Source: Mark LoMoglio / Getty
The Seattle Kraken are the first team to have an All-Black broadcasting duo in the NHL’s nearly 105 years of history.
Former NHL player J.T. Brown and media personality Everett Fitzhugh are going to make history in the NHL. These two men will be the first All-Black TV Analysts/Commentators in the league. Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic broke the news of their signing.
Everett Fitzhugh had spent more than a decade covering hockey before making NHL history in August 2020.
Fitzhugh had been the play-by-play announcer and color commentator for Bowling Green State University and the United States Hockey League’s Youngstown Phantoms. He even served two jobs in the East Coast Hockey League. For the ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones, he was working as the team’s radio broadcaster and the Director of Media Relations. In August 2020 the Seattle Kraken, the NHL’s newest billion dollar franchise, hired him to be the league’s first full time Black broadcaster.
J.T. Brown played pro hockey for 11 years.
That includes the seven years in the NHL with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Anaheim Ducks and Minnesota Wild. He even spent time on the USA team for the 2012 Ice Hockey World Championships. J.T. Brown retired in 2020 after his last stint with IF Bjorkloven in the Swedish Hockey League. He was surprised when the Seattle Kraken wanted to bring him on to next stage of his career.
J.T. Brown sees the opportunity to make history as “crazy”.
Just being a part of it is crazy to think about.
Any time something like this happens, I think about a year ago and ask, ‘Would I have thought this is where my path would be?’
Here we are.
We did know this was eventually going to happen at some point.
Fitzhugh further expressed his joy and passion for what he does in a statement for the Seattle Kraken.
I’ve always told people I want to be the best broadcaster, not the best Black broadcaster.
That said, I realize in this position I could be the source for someone from South Seattle or Detroit or anywhere to say, ‘Hey Mom, that guy looks like me, I can do that too.’
That’s an even bigger impact than JT and I doing the game together.
The duos’ first game on air will be on ROOT SPORTS Northwest on February 17. Black History Month just keeps getting more interesting as these two are following the steps of the recently and FORMALLY honored first Black NHL player, Willie O’Ree.
