BC HOCKEY AWARDS: MIKE LANDUCCI DEVELOPMENT AWARD - OFFICIATING, BRENDAN MARTIN
By MARIO ANNICCHIARICO
Brendan Martin’s service as a hockey official began innocently enough.
“My refereeing career started off as I drove my 12-year-old son to an officiating clinic,” recalled Martin. “He asked me to drive him, and when we got there, he said, ‘You know, I'm really kind of nervous about this dad, would you mind coming in?’
“I said, ‘Sure, no problem.’ So, I come in and an hour into it he says, ‘Do you mind staying a bit longer, I’m still kind of scared.’ And I said, ‘For sure, I'll stay.’ So, I ended up staying and I ended up writing the test. I wrote the exam and passed it and refereed like 60 games that year. That was like 26 years ago,” Martin said with a chuckle.
Martin has come a long way over that period, so much so that he was named BC Hockey’s winner of the Mike Landucci Development Award – Officiating this season. This award recognizes outstanding service by a volunteer who has devoted his or their time to assist officiating in BC Hockey.
He is now the referee-in-chief with Kamloops Minor Hockey Association after taking on previous roles as a mentor/trainer and assistant referee-in-chief over the last 15 years.
“It's been a real family thing in our family,” said Martin, whose sister’s children have also officiated in the Kootenay International Junior League (KIJHL) in Golden. “So, we have great conversations.
“This year was even that more important to me. I found out a couple years ago that my grandfather, Ted Martin, was the first president of Kamloops Minor Hockey Association 80 years ago and so, to me, it just strengthens that family bond, right?,” said Martin, who stressed that whether it came to coaching his kids or refereeing with his kids “was the best thing I ever did as far as being a father. We have great memories of all three of us being on the ice together.”
His daughter, Kim, was also a soccer referee, and his wife Jayne has supported the entire family in its endeavours.
So it was with great pride that Martin – who also had mentors along the way and often turned to them for advice - took the call announcing he was the Mike Landucci Development Award – Officiating award winner.
“To be honoured like this means an awful lot. It's a team sport all the way. I’ve had great mentors all along the way and I see a couple of them have their names on this award as well in Rob Schweitzer and Doug Swain.
“So, it feels like I've enhanced it a bit or just kept our program moving and growing it and it's just such a rewarding thing to do,” said Martin, who’s on-ice career ended 10 years ago.
“I was hurt really bad in 2016 while officiating. I actually had a few months of feeling sorry for myself and then I thought, you know, I miss it. So, I got back into the coaching part, mentoring on-ice with the kids,” he said of refocusing on his officiating instructional process, which has paid off for him in other ways.
“What a great feeling when you get a call from Ethan Crawford, who's a referee or linesperson for the WHL and also a ref from the KIJHL, and he phones and says, you're my first call. You were my first shadow when I started officiating and I wanted you to be the first person to know that I made it to the WHL. What a great feeling,” said Martin.
His satisfaction also comes from preparing the likes of his son Andrew, and Crawford as they move up the rankings of the officiating world while mentoring younger officials within the Kamloops Minor Hockey system.