Jim Hughson
Encyclopedia
Jim Hughson is a Canadian
sportscaster
, best known for his play-by-play of professional ice hockey
and baseball
.
NHL series
of video games, from 1997 to 2007. From 1997-2001, Hughson was added, along with Buck Martinez, as the play-by-play voice for EA's Triple Play series
for PlayStation
and PC
.
for TSN
. During that time, Hughson was most famous for calling all three of the games in which the Jays' clinched first place in the American League East
during the 1990s (1991
, 1992
, & 1993
). Previously, Hughson had worked on Montreal Expos
broadcasts for the network. He also hosted coverage of the NHL Entry Draft from 1987-1989.
From 1987-88 to 1993-94, Hughson also did play-by-play for NHL games with Gary Green on TSN. In 1991, he called the World Junior Hockey Championship in Saskatchewan
, which climaxed with a dramatic game in Saskatoon
between Canada and the USSR
, in which John Slaney
scored the winning goal late in the third period to deliver the gold medal to Canada.
During Hughson's time at TSN, he often enthusiastically proclaimed "That's hockey!" when describing an exciting play during NHL broadcasts. TSN later adopted the phrase as the name of its popular program That's Hockey
, a talk show covering NHL happenings.
had national TV duties. In this role, he broadcast games 3 and 4 of the 1982 Stanley Cup Finals
between the Canucks and New York Islanders
. In 1982-83, he left to become the television voice of the Toronto Maple Leafs
, before joining TSN in 1987. In 1994, Hughson left TSN
to become the radio voice of the Vancouver Canucks
.
) as their main NHL play-by-play commentator alongside Craig Simpson
. A year later, he left radio and began working on the Canucks regional television broadcasts
on Sportsnet Pacific, alongside Ryan Walter
. From 2002-03 onwards, former NHL goaltender John Garrett
was his partner. During its existence, he was also the host of Snapshots on Sportsnet
.
's Hockey Night in Canada
, where he primarily called the late games of the network's Saturday night doubleheaders and one series through the first three rounds of the playoffs. In 2006, he was the secondary hockey broadcaster at the Winter Olympics
in Turin, Italy. On March 11, 2008, he signed an exclusive six-year contract with the CBC to call hockey and baseball for Canada's public network, leaving Rogers Sportsnet at the conclusion of the season. The following season, he replaced Bob Cole
as the primary play-by-play announcer for HNIC and the Stanley Cup playoffs
and Finals
. His partner on the top broadcast team is Craig Simpson
.
When CBC picked up a package of Toronto Blue Jays games for the 2007 and 2008 seasons, Hughson called the games for them. The broadcast on June 22, 2007 was the first baseball game he had called in 13 years.
and ESPN
, covering both hockey and baseball.
He also had a small part in the movie MVP: Most Valuable Primate
playing Don, the announcer for the Harvest Cup game.
with his wife, Denise, and his 2 children, Matt and Jennifer.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
sportscaster
Sportscaster
In sports broadcasting, a commentator gives a running commentary of a game or event in real time, usually during a live broadcast. The comments are normally a voiceover, with the sounds of the action and spectators also heard in the background. In the case of television commentary, the commentator...
, best known for his play-by-play of professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
and baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
.
Biography
Hughson has won five Gemini Awards, the most recent in 2004, where he was named the best sports play-by-play or analyst. He is known for his very clear, accessible voice, enthusiastic delivery, and articulate use of the English language. His versatility has earned him the title of official play-by-play announcer for the EA SportsEA Sports
EA Sports is a brand of Electronic Arts that creates and develops sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to mimic real-life sports networks by calling themselves "EA Sports Network" with pictures or endorsements of real commentators such as John...
NHL series
NHL series
NHL is a series of professional ice hockey simulation video games developed by EA Canada and published yearly by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports brand...
of video games, from 1997 to 2007. From 1997-2001, Hughson was added, along with Buck Martinez, as the play-by-play voice for EA's Triple Play series
Triple Play series
Triple Play was a series of computer and video games based on Major League Baseball, published by EA Sports until their replacement by the MVP Baseball in 2003....
for PlayStation
PlayStation
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...
and PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
.
TSN
Hughson and Martinez were actual broadcast partners from 1990 to 1994 when they both covered the Toronto Blue JaysToronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
for TSN
The Sports Network
The Sports Network, commonly abbreviated as TSN, is a Canadian English language Category C specialty channel and is Canada's leading English language sports TV channel. TSN premiered in 1984, in the first group of Canadian specialty cable channels...
. During that time, Hughson was most famous for calling all three of the games in which the Jays' clinched first place in the American League East
American League East
The American League Eastern Division is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions . This division was created before the start of the 1969 season along with the Western Division...
during the 1990s (1991
1991 in baseball
-Major League Baseball:*World Series: Minnesota Twins over Atlanta Braves ; Jack Morris, MVP*American League Championship Series MVP: Kirby Puckett*National League Championship Series MVP: Steve Avery...
, 1992
1992 in baseball
-Major League Baseball:*World Series: Toronto Blue Jays over Atlanta Braves ; Pat Borders, MVP*American League Championship Series MVP: Roberto Alomar*National League Championship Series MVP: John Smoltz...
, & 1993
1993 in baseball
-Major League Baseball:*World Series: Toronto Blue Jays over Philadelphia Phillies ; Paul Molitor, MVP*American League Championship Series MVP: Dave Stewart*National League Championship Series MVP: Curt Schilling...
). Previously, Hughson had worked on Montreal Expos
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
broadcasts for the network. He also hosted coverage of the NHL Entry Draft from 1987-1989.
From 1987-88 to 1993-94, Hughson also did play-by-play for NHL games with Gary Green on TSN. In 1991, he called the World Junior Hockey Championship in Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
, which climaxed with a dramatic game in Saskatoon
Saskatoon
Saskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344....
between Canada and the USSR
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, in which John Slaney
John Slaney
John G. Slaney is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and assistant coach currently playing for HC Plzeň 1929 in the Czech Extraliga...
scored the winning goal late in the third period to deliver the gold medal to Canada.
During Hughson's time at TSN, he often enthusiastically proclaimed "That's hockey!" when describing an exciting play during NHL broadcasts. TSN later adopted the phrase as the name of its popular program That's Hockey
That's Hockey
That's Hockey is a Canadian television series on TSN which presents the latest news in hockey as well as panelists and interviews with hockey personalities. The current host is Gino Reda.-History:...
, a talk show covering NHL happenings.
Vancouver Canucks
Hughson had previously worked on Canucks radio broadcasts, working on the pre-game, intermission, and post-game shows in the early eighties. He also filled in as play-by-play man when Jim RobsonJim Robson
Jim Robson was a radio and television broadcaster for the Vancouver Canucks from 1970 to 1999...
had national TV duties. In this role, he broadcast games 3 and 4 of the 1982 Stanley Cup Finals
1982 Stanley Cup Finals
-References:...
between the Canucks and New York Islanders
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
. In 1982-83, he left to become the television voice of the Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, before joining TSN in 1987. In 1994, Hughson left TSN
The Sports Network
The Sports Network, commonly abbreviated as TSN, is a Canadian English language Category C specialty channel and is Canada's leading English language sports TV channel. TSN premiered in 1984, in the first group of Canadian specialty cable channels...
to become the radio voice of the Vancouver Canucks
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...
.
CTV Sportsnet/Rogers Sportsnet
In 1998, Hughson returned to national sports broadcasting, joining CTV Sportsnet (now Rogers SportsnetRogers Sportsnet
Sportsnet was launched on October 9, 1998 as CTV Sportsnet. The name was chosen to match the regional "Fox Sports Net" operations across the United States...
) as their main NHL play-by-play commentator alongside Craig Simpson
Craig Simpson
Craig Andrew Simpson is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey winger who played 10 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton Oilers and the Buffalo Sabres...
. A year later, he left radio and began working on the Canucks regional television broadcasts
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
on Sportsnet Pacific, alongside Ryan Walter
Ryan Walter
Ryan William Walter is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League...
. From 2002-03 onwards, former NHL goaltender John Garrett
John Garrett (hockey)
John Murdoch Garrett is a retired Canadian ice hockey goaltender and television sports commentator.-Playing career:...
was his partner. During its existence, he was also the host of Snapshots on Sportsnet
Rogers Sportsnet
Sportsnet was launched on October 9, 1998 as CTV Sportsnet. The name was chosen to match the regional "Fox Sports Net" operations across the United States...
.
CBC Television
In 2005, Hughson began working on CBC TelevisionCBC Television
CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...
's Hockey Night in Canada
Hockey Night in Canada
Hockey Night in Canada is the branding used for CBC Sports' presentations of the National Hockey League...
, where he primarily called the late games of the network's Saturday night doubleheaders and one series through the first three rounds of the playoffs. In 2006, he was the secondary hockey broadcaster at the Winter Olympics
2006 Winter Olympics
The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...
in Turin, Italy. On March 11, 2008, he signed an exclusive six-year contract with the CBC to call hockey and baseball for Canada's public network, leaving Rogers Sportsnet at the conclusion of the season. The following season, he replaced Bob Cole
Bob Cole (announcer)
Robert Cecil "Bob" Cole is a Canadian television announcer and former competitive curler.Cole was the primary play-by-play announcer for Hockey Night in Canada 'HNIC' on CBC, usually for Toronto Maple Leafs games, from 1980 to 2008. Aside from the Leafs broadcasts, he was also a staple for the...
as the primary play-by-play announcer for HNIC and the Stanley Cup playoffs
Stanley Cup playoffs
The Stanley Cup playoffs is an elimination tournament in the National Hockey League consisting of four rounds of best-of-seven series. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualify for the playoffs based on regular season records...
and Finals
Stanley Cup Finals
The Stanley Cup Finals is the championship series to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, emblematic of the professional club championship of ice hockey. Although the Cup itself has existed since 1893, an annual championship series between professional teams was not established until 1913...
. His partner on the top broadcast team is Craig Simpson
Craig Simpson
Craig Andrew Simpson is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey winger who played 10 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton Oilers and the Buffalo Sabres...
.
When CBC picked up a package of Toronto Blue Jays games for the 2007 and 2008 seasons, Hughson called the games for them. The broadcast on June 22, 2007 was the first baseball game he had called in 13 years.
American sportscasting appearances
In addition to CBC, TSN, and Sportsnet, Hughson has also done spot work for ABCAmerican Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
and ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
, covering both hockey and baseball.
He also had a small part in the movie MVP: Most Valuable Primate
MVP: Most Valuable Primate
MVP: Most Valuable Primate is the 2000 feature film that sparked the MVP franchise. The film's title character, Jack, is a chimpanzee.-Plot:...
playing Don, the announcer for the Harvest Cup game.
Personal life
He lives in White Rock, British ColumbiaWhite Rock, British Columbia
White Rock is a city in British Columbia, Canada, that lies within the Metro Vancouver regional district. It borders Semiahmoo Bay and is surrounded on three sides by the City of Surrey, British Columbia. To the south lies the Semiahmoo First Nation, which is within the city limits of Surrey...
with his wife, Denise, and his 2 children, Matt and Jennifer.