According to sports media insider Jonah Sigel, former NHL enforcer Kevin Sawyer is expected to take over as the Flames’ color commentator on Sportsnet’s regional broadcasts.
“I am told [Kevin Sawyer] is your Kelly Hrudey replacement,” Sigel reported Friday. “He will for sure be on the Calgary Flames regional games.”
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Sawyer has spent the past several years working on Winnipeg Jets regional broadcasts with TSN, a role he has held since the 2017-18 season. The 52-year-old British Columbia native would now make the move from TSN to Sportsnet and take on a prominent role covering the Flames.
Before getting into broadcasting, Sawyer spent parts of six NHL seasons as an enforcer. He appeared in 110 games with the St. Louis Blues, Boston Bruins, Phoenix Coyotes and Anaheim Mighty Ducks, accumulating 403 penalty minutes. His professional playing career ended during the 2002-03 season.
The reported move comes just days after Hrudey announced that he was leaving Sportsnet after the network opted not to renew his contract.
Hrudey, 65, had been one of the most recognizable analysts on Hockey Night in Canada since retiring from professional hockey in 1998. He also began appearing on national broadcasts during the latter part of his playing career, making his departure another significant change for Sportsnet’s hockey coverage.
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For the Flames, Sawyer would become the latest addition to a broadcast team that has undergone considerable turnover in recent years.
The Calgary Flames appear to have found the next voice to join their regional television broadcasts following the departure of longtime analyst Kelly Hrudey.
Rick Ball left Calgary in 2024 to join the Chicago Blackhawks, with Jon Abbott taking over as the team’s play-by-play voice. Ryan Leslie then departed for the Toronto Maple Leafs last year, leading Brendan Parker to step into the hosting role.
Now, Hrudey is out and Sawyer is reportedly on his way in.
The changes extend beyond television, too.
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The future of Flames radio broadcasts remains unclear after Rogers shut down Sportsnet 960 The Fan in Calgary and relinquished the radio rights to Flames games. Rogers retained radio rights for the Vancouver Canucks and plans to air those games on an FM station in the city, but Calgary was left without a similar arrangement.
For now, though, the biggest question surrounding the Flames’ broadcasts appears to have an answer.
If Sigel’s report proves accurate, Sawyer will be the newest addition to a Calgary broadcast booth that looks considerably different from the one Flames fans knew just a few years ago.
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