newjerseynewsroom.com

BY BOB HOLT

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

Mike (Doc) Emrick said when he was growing up in Indiana, it only took one hockey game for him to know he was hooked.

“When I saw the Fort Wayne Komets play Muskegon I knew this is what I wanted to do for a living. I just got lucky enough to do it,’’ he said, according to NJ.com.

Emrick has been the New Jersey Devils’ play-by-play man since the 1993-94 season, and now he has announced he'll be leaving the Devils and working exclusively for NBC and Versus.

He said leaving the local team would amount to far less traveling. The dual local and national schedules have been the work of “one and a half men,” he said, according to the New York Times.

Emrick received his doctorate, and his nickname "Doc," at Bowling Green, where he also got the chance to call the second period of every Falcons home hockey game.

He eventually left the Philadelphia Flyers after the 1992-1993 season and joined the Devils. Nesn.com reminds fans that Emrick was around for the three Devils Stanley Cup victories, and he also called goaltender Martin Brodeur's 552nd, record-breaking win. Emrick was also broadcasting when Devils' ex-captain Scott Stevens’ No. 4 was retired.

According to devils.nhl.com, Devils President/CEO/General Manager Lou Lamoriello said in a statement:

“Devils’ fans, including myself, have had the great privilege to watch and listen to the talents of Mike Emrick for more than two decades. I would like to thank Mike for what he brought to our organization. He and his lovely wife, Joyce, will always be part of the Devils’ family. I look forward to continue watching him on a national level.”

Emrick addressed the Devils’ fans in a letter, also on the team’s website.