Don Koharski

Don Koharski is a retired National Hockey League (NHL) referee whose career spanned more than three decades. A native of the United States, he began his officiating career as a 19-year-old linesman in the World Hockey Association in 1975, later joining the American Hockey League in 1976 while working on a local dairy farm. Koharski started in the NHL as a linesman in 1977 and was promoted to referee in 1980. Beginning with the 1987–88 season, he wore a helmet while officiating, and starting in 1994–95, he wore uniform number 12.

Over his career, Koharski officiated 1872 regular season games, 266 playoff games, 13 Stanley Cup Finals, two NHL All-Star Games, two Canada Cups, and the 2004 World Cup of Hockey. He reached the milestone of 1,500 regular season games on April 8, 2006, during a game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning.

Koharski retired from on-ice officiating at the end of the 2008–09 NHL season but continued to contribute to the league in supervisory and instructional roles. Off the ice, his family has been deeply involved in officiating: his son Jamie and brother Terry worked as referees in the USHL, ECHL, and AHL, while his daughter-in-law Liz Sylvia Koharski became the 17th woman to have her name engraved on the Stanley Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020.

He currently resides in Tampa, Florida, with his wife Susan.