The 2024 Stanley Cup Final between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers will be broadcast on Sportsnet and ESPN. Oilers fans in Canada will see a familiar face, as former Stanley Cup Champion Craig Simpson will be on the call for Sportsnet with Chris Cuthbert. American fans will get to see former NHLer Ray Ferraro and Sean McDonough. Ferraro is also no stranger to Canadian hockey fans, as he was a longtime TSN employee and debuted this season on the Vancouver Canucks regional broadcasts for Sportsnet. Let's meet the people behind the voices narrating this year's Stanley Cup Final in Canada for Sportsnet and CBC.
Craig Simpson
Simpson made the unprecedented move of playing college hockey at 16 after skipping the third grade and taking his grade 11 and 12 courses simultaneously. He debuted at Michigan State and led the team in scoring, then recorded 84 points in 42 games in his draft year. The Pittsburgh Penguins drafted Simpson second overall. Simpson's time in Pittsburgh didn't last long, as he went the other way in the Paul Coffey trade with the Oilers.
Simpson won two Stanley Cups with the Oilers, but injury issues caused him to be in pain for the rest of his career. He joined the Sabres but retired at 28. He became an assistant coach with the Oilers in 2003 and helped lead the team to the 2005 Stanley Cup Final.
Simpson's broadcast career didn't last long, as he returned to broadcasting in 2008. Simpson dabbled in broadcasting until joining the Oilers' coaching staff but got his big break by becoming the lead analyst on Hockey Night in Canada with Jim Hughson. Hughson retired from broadcasting, leading to Chris Cuthbert pairing with Simpson on Sportsnet.
Chris Cuthbert
Chris Cuthbert is a familiar voice for most Canadian Sports fans. He was part of the lead broadcast team for the CFL on TSN from 2008 to 2019, but his work in hockey led him to stardom. He worked for TSN, NBC, and CBC in multiple roles but is now the lead play-by-play commentator with CBC/Sporstnet for Hockey Night in Canada.
Cuthbert's crowning moment of his career was broadcasting the 2010 Winter Olympics. Cuthbert's call of Sidney Crosby's "golden goal" will go down in hockey history as one of the greatest ever, alongside the "Do you believe in miracles?" call by Al Michaels in the 1980 Winter Olympics.
Forever lives rent free in my head because I refuse to charge it.
— Joey Pitt 🎙🚨 (@_JoeyPitt) February 28, 2021
The crowning moment of the best two weeks of our lives. Chris Cuthbert with arguably the greatest call in the history of the sport. Absolute perfection. pic.twitter.com/d5vWbwgKaV
Cuthbert has many accolades, including a spot in the media wing of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. It wouldn't be surprising to see him in the Hockey Hall of Fame once his career ends.