Doc Emrick to retire from NHL broadcast booth

barbed wire Bob

crippled by fear
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ifmanis5

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Sep 29, 2007
63,740
Rotten Apple
Definitely time, he started confusing players this year which I had not heard him do too often. He reminds my too much of the awful to watch mid 90's Devils teams but he was a great one.
 

54thMA

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Aug 15, 2012
10,154
Westwood MA
That's too bad......................for me, hockey broadcasting begins and ends with Emrick and Kelly, two great sets of pipes.
 

h8mfy

New Member
Jul 15, 2005
336
Orange County, CA
I loved Doc. His use of language was sublime. I seem to recall someone a year or two ago posting a clip, roughly 10 minutes long, with him using about 117 different words for pass. It was quite brilliant. Like Doc.

Found this link: 153 terms for "passed" in one game.
And "feathered," one of my favorites, didn't make the list that night. Enjoy the next stage, Doc - you made this language-loving hockey fan smile many times.
 

Norm Siebern

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May 12, 2003
7,123
Western MD
An absolute joy to watch a game that he served as play by play on. I would watch a game that I had no interest in just to listen to him at the mic. I can't think of any other that I would do that for, with the possible exception of Vin Scully. A legend, I will miss Doc terribly. I do hope he has a long and enjoyable time in retirement with his family, a well deserved rest. Honestly, national hockey broadcasts, including the playoffs, will not be as fun and enjoyable without him around.
 

Dahabenzapple2

Mr. McGuire / Axl's Counter
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Jun 20, 2011
8,926
Wayne, NJ
Not a big Hockey fan until the last few years (I was back in the early 70’s as a young teen) but Doc has become my favorite sports announcer ever. I will miss him madly next playoff time.
 

Philip Jeff Frye

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Oct 23, 2001
10,229
I'm not much of an NHL fan but I always enjoyed the twang of his voice and the cadence with which he called the game. Won't feel the same watching without him.
 

nolasoxfan

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Jun 11, 2004
6,930
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Very sad read of Doc.’s retirement. To me, his is the voice of the NHL. His play-by-play cadence and passion for the game will be sadly missed.
 

Jed Zeppelin

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Aug 23, 2008
51,289
Great voice, amazing goal call, his PBP flows remarkably well in a sport that demands it, and his voice has the natural air of gravitas needed in any elite announcer while also containing the sheer manic energy required to heighten an NHL playoff game even beyond its inherent insanity. When I think of a loose puck around the net in playoff OT, Doc is the voice that I hear in my head.

And maybe it just sticks out even more in comparison to booth mate Eddie O, but it's also worth mentioning that Doc might be the best in the business (all sports) at being totally impartial in his call of any given matchup. He was all about the action, and on top of that you never had to stop and wonder as you do with some prominent basketball announcers, for example, why the hell the announcers are spending 20 minutes talking about a bad restaurant experience or something of equal value.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

Found no thrill on Blueberry Hill
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Sep 9, 2008
42,271
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I'd love it if they brought him back for one playoff game where every single time a player moved the puck from one place to another without putting it on goal, he called it a "pass."
 

Maximus

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Jul 18, 2005
5,774
Love Doc, it was always a treat to hear him call a game. We'll miss him, he's terrific.
 

Ferm Sheller

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Mar 5, 2007
20,404
He started covering NHL and the Penguins as a sports writer for the Beaver County Times in 1970. Two early stints with the Flyers.

https://www.inquirer.com/flyers/mike-doc-emrick-retiring-nhl-hockey-announcer-olympics-20201019.html
He went to the Flyers straight from the Maine Mariners, the Flyers' AHL affiliate at the time. I used to listen to Doc call the Mariners' games on the radio (the radio had an 8-track player in it!) in the late 70s, which is when I first started following hockey. Dale Arnold got the job after Doc left for Philly.

The Winter Olympics are in 2022. I wonder whether he'll come out of retirement to call them.
 

FL4WL3SS

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Jul 31, 2006
14,913
Andy Brickley's potty mouth
Great voice, amazing goal call, his PBP flows remarkably well in a sport that demands it, and his voice has the natural air of gravitas needed in any elite announcer while also containing the sheer manic energy required to heighten an NHL playoff game even beyond its inherent insanity. When I think of a loose puck around the net in playoff OT, Doc is the voice that I hear in my head.

And maybe it just sticks out even more in comparison to booth mate Eddie O, but it's also worth mentioning that Doc might be the best in the business (all sports) at being totally impartial in his call of any given matchup. He was all about the action, and on top of that you never had to stop and wonder as you do with some prominent basketball announcers, for example, why the hell the announcers are spending 20 minutes talking about a bad restaurant experience or something of equal value.
When Doc and Brick did the occasional game together, it was pure bliss.
 

Ale Xander

Hamilton
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Oct 31, 2013
72,428
I loved DOc. Was hoping he'd get a year of glory but i guess this is it. He aged like a fine wine. He got into the Hockey HOF, . . . and then later won the 7 straight Emmys. His absence will be missed dearly. He was the best.
 

ColdSoxPack

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Jul 14, 2005
2,351
Simi Valley, CA
I'd love it if they brought him back for one playoff game where every single time a player moved the puck from one place to another without putting it on goal, he called it a "pass."
Another thing he invented I think was a player being "wedged off" when a defender made him change his direction. Good announcer and seems like a good guy.
 

Saints Rest

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Another thing he invented I think was a player being "wedged off" when a defender made him change his direction. Good announcer and seems like a good guy.
I also would love his poetic euphemisms for scrums. Descriptions like "and now the players are discussing dinner plans in front of the net." (not an exact quote, just the essense of one of his)