Leafs Announce Plan to Honour Legendary Long-Time Play Caller Joe Bowen
Photo credit: Nick Turchiaro - USA Today Sports
In what will be his final season calling games, the Maple Leafs announce official plans to honour legendary play-by-play announcer Joe Bowen this season.
In what will be his 44th season calling NHL games, the iconic play-by-play announcer of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Joe Bowen, will be stepping away at the end of the 2025-26 campaign, as announced earlier this year.
The Sudbury, Ontario native, whose catchphrase of "Holy Mackinaw" will be forever remembered, is expected to get a tribute from the Maple Leafs later this season, as reported by Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.
Johnston mentions that the Leafs will honour Bowen with a tribute game on the 16th of December against the Chicago Blackhawks, who Toronto faced in Bowen's debut back on October 6th, 1982.
Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving was nothing short of complimentary when he commented on the tribute, believing he represented Leafs Nation like no other.
Nobody represents the passion of Leafs Nation better than Joe Bowen and his signature voice has been the soundtrack for so many iconic moments for the team over the past 44 years. We look forward to celebrating Joe all season but especially making December 16 a very special tribute to the man known as the 'voice of the Maple Leafs'.
Bowen's long-standing career has made him a fixture in the house's of all Leafs fans for parts of 5 decades. For his efforts he was honoured with the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award by the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018 and he'll also be in line to call his 3,800th game in January of 2026.
The 74-year-old has been through a lot of seasons, playoff rounds, playoff heartbreaks, and even playoff droughts. He's seen legends come and go from Borje Salming to Doug Gilmour to Mats Sundin to Auston Matthews.
Bowen always wanted to call a Leafs Stanley Cup victory, a feat he has not been able to document during his entire career. Hopefully, for Bowen's sake, as well as the sake of the entire fanbase, the Leafs can send him off with the best gift of all; the Stanley Cup.
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