Hockey Broadcasting 101

Hockey ices the fastest game in Sports, combining speed with physicality and finesse.  As such, hockey provides sportscasters the most challenging assignment—keeping pace with game itself.  But all too often, those who call the action miss the mark as they lack an understanding of the basics of a good broadcast: A play-by-play man with good vocal pipes who varies his inflection to reflect the ebbs and flows of the game; and consistent attention to detail by identifying who has the puck and to whom the puck has gone.

For a blueprint for success, producers for ESPN and TNT—whose networks now jointly broadcast the NHL Playoffs—need only watch and listen to bygone games called by the last two generational broadcasting talents:  Dan Kelly and Mike “Doc” Emrick.   Both possessed first and foremost good pipes, but there was more to their game than vocal cords. 

Perhaps the Wayne Grezky of broadcasters, Dan Kelly anticipated the rapidly unfolding game, his voice tempo ringing in crescendo simultaneously with clutch saves or goals scored.   His call of the 1987 Canada Cup—found on YouTube for TV producers edification—remains the apex for both the game’s scintillating action and Kelly’s near flawless call of it.   His colorman Ron Reusch interjected extended commentary only in play stoppages or concisely during the play.  He recognized that the booth was Kelly’s, and his role was a supportive one. 

The recently retired Mike “Doc” Emrick succeeded Kelly as the game’s preeminent hockey sportscaster.  Like Kelly, he unfailingly described the action, reliably telling the viewer who had the puck and where the puck was heading.  Just as important, he varied both his narrative—his long list of descriptive adjectives sounded like music to listeners’ ears—while varying his inflection to reflect the games lulls and sudden explosions, his voice acting as a conduit for the game’s spirit from ice level to viewer. 

Today’s broadcasts of the four Conference semifinals fall short of their predecessor’s standards, especially the two woeful broadcasting groups calling the Series involving Florida vs. Tampa Bay, and Colorado vs. St. Louis.

Kenny Albert’s play-by-play of Florida vs. Tampa reaffirms his central weakness as a play-by-play man:  an inability to vary his vocal delivery. Albert’s monotone fails to convey game’s excitement, but instead muffles it.   Run of the mill goalies do not win Stanley Cups, nor should middling broadcasters call Stanley Cup games—especially the Finals.     Yet, the NHL mysteriously assigns Albert the big games as if—as the old saying goes—‘he knows where a dead body’s buried’.

Meanwhile, the trio broadcasting the St. Louis vs. Colorado series perform like too many men on the ice, except the fans are penalized rather than the team. Three men vying for voice in the game provides a sure-fire recipe for broadcasting dysfunction that violates the cardinal rule of consistently alerting the viewers:  ‘Who has the puck’.

Pliant sportscaster Brendan Burke cedes control to his one too many color commentators thereby failing his duty to steadily describe the play.  Instead, we suffer the duo of Shane Hnidy, and especially Darren Pang who compete to have their opinions heard.  

The insufferable “Panger” believes in his own hype, a personality with cute pet phrases who continually babbles over the play.  His guffaws reminisce Ed McMahon who served as the Tonight’s Show’s live laugh-track.  In Game Four of the Series, Pang’s blathering all too often out-worded Burke’s play-by-play.    This troubling tendency leads to a sportscaster’s belated interjection about a great scoring chance, which equates to an actor’s mistimed cue in a dramatic moment in a theater play.   Yet, that seems unimportant to Panger who loves the sound of his voice more than the overall quality of the broadcast.

Too bad that co-analyst Shane Hnidy has not been offered a chance to fly solo.   Unlike Pang, Hnidy understands his role as second fiddle playing in support of the call by adding concise insight during the play, saving extended commentary during stoppages.

As to the other groupings, Bob Wischusen performs credibly in his play calling in the Battle of Alberta between Edmonton and Calgary. Brian Boucher possesses good instincts as an analyst, but he needs to pare down his comments during the play.  An economy of words offers better mileage for the viewer.

Sean McDonough and Ray Ferraro perform reliably in the New York Ranger vs. Carolina Series.    However, neither McDonough nor Wischusen make you forget the retired Doc Emrick whose play-by-play served as a constant conduit relaying the game’s effervescence from ice level to viewer.   Emrick’s tacit talent also included persuading his booth cohorts that they were spear-carriers, not spear throwers so that the play-by-play call remained paramount over color commentary.

Great hockey play-by-play men remain as rare as Mario Lemieux or Sidney Crosby, but they do come along.  The big difference between the NHL teams’ draft of players and the NHL’s selection of sportscasters centers on TV producers intent on retaining ‘names’ or ‘personalities” for their sportscasts rather than finding the best men for the job.   Somewhere out there a Connor McDavid-type play-by-play man exists who possesses Doc Emrick’s panache with a voice that consistently evokes the spirit and excitement of the great game of hockey. 

In the meantime, let’s hope that Sean McDonough’s and Bob Wischusen’s crews call the Conference Finals.