CINCINNATI, Ohio — Ohio sportscaster Everett Fitzhugh is making history, thanks to one of the first moves by the Seattle Kraken, the newest NHL franchise.
When the Kraken take the ice for the first time, Fitzhugh will become the first Black team broadcaster in NHL history.
“I’m really excited for the challenge,” Fitzhugh said. “I’m humbled and honored by the opportunity to be the first, but I hope I’m not the only. And I hope that I’m not the first for a long time.”
He says Seattle is talking the talk and walking the walk about diversity and inclusion, which is something he applauds.
“The NHL and I think hockey in general has come such a long way in recent years, in embracing their diversity and trying to foster different voices and different viewpoints,” he said.
The Detroit native has spent the majority of his professional career here in Ohio, he started announcing hockey in college at Bowling Green, spent time in Youngstown, and most recently was the voice of the Cincinnati Cyclones.
And now, he’s embarking on a new adventure — one that he’s extremely excited for.
“When I saw the unveiling of the logo, I had already been hired,” Fitzhugh said. “Everything they did for that rollout was fantastic and it made me that much more excited to be a part of the organization and to start this next chapter in my career.”
As the first Black team broadcaster in the NHL, Fitzhugh hopes he can be a resource for other Black journalists who are interested in following a similar path.
“I am not going to be the kind of person that has his own success and leaves it up to everyone else,” he said. “It sounds so cliché, but it takes a village, right? And I am all for being a part of that village and help groom, and to help mentor, and to help teach the next wave of hockey fan, hockey broadcaster, hockey writer. Whatever the case may be, whatever I can do to help them out, I am more than ready to take on that task and help carry that torch.”
