Scott and Logan Gruhl earn ECHL father/son distinction

Referee Logan Gruhl was a part of history when he skated on to the ice for Game 1 of the 2023 Kelly Cup Finals in Boise on June 3. Even if he didn’t realize it at the time.

Gruhl’s father, Scott, played in the 1995 Riley Cup Finals, helping the Richmond Renegades capture the ECHL title, making the Gruhls the first father/son player/official combination to both participate in the Finals in the ECHL’s 35-year history.

“It’s a huge honor,” Gruhl said. “I didn’t even really think about it to be honest with you until we were talking about it in Florida after the series ended. Obviously knowing my dad’s playing career and how accomplished he was, it’s awesome to be able to share this accomplishment with him.”

It also was a special moment for Scott, following a career filled with many memorable events. At the time he played his final game in the International Hockey League in 1993-94, he was the league’s all-time leader with 532 career goals, and ranked second on the list upon the IHL’s demise following the 2000-01 season.

“For me as, as a parent, it’s proud moment because they thought enough of him to put him in Game 1. You just don’t put anybody in Game 1 of the Finals,” Scott said. “It’s a stepping stone for what's to come for him. He’s got plenty of plenty of years ahead of him, he has some work and some learning to do, but he’s accomplishing things year after year, and that’s a proud moment for me”

In addition to his goal-scoring acumen, Scott Gruhl was known as a rough-and-tumble player, compiling at least 100 penalty minutes in all but one of his 17 pro seasons, including four seasons of over 200 penalty minutes.

“I did not have good working relationships with officials when I played,” he laughed. “But you know, a lot of those guys now, they’re still involved in the sport, teaching the kids how to come up and referee and that sort of thing. So it’s been fun to run into them at clinics and things like that.”

The best part for Scott has been to see Logan make his own name in the sport of hockey.

“Yes, he is my son and we share a last name, but he’s making his own name now,” he said. “I’m not calling anyone, fishing for answers or anything like that. He has to make it on his own, that’s what the sport is all about.”

For Logan, getting the chance to follow in his dad’s footsteps in professional hockey has been a memorable journey.

“My dad got me in skates when I was probably one or two years old, and I’ve been in skates ever since,” he said. “Then he coached my teams for the most part when I was growing up, and he actually reffed some as well. So he’s definitely had a big hand in helping me to get to where I am now.

“When I was about 16 of 17, I knew it was about the right time to stop playing,” Logan continued. “I was getting pretty serious about officiating at the time and knew I had a better chance of making it that way as opposed to playing, so it was a pretty easy decision for me.”

The decision to move full-time into officiating certainly has paid off for Logan, and getting an assignment to work the Kelly Cup Finals is something he will remember for the rest of his life.

“The waiting is always the worst part, once the Conference Finals end, it’s sort of just refreshing your phone every two minutes to see if the email was sent, or just waiting for your phone to ring,” he said. “It was a huge honor for me to get named to the Finals this season. This was my fourth season in the ECHL, and it’s been a long ride with COVID, and going through that and progressing each year. And, obviously, it’s always an honor just to be mentioned with Pat Kelly, and getting to see him during the Finals is probably the best part of it. But, getting to start the Finals with Game 1, that was just unbelievable and a great experience.”