Remembering Dan Kelly

The Blues-Kings telecast this past Monday night featured a visit to the Fox Sports Midwest booth by famous Fox NFL and MLB broadcaster, Joe Buck. Joe’s father, a pretty well-known guy in his own right, Jack Buck, had once been in the Blues hockey broadcast booth himself. Current play-by-play man, John Kelly also had a broadcaster dad, the one and only Dan Kelly, “The Voice of the Blues.” The night before Joe’s visit to the booth (Feb 10th) marked the 20th anniversary of Kelly’s death.

Dan Kelly wasn’t just a St. Louis treasure. He broadcast on Hockey Night in Canada for years and called some of the most famous goals in NHL history including Bob Nystrom’s Cup winner for the New York Islanders in 1980 and Bobby Orr’s Stanley Cup winning goal in the 1970 Finals against our own St. Louis Blues:

Kelly also called one of the most memorable goals in Canada Cup history, in 1987:

Dan Kelly worked as a broadcaster for the Blues for over 20 years and called Stanley Cup games for multiple TV networks. He was one of the main hockey announcers for the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary. Kelly wasn’t only known for hockey broadcasting. He worked NFL, Mizzou Basketball, and St. Louis Cardinals baseball games. His name and voice though, are ubiquitous with Blues hockey and the Shamrock banner seen to the left hangs in the rafters of Scottrade Center with the Blues retired jersey numbers. In 2006, the Blues named the broadcast booth in his memory.

Both of Dan’s sons, John and Dan Jr., have followed in his footsteps broadcasting NHL hockey. Kelly passed away February 10, 1989 from lung cancer and later that year was posthumously awarded the Lester Patrick Trophy honoring Kelly for “outstanding service to Hockey in the United States.” In October of 1989, he was named to the Hockey Hall of Fame. RIP Dan Kelly, you were truly one of the greats.

Dan Kelly, Sr. 1936-1989