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Surrey linesman makes NHL debut

Surrey’s Bevan Mills works first game as a National Hockey League official in Anaheim.
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Surrey’s Bevan Mills officiates a BC Hockey League between the Surrey Eagles and Penticton Vees. Last week

A Surrey native and former BC Hockey League linesman made his National Hockey League debut last week in Anaheim.

Bevan Mills – who was awarded the BCHL’s Brad Lazarowich Award as the junior league’s top official in 2012/13 – officiated Tuesday’s game between the Montreal Canadiens and the Anaheim Ducks, alongside veteran officials Gord Dwyer, Brad Watson and Brian Murphy.

The Canadiens won the game, 2-1.

Mills’ ascent to the world’s top hockey league came as no surprise to BCHL director of officiating, Derek Adams, who heaped praise upon the young linesman in an official BCHL news release issued last week.

“Very early on in my tenure, he was already a top-notch official,” Adams said of the 28-year-old Mills.

“He’s just a quality guy that worked hard, but more than anything, he was just the most professional kid you could imagine.

“He was always someone you could trust in a big game.”

Mills began officiating BCHL games as a teenager in 2004, and has worked for both the BCHL and Western Hockey League since.

As well, he was tabbed by Hockey Canada to work World Junior Hockey Championships in 2015, as well as World Championships in the Czech Republic.

For the remainder of this hockey season, he’s expected to split his time between the NHL and its American Hockey League affiliate.