No surprise here: Blackhawks play-by-play man Dan Kelly was fired by the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday, which could pave the return of Pat Foley, who handled the chores for a little over twenty years before being unceremoniously dropped for Kelly in 2006.
Foley currently is the play-by-play man for the Chicago Wolves (Chicago’s AHL franchise.) Even Wolves owner Don Levin admitted that the Blackhawks should go after Foley – but only after the Wolves playoff run is over.
Thought: While yours truly thought Dan Kelly did a decent job in calling Hawk games – he’s no Pat Foley. Much in the same way fans of American Top 40 did not accept Shadoe Stevens as host after Casey Kasem left in a contract dispute with ABC in August 1988 (which led Casey to launch a rival countdown show with Westwood One in January 1989), Hawk fans never accepted Kelly in Foley’s role, and he had a tough time filling Foley’s shoes. As the Blackwawks are becoming more fan-friendly and admitting past mistakes, Kelly’s departure comes as no surprise.