The Blackhawks’ teardown has reached the TV booth. Longtime analyst Eddie Olczyk will not return to the team. He’ll join the Kraken’s broadcast booth and continue as an analyst for TNT, according to a source.
Olczyk, who has been on Hawks broadcasts since 2006, couldn’t reach an agreement with management on a new contract. His deal expired after last season. According to the source, the Hawks would not give him the same contract length that the Kraken did.
“We just could not come to terms on a contract, and I have stepped away,” Olczyk told the Sun-Times. “There was a contract on the table, but I have decided to step away.
“I had an incredible conversation with [chairman] Rocky [Wirtz], met with him in person, as well as Danny [Wirtz] and Jaime [Faulkner]. There’s great disappointment, but this was my decision. In negotiations, sometimes you can’t come to terms, and that's what happened here.”
Olczyk is the latest big name to leave the organization, which has been undergoing turnover in seemingly every facet of business and hockey operations. Hall of Fame play-by-play voice Pat Foley retired after last season, the team traded star winger Alex DeBrincat on draft day and now Olczyk is departing.
Nick Olczyk, Eddie’s son who made some TV and radio appearances for the Hawks last season, also will not return, according to a source.
This story will be updated.
