Another NHL Television/Radio Simulcast

     There are now five National Hockey League teams that will have their television broadcast simulcasted on radio. The Columbus Blue Jackets announced they will be the fifth NHL club to implement this procedure. They did not renew the contract of radio play-by-play announcer Bob McElligott. He was the only visiting broadcaster during the 2020-21 pandemic season that came to Sunrise and announced an NHL regular season game in person versus the Florida Panthers. 

     The Dallas Stars have the longest current reign for a television/radio simulcast. They started a television/radio simulcast in 1993-94 after the franchise moved from Minnesota. The Buffalo Sabres were the second NHL team to do a television/radio simulcast in 1997-98 due to the popularity of longtime play-by-play announcer Rick Jeanneret along with Pete Weber leaving to join the Nashville Predators. The Carolina Hurricanes came next in 2018-19 because owner Thomas Dundon was a Texas native who watched Stars contests for over two decades and didn't think a radio broadcast was necessary. The Los Angeles Kings decided on a television/radio simulcast for two seasons in 2023-24 and 2024-25, however they ended the process. The St. Louis Blues went with a television simulcast on radio prior to the 2025-26 season.