'Daniel Patrick Kelly' (born
March 17,
1936 in
Ottawa, Ontario; died
February 10,
1989 in
Chesterfield, Missouri) was a
Canadian-born
sportscaster best known for his radio
play-by-play coverage of the
St. Louis Blues of the
National Hockey League, from early in their existence until his death more than two decades later.
In addition to the Blues, Kelly broadcast NHL games on national television in the United States and Canada for a number of years. He broadcast in 16
Stanley Cup Finals between 1969 and 1988, working for
CBS, the
NHL Network, the
USA Network,
CBC,
CTV, and
Global. He also provided play-by-play coverage of the 1987
Canada Cup and was the primary hockey broadcaster for CTV at the
1988 Olympic Winter Games in
Calgary.
He was noted for his ability to project above the roaring crowds at the NHL arenas. He acknowledged that his booming call, ''"HE SCORRRES!"'' was patterned after that of the famous long-time NHL announcer
Foster Hewitt.
Kelly called two of the most famous goals in hockey history. One was
Bobby Orr's Cup-winning overtime goal in 1970. The other was
Mario Lemieux's goal with 1:26 remaining in the decisive game of the 1987
Canada Cup.
''"...out in front to
Sanderson to ORR! BOBBY ORR! . . . scores and the
Boston Bruins have won the Stanley Cup!"''
"...and now here's a two-on-one, Lemieux to
Gretzky, back to Lemieux . . . HE SHOOTS, HE SCORRRES! . . . MARIO LEMIEUX!"
He also called a Stanley Cup semi-final in 1971 at
Chicago Stadium (nicknamed "The Madhouse on Madison"). When the Blackhawks scored an empty-netter to clinch the series, he yelled, "I can feel our broadcast booth shaking! That's the kind of place Chicago Stadium is right now!"
Besides hockey, Kelly also broadcast
college football for the
Missouri Tigers and
Major League Baseball for the
St. Louis Cardinals.
Kelly died just five weeks shy of his 53rd birthday on
February 10,
1989 from a rare
cancer of the spine. His sons,
John and
Dan, Jr. have been broadcasting NHL games for various NHL franchises, including the Blues, for whom John is currently doing the television play-by-play.
In 2006, the St. Louis Blues dedicated the Scottrade Center
press box in honor of Kelly.
See also
★
List of Stanley Cup Final broadcasters
External link
★
St.Louis Blues official site writeup on Dan Kelly