Michael "Doc" Emrick (born August 1, 1946) is an American former network television play-by-play sportscaster and commentator noted mostly for his work in ice hockey. He was the lead announcer for National Hockey League national telecasts on both NBC and NBCSN. Among the many awards Emrick has received is the NHL's Lester Patrick Award in 2004, making him the first of only six to have received the award for media work, and the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award by the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2008. He has also won nine national Emmy Awards for excellence in sports broadcasting, the only hockey broadcaster to be honored with even one. On December 12, 2011, Emrick became the first member of the media to be inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame. In 2017, Sports Illustrated listed Emrick as the sportscaster of the year.
Biography
Background
Emrick had his sights set on being a baseball announcer before attending his first hockey game on December 10, 1960, at Fort Wayne's Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, when the Fort Wayne Komets hosted the Muskegon Zephyrs. He soon began to call Komets games into a tape recorder, and was mentored by longtime broadcaster Bob Chase. Emrick graduated from Southwood Junior-Senior High School in Wabash, Indiana, in 1964. He earned a B.Sc. in speech from Manchester University in 1968 and a M.A. in radio/television from Miami University in 1969. He then received a Ph.D. in communications (radio/television/film) from Bowling Green State University in 1976, hence his nickname, "Doc".
Emrick taught speech and broadcasting at Geneva College in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania from 1969 to 1971 and got his first experience of the NHL covering the Pittsburgh Penguins as an unpaid correspondent for The Beaver County Times newspaper.
Broadcasting career
Emrick began sportscasting professionally in 1973 when he was hired by Port Huron Flags' GM Morris Snider to do play-by-play on WHLS radio and public relations for the IHL team. In 1977, he took on the same two roles with the first year AHL Maine Mariners for three seasons (broadcasting that club's Calder Cup championships in both 1978 and 1979). Emrick then served as the New Jersey Devils' first voice after moving to the state, arriving for the 1982–83 NHL season, and stayed there until 1986.
Emrick wore several hats in the 1980s working for the Philadelphia Flyers. He was a spot announcer for Flyers home broadcasts from 1983 to 1986, then was an in-studio analyst between 1986-88 when not covering national games. Emrick was promoted to the lead play-by-play slot for both local TV and cable for the team in 1988, remaining with the Flyers until the end of the 1992–93 season. He was paired with former NHLer and national hockey broadcaster Bill Clement for four years.
thumb|upright|left|Emrick at [[Hersheypark Arena]]In 1993, he returned to the Devils to replace Gary Thorne and continued to be the Devils' voice until July 2011. He announced the Devils' 1995 Stanley Cup victory alongside color commentator John Davidson for the national United States broadcast on Fox.
National work
Emrick has also done play-by-play for CBS, NBC (and its cable network subsidiary NBC Sports Network, formerly OLN and Versus), ABC, TNT, ESPN, Fox, CSTV, SportsChannel America, SportsChannel Philadelphia, PRISM, Fox Sports Net, and others.
He was the lead play-by-play announcer for The NHL on ESPN from 1986 to 1988 alongside lead color commentator Bill Clement. His first national over-the-air television work came in 1992 doing ice hockey at the XVI Winter Olympic Games at Albertville, France, for CBS. Emrick became the lead play-by-play announcer for the NHL on Fox, calling regular-season games and Stanley Cup Final from 1995 to 1999. After Fox relinquished the NHL broadcast rights to ABC, he became a regional announcer for NHL on ABC from 2000 to 2004. He only called select playoff games at the time, but he did file reports for ABC Sports and ESPN's Stanley Cup Final coverage.
thumb|right|Emrick and Eddie Olczyk working a game on NHL on NBCSN (October 2019)
Before the 2005–06 NHL season, he was named the lead play-by-play announcer for the NHL on Versus (previously The NHL on OLN) and the NHL on NBC, and since 2008, has served as an overall host of the telecast. He called the top Conference Final, and the entire Stanley Cup Final for both networks. He has called games in 22 Stanley Cup Final on TV (for NBC, ESPN, Fox, Versus and OLN), more than any other American broadcaster. He has also called 14 NHL All-Star Games for NBC, Fox, OLN, VERSUS, and ESPN.
Emrick called the 1996 World Cup of Hockey for the Prime Network and the 2004 World Cup of Hockey for ESPN.
Emrick has worked five Olympic Games for NBC. He has also worked during the Olympics, twice for CBS and once for TNT. For NBC, he called water polo in the 2004 and 2012 Summer Olympics, and men's and women's ice hockey at the 2006, 2010 and the 2014 Winter Olympics alongside Eddie Olczyk and "Inside-the-Glass" reporter Pierre McGuire.
With CBS, he called some National Football League and men's NCAA basketball tournament games. One notable assignment for Emrick was the first game for Brett Favre as a member of the Green Bay Packers, including the first pass Favre ever threw as a Packer, which ended up being to himself. Emrick also called the National Lacrosse League All-Star Game and Championship Game while at NBC.
On July 21, 2011, Emrick announced that he was leaving the New Jersey Devils to work exclusively for NBC Sports. Starting in the 2011–12 season, Steve Cangialosi replaced him for play-by-play duties for the Devils.
On May 5, 2014, EA Sports announced that Emrick would provide play-by-play commentary for NHL 15 along color commentator Eddie Olczyk and "Inside-the-Glass" reporter Ray Ferraro. The trio provided commentary for five years until James Cybulski replaced him in NHL 20. From 2018 to 2020, "Inside-the-Glass" reporter Brian Boucher joined the lead duo for national games.
Retirement
On October 19, 2020, following a playoff run calling hockey games remotely from his home in Michigan due to restrictions imposed by the national outbreak of coronavirus disease, Emrick announced his retirement from broadcasting. At the time of his retirement, Emrick released a video essay in which he declared: