James Kenny: Celebrating A Decade As An On-Ice Official

James Kenny officiated his first-ever hockey game about 10 years ago at the Winter Club in Lake Forest. It was an outdoor game that he tagged as “pretty memorable,” especially since the snow was coming down, adding chaos to the chaos on the ice.

He was immediately hooked.

“There are so many stories (over the years) I wish I could tell, but one of my favorites (was) a couple years ago,” Kenny said. “(A few of us) went to Detroit for a tournament (during) a blizzard, so what was supposed to be a 4 ½ -hour trip turned into an 8-hour trip, but just hanging out with the fellas in the car while we were driving 20 MPH through a blizzard was some of the best laughs I have had. We even stepped foot on the ice (and) I fell in the parking lot. Lots of jokes my way for the rest of the weekend.”

Kenny, 24, who lives in Palatine, is a Level 4 official who worked about 400 games last season, mostly Tier 1 and high school varsity, and often at northwest suburban rinks such as West Meadows.

This season, he is working, “as much as I can,” he said.

Kenny has worked games for the SPHL and the USPHL, and at the 2025 USA Hockey Nationals. He officiated the U14 AAA state championship in 2025.

Kenny also was on the ice for the UNLV vs. University of Jamestown game last season, and this season he has already worked the Chicago Mission vs. Shattuck St. Mary’s (U18).

“The Chicago area has a lot of higher level of hockey, (so), being able to consistently skate these games with more experienced officials helped me quickly pick up the small tactics to make me a better official,” said Kenny, who is finishing his associates degree at Harper College.

“Working with a group of IHOA officials who have worked juniors, college and professional hockey, I came to the realization that there was a path to those levels of hockey by working local youth games.”

Kenny said there are so many area officials who have helped him along his officiating journey, including Max and Alex Lieberman and Ben Stark – and they also have become some of Kenny’s best friends. “They are always there if I need to talk about a weird situation I had during a game or offer their suggestions to help be better the next time a certain situation arises, or to just talk about a crazy game.” He also singled out Brett Straley and Scott Gaffney, among others.