as one of the five referees who would work in the

2016 Memorial Cup The 2016 Memorial Cup (branded as the 2016 Mastercard Memorial Cup for sponsorship reasons) was a four-team, round-robin format tournament that took place at the ENMAX Centrium in Red Deer, from May 20–29, 2016. It was the 98th Memorial Cup cham ...

, held in Red Deer, Alberta. He also received the Allen Paradice Memorial Trophy in 2016 as the WHL's top official from that season.

American Hockey League

Schlenker was hired by the American Hockey League before the start of the 2015-16 season. His first regular-season game came on 17 October 2015, in a game between the

Albany Devils The Albany Devils were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). The top affiliate of the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League (NHL), the A-Devils played their home games at the Times Union Center in Albany, ...

and Toronto Marlies in Toronto, Ontario. His first regular-season game in the AHL while being on a minor-league deal was on 14 October 2016, as the

St. John's IceCaps The St. John's IceCaps were a professional ice hockey team based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. They were members of the North Division of the Eastern Conference of the American Hockey League (AHL). The team was originally aff ...

faced off against the

Hartford Wolf Pack The Hartford Wolf Pack are a professional ice hockey team based in Hartford, Connecticut. A member of the American Hockey League (AHL), they play their home games at the XL Center. The team was established in 1926 as the Providence Reds. After a ...

in Hartford, Connecticut. During his tenure in the AHL, Schlenker worked the Calder Cup finals in 2017 and 2018.

National Hockey League

Prior to the 2016-17 season, Schlenker was hired by the NHL on a minor-league contract. He worked his first regular-season game on 24 October 2016, in a game between the Philadelphia Flyers and Montreal Canadiens. Schlenker was promoted to the full-time officiating roster before the start of the 2018-19 NHL season, after working 59 games in parts of two seasons. His first game as a full-time NHL official came on 3 October 2019, when the

Anaheim Ducks The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. The Ducks compete in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division, and play their home games at Honda Center. ...

faced off against the San Jose Sharks.

Personal life

Upon retiring from his playing career, Schlenker joined the Medicine Hat Police Service. He stayed onboard for ten years, leaving when he joined the NHL.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schlenker, Chris 1984 births Living people Canadian ice hockey officials National Hockey League officials Canadian ice hockey players St. Albert Saints players Regina Pats players Prince Albert Raiders players Oberliga (ice hockey) players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Germany Sportspeople from Medicine Hat Ice hockey people from Alberta