Kenny Albert will call his third Stanley Cup Final on national television when the Florida Panthers face the Edmonton Oilers starting Wednesday. For most announcers, that would mark the year’s biggest achievement.
For the TNT play-by-play voice, it’s just another milestone in nine months packed with accomplishments.
Wednesday’s opener will be Albert’s 1,483rd call in hockey, football or baseball for a national network. He moved past his father, legendary announcer Marv Albert, into fourth place among North American announcers during last Wednesday’s Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals between Florida and Carolina.
“To be listed along with some of the all-time greats who I watched growing up and then got to know a lot of them personally, it’s a proud moment when you see that you’re included in that group. My schedule definitely is a bit of a jigsaw puzzle between the various sports and networks, but very fortunate to work for and with so many great people.”
Albert hit the 500-game mark in both the NFL and NHL within six months.
He became the first NFL play-by-play announcer to reach 500 games on one network last October when Philadelphia hosted Cleveland on Fox. Albert has worked for Fox Sports since its launch in 1994.
He also passed 500 national NHL games on Dec. 18 when Philadelphia faced Detroit on TNT. Albert has served as TNT’s top hockey announcer since the network acquired NHL rights in 2021.
Albert has called 534 NHL, 512 NFL, 421 baseball and 15 NBA games on national networks. That’s on top of his duties as New York Rangers radio voice and backup for New York Knicks television games on MSG Network.
Albert’s ability to handle multiple sports came from his father. Even though Marv Albert’s signature sport was basketball, he also covered the NFL and NHL while hosting NBC’s baseball pregame show during the late 1980s.
“I’ve always loved the variety.”
Despite all those accomplishments, Albert’s year highlight was calling Alex Ovechkin’s 895th NHL goal on April 6. The Washington Capitals star broke Wayne Gretzky’s career record against the New York Islanders.
Albert’s call during the second period captured the excitement, mentioned the goal number, then went silent so the crowd could take over.
“In a championship situation or big moment, I don’t usually write something out but I do throw some words around in my mind just to be ready. I was thinking something with his nickname, the Great Eight, the great Gretzky. When he tied the record, Joe Beninati (the Capitals TV announcer) used something similar to that, so I wanted to shift over to something else and not use some of the same words he did.
“What it happened, it just came out naturally. I mentioned number 895 and then I just got out of the way. It was very important after the call to just lay out and let the production folks do their thing. Let the pictures and sound tell the story.”
According to research by Un/Necessary Sports Research, the late Bob Cole leads all announcers with 1,722 games. Cole called games for CBC’s "Hockey Night in Canada" for 50 years.
Dick Stockton ranks second with 1,544 games across basketball, baseball and football for CBS and Fox. Chris Cuthbert, the current lead voice for "Hockey Night in Canada," sits third with 1,539 games.
Cuthbert will pass Stockton if the Stanley Cup Finals reaches six games.
Kevin Harlan ranks sixth at 1,477 games and should surpass Marv Albert’s 1,481 for fifth place during Week 5 of the upcoming NFL season.
This marks Albert’s 11th Stanley Cup Final, including eight on radio. It’s his first time calling a rematch from the previous year.
This is the first final rematch since Detroit and Pittsburgh in 2009. Only two rematches have occurred in the past 40 years.
“It has a chance to be one of the all-time great championship series. These same teams played a scintillating seven-game series last June. Star power on both sides. Edmonton attempting to win Canada’s first Cup since 1993. Florida looking to repeat. Can Connor McDavid match Wayne Gretzky and Sidney Crosby and win his first Stanley Cup against the team that beat his club in the Cup Final the year before? I can’t wait.”
