Former tourney announcer looks back fondly

ChrisK
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Joined: Fri Mar 22, 2002 12:39 am

Former tourney announcer looks back fondly

Post by ChrisK » Fri May 09, 2003 8:57 am

From today's Strib:<br><br>Fond memories <br><br>Chris Cuthbert's return to St. Paul stirred plenty of memories, even if a new building resides on the site where he once worked a package of hockey games each March.<br><br>Cuthbert, who called the Wild-Canucks series for CBC's "Hockey Night in Canada," was the main voice of the state high school hockey tournament at the St. Paul Civic Center from 1984 to 1991 on WCCO television.<br><br>"It was special to do it and it's something I miss," Cuthbert said. "The juices really started to flow when I saw [Xcel Energy Center] because I hadn't been to this building. To see the high school jerseys hanging in the lobby . . . I read the articles that have been posted around the arena on all the high school championship games I called. It was fun reliving some of the names. I've made it a point of talking to any player who played in the tournament when I'm covering them in the NHL."<br><br>That list includes the Wild's Darby Hendrickson, who played at Richfield High School; the Kings' Craig Johnson, who played at Hill-Murray; and former Grand Rapids standout Kelly Fairchild.<br><br>"Whenever I introduce myself to players -- and this is what made me feel the best -- whether it be Kelly Fairchild or Craig Johnson, they all say, 'I remember you from doing the tournament. I remember your voice,' " Cuthbert said. "That makes you feel good. But I know how special it is for those guys. Surprisingly it became that neat to me."<br><br>And even though the one-class tournament Cuthbert worked has been split into two, he still keeps tabs on it.<br><br>"In March, I would always ask a Minnesota player 'Who won the tournament?' if I didn't look it up," said Cuthbert, who used to fly in from Edmonton to work the tournament and now lives just outside Toronto. "I know Darby came to me this year at the start of the series and I said, 'Who won?' In some ways guys said it wasn't quite the same [with two classes] and that made me feel like I wasn't missing it as much."<br><br>While Cuthbert praises the Xcel, he still has a soft spot in his heart for the Civic Center and its all-glass boards.<br><br>"They have done a great job. It's special," he said of the new building. "But I kind of wouldn't mind seeing some glass boards. . . . Being here brings back some great memories and I've told many people that if I had the chance to do the tournament I would do it for nothing because it was that much of a highlight."<br> <p></p><i></i>

Mitch Hawker
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Re: Former tourney announcer looks back fondly

Post by Mitch Hawker » Fri May 09, 2003 1:52 pm

Bring back Cuthbert!<br><br>I also remember Paul Braun (who has been the voice of Badger hockey for about 30 years) doing the Minnesota high school tournament in the same time frame as Cuthbert.<br><br>I like Lou Nanne as a color man, he sees the game well, but Wally Shaver could and should be replaced by just about anyone.<br><br> <p></p><i></i>

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