While the topic on Jack Edwards’ rampant homerism is never far from the mind of Boston fans, our colleagues here at SB Nation just gave out year-end rankings for all NHL broadcast crews. Not surprisingly, the Boston tandem of Edwards and Andy Brickley fared poorly, based primarily on Edwards’ love of everything Boston.
For some, hearing the over-the-top homerism reminds them of watching the game with friends in a bar. For others, it’s like attending a game in Montreal while wearing a Bruins jersey – you’re just there for the hockey and try your best to ignore the commentary. But for us, we love Edwards and all he brings to the table as the play-by-play/head cheerleader for the B’s. In fact, we love him so much - and we’re not writing about Stamkos again - we’ve decided to pull together a list of his top 10 calls after the jump...
10) Edwards on the Revolution, Part 1
We kick things off with the first, but certainly not last, appearance of revolutionary history on the list. Following the end of this year’s Canadians series, Edwards let loose on a winding story that includes Vermont, New Hampshire, royalty, Max Pacioretty and the Boston Tea Party. Somehow, he ties the whole thing up into a nice black and gold package after two minutes of rambling:
9) Edwards on Sean Avery’s Manhood
Early in the season, Mark Stuart made a great, clean hit on Rangers forward Ruslan Fedotenko as he came through the neutral zone with his head down, which prompted pest Sean Avery to take on Stuart. As expected, Stuart handled himself quite well in the fight and leaving Edwards a bit like Borat while taking a shot at Avery’s manhood:
8) Edwards Goes off the Deep End
Hitting the way back machine to 2007, no list of Jack Edwards calls would be complete without this – the maniacal laughing that followed a questionable hit on Flyers defenseman Randy Jones by Milian Lucic. Some wondered why Lucic didn’t receive a penalty for the hit, but Edwards didn’t leave any guess as to his stance on the no-call:
7) Edwards Yelling at Hamrlik
Another classic Edwards call, this time directing Canadians’ defenseman Roman Hamrlik to "Get Up!" after what Edwards assumes is another dive. If Edwards had any shot left a being an unbiased announcer, this may have been the one that put it over the top:
6) Edwards Mocks Kessel
This clip is great for two reasons: 1) We get to hear Edwards try his best Phil Kessel impression, which ends up sounding like a small child, and 2) Edwards’ disdain for the Canadians knows no bounds, as he accidentally refers to Kessel’s "first time in a uniform for Montreal." Not sure if Brickley is laughing at the impression or the Montreal reference, but either one would be an acceptable reason:
5) Edwards Takes on Kovalchuk/Russia
Illya Kovalchuk took the money and ran to New Jersey last summer, and Edwards didn’t forget about the money grab when Tim Thomas made a great stop on the Russian last season. Bonus points were awarded to Edwards for correctly remembering the Russian currency off the top of his head (I had to double check to make sure it is the ruble):
4) Edwards Call Out Pouliot
While this may not be the most aggressive or over-the-top call on the list, there’s a good bit of irony considering Benoît Pouliot is now a member of the Bruins. If this was only a fight, one can only imagine what Edwards screamed when he found out Pouliot signed with Boston:
3) Edwards on Hockey Hell
Just like our friend Bobby Lou, everyone needs their tires pumped now and again, and what better time than heading into the playoffs? In the closing seconds of the Bruins playoff clinching victory over the Carolina Hurricanes, Edwards channeled his inner Herb Brooks to prepare the Bruins and their fans for the 2010 playoffs:
2) Edwards on Shawn Thornton, Goal Scorer
Here’s a classic Edwards homer call not just because he refers to Alex Henry of the Canadians as a criminal, but also due to his repeated tire pumping of Shawn Thornton in all facets of the game. The clip also provides us with another reason to hate Montreal – their liberal use of Black Eyed Peas following fights:
1) Edwards on the Revolution, Part 2
Come on, you knew this was coming. It is, in my opinion, the most over-the-top Edwards call there is, and I think some may agree. There is nothing more American than Patriots’ Day, the Bruins beating the Canadians and Jack Edwards going crazy: