Carnathan enjoys memorable ride

Paul Carnathan has had a lot of memorable moments over his career as an on-ice official.

He began working as a linesman in the ECHL in 2001-02, a time when the league was comprised of 29 teams in 14 states. Since then, he has worked over 600 career games in the league and the Kelly Cup Finals in 2005, 2006 and 2007.

Carnathan has also worked in the American Hockey League for over 15 seasons, which includes working the Calder Cup Finals in 2009 and 2010. Additionally on his officiating resume stands eight different instances working for the International Ice Hockey Federation,  including the 2010 World Juniors Championship in Canada and the World Championships in 2011 in Slovakia, 2013 in Finland and Sweden and 2015 in the Czech Republic.

It’s clear that Carnathan has achieved many of the milestones that a professional ice hockey official hopes to achieve, but the 13 days from January 21 until February 2, 2019 may stand out as the highlight of his career.

His memorable two weeks began with the 2019 CCM/ECHL All-Star Classic in Toledo, Ohio, the second time in his career that he worked the League’s showcase event; continued on to working as a member of the four-man officiating crew for the American Hockey League All-Star Classic in Springfield, Massachusetts on January 28 and came to an end when he worked his 600th career ECHL regular-season game in Atlanta.

Getting the opportunity to work the ECHL All-Star Classic wasn’t something that was on Carnathan’s radar.

“I was shocked when Joe (Ernst) gave me the call and said I was selected,” he said. “It’s a nice way to end my career and finish off in the ECHL so I was definitely honored to be asked.”

Working one All-Star game is a feat that many officials do not get the chance to experience during their career.  Working two, in the course of a week no less, is relatively unheard of.

“The best part for me was to work with two awesome crews and to reflect on my time in the leagues,” Carnathan said. “All-Star Games are a celebration of the sport and of the league, so to take part in those festivities made me feel very fortunate and grateful for my time in the leagues and for working with so many great teammates through the years. The game has given me so much, and I am truly humbled to be able to represent the guys and to take a moment to think of those who helped me get to where I was able to in my career.”

To cap off the busy two weeks for Carnathan, he celebrated his milestone game in Atlanta, with ECHL Commissioner Emeritus Patrick J. Kelly in attendance to present him with an award for reaching the 600-game plateau.

“Mr. Kelly is a living legend and should be in the Hockey Hall of Fame for what he's done for the game,” Carnathan said. “The entire ECHL, myself included, wouldn't be here without him, so to share that with him in front of my friends and family was an experience I'll never forget. He must be so proud of where the league has come from and where it is now, and I'm thankful to be a small part of that.”

Carnathan began in the ECHL with dreams of reaching the NHL, and though he never reached the pinnacle of the sport, he is happy with how things worked out.

“When I first started I was chasing a dream as a lot of the players, coaches and front office staff are and I was trying to make the NHL,” he said. “Obviously, that didn’t happen but I would never want to change the way things worked out. It’s been an unbelievable ride so to still be here is fun.”

After spending 18 years in the ECHL, Carnathan has obviously made many friends along the way, which is what he will miss most when he concludes his career at the end of this season.

“The part I’ll miss the most is just the fellow officials and spending time with them before and after games. I’m planning on sticking around with hockey, and I officiate amateur games and am a state supervisor in Georgia and involved with USA Hockey so I’ll stay and make sure I’m around the guys as much as possible.

“Joe Ernst, I worked on the ice with Joe and officiated with him when he worked his final game, and I consider him a friend but also just an unreal boss and now with (Manager of Officiating) Stephen (Thomson), it’s just been a great transition,” he added. “All the guys on the ice, those are the guys I went to war with every night. For us, we don’t have home games, so those are really the guys I want to thank the most.”

Getting the opportunity to officiate in the Kelly Cup Finals three different times is what will stand out in Carnathan’s mind of his ECHL career.

“Anytime you’re picked to work the Kelly Cup Finals it’s just such a huge honor, so having that opportunity was special,” he said. “Anytime you can be where Mr. Kelly is in the building, it’s pretty special.”

After Carnathan's feat of working two All-Star games in such a close time frame, it's no surprise he was the subject of some good natured chirping from his fellow officials.

“The guys were giving me a hard time when I was in Charlotte working a few weeks ago, and we saw that the NBA All-Star Game is going to be there. I was joking with the guys telling them no, I’m not actually working that game too,” he said. “It’s unreal to be thought of and recognized and I guess it’s a testament to my longevity and sticking around so it’s been a fun ride for sure.”