It’s the offseason for ESPN Monday Night Football voice Joe Buck, but he still got some sports play-by-play in during an NHL game between the St. Louis Blues and Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday at Enterprise Center.
In the third period, Buck was interviewed as a spectator on the FanDuel Sports Midwest broadcast while St. Louis tried to survive a Toronto power play.
“Offense turns into defense, defense turns into offense. There’s just nothing like it,” Buck told Blues reporter Andy Strickland. “So, if I was home, I’d say, ‘Hey, Buck, shut up. I want to watch the Blues try to defend this power play by the Maple Leafs.’ But, I’m going to keep talking.”
The Blues didn’t just survive the Maple Leafs’ power play; they even scored on it. Pius Suter scored a shorthanded goal to give St. Louis a 3-1 lead.
Buck offered very energetic commentary after the score.
“PIUS SUTER! SHORTHANDED! 3-1, BLUES!”
“I don’t think I can top what he just did,” Blues play-by-play voice Chris Kerber said about Buck’s call.
Additionally, Buck interviewed his sons, Blake and Wyatt, during an intermission.
Buck, a St. Louis native and former Cardinals broadcaster, is a lifelong Blues fan. His late father, the legendary Jack Buck, was the original play-by-play voice of the Blues in the franchise’s inaugural 1967-68 season.
So, with the impromptu Blues play-by-play moment and the opportunity to interview his sons, it was surely a thrilling night for Buck.
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.