Turner Sports is poised to announce Wayne Gretzky, Kenny Albert, and Eddie Olczyk as its first NHL TV team Wednesday.
Turner’s TNT is expected to officially announce the trio sometime Wednesday morning, said sources.
Gretzky, arguably the greatest hockey player in history, will appear as a studio analyst throughout the upcoming 2021-2022 season, then ramp up his TV appearances during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Albert and Olczyk will work play-by-play and game analysis.
Gretzky will earn around $2 million a year for his first full-time embrace of TV, said sources. Charles Barkley of TNT’s “Inside the NBA” is a big hockey fan. Barkley’s expected to occasionally kibbitz with Gretzky on NHL coverage.
On May 6, Front Office Sports reported both Turner and ESPN were interested in hiring the “Great One” as they take over the NHL’s U.S. media rights from NBC Sports. The New York Post first reported that Albert, the radio voice of the New York Rangers, was landing the leading play-by-play job, succeeding the retired Doc Emrick at NBC.
