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New voice of the Canucks paid his dues on WHL buses |
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Written by Citizen Staff
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Tuesday, 25 November 2008 |
LINEUP CARD COLUMN, by JIM SWANSON, Citizen Sports Editor
The Western Hockey League is a development circuit. Players, yes, and coaches, for sure -- but that’s not where it ends.
There are instances where individuals rise well above the others in their profession to reach the big league.
That’s the case for a voice you’ll hear on the radiowaves this season calling a minimum of 26 Vancouver Canucks games. Joey Kenward, the survivor of more than a few career hard knocks, is literally living his dream.
Kenward proved to be a stickler for details, a professional in every sense, and a thirsty sponge of information who always had his finger on the pulse of the WHL. Now, the former voice of the Vancouver Giants has moved across town from the Pacific Coliseum to GM Place, home of the National Hockey League’s Canucks.
“It is a dream come true, no question about that,” said Kenward, 31, who grew up in Nanaimo as an unabashed Canucks fan.
“It’s been a lifelong dream to make it to the NHL, but to do it for the team I cheered for all my life, it makes it that much more special. It’s still a little overwhelming.”
Kenward’s call is clear, and he has a tremendous sense for relaying the flow of the game. In his years working on broadcasts for the Kelowna Rockets, Swift Current Broncos and Giants, he was never that third-tier action-caller who would stumble over player names, forget who the opposition was for long stretches of a game, or put his own ego ahead of the job at hand. He’s a broadcaster in the mold of former Cougars voice Glen Dufresne, who worked very hard at his craft and was meticulous about pronunciations, facts and game presentation.
But none of it came easy.
“My first game for Swift Current was on my 23rd birthday,” said Kenward.
“I remember some of those long bus trips, driving across the prairies, looking out a dark window and wondering if I’d ever reach my goal. There are a lot of hurdles I’ve overcome, and sacrifices I’ve made in my personal life to get this opportunity. I had to be willing to take my lumps, and it’s been a long process.”
Among the first to congratulate Kenward on his ascent to the NHL was WHL commissioner Ron Robison, Giants scout and former Prince George resident Dean Nazaruk, and Cougars general manager Dallas Thompson. Current Cougars head coach Drew Schoneck, then an assistant coach with the Rockets, gave Kenward the nickname ‘Scoops’ when Kenward was an eager, almost-begging young host of the Kelowna broadcasts. Kenward would always have the league tidbits that nowadays move around the internet at light speed -- then, it took many phone calls to find out what was happening in the far reaches of the WHL.
Kenward was turned back in his advances to move ahead, and now ironically has surpassed many who stood in his way. When Rick Ball left Kelowna -- besides being the voice of the B.C. Lions, Ball now handles home Canucks games when regular play-by-play man John Shorthouse has TV duties; Kenward does the road games -- Kenward applied and finished second to Regan Bartel, who is still the voice of the Rockets.
So Kenward headed east, taking Bartel’s old spot in Swift Current. When the Giants opened shop, Kenward landed that post.
Add up his three seasons in Swifty, and five in Vancouver, the BCIT grad had a legitimate 700 games under his belt, including 10 Memorial Cup contests.
When the Canucks needed to add to their broadcast team, Kenward’s knowledge of the market, and the market’s knowledge of him, made it a simple choice. Kenward had earned the respect of Vancouver hockey fans. Now he knows the tough part is to keep it.
“The first Canucks win I called was the Halloween nightmare in Anaheim -- and it was a game they gave up six goals,” said Kenward.
“That was a 26-player shootout. I did the games on this recent road trip on Long Island, Minnesota and Pittsburgh. No, I haven’t called them the Giants yet,” he laughed, “and it might be the biggest understatement I’ll ever make to say the travel in the NHL is nothing like it was with the Broncos.
“This has been a huge learning curve. Following the puck and calling the action, that’s not too much different, but preparing and memorizing new names with new teams and doing it in buildings I’ve never been in before, that’s been a big adjustment.”
So far, through hard work and preparation, t’s a transition that’s been as smooth as the ice the Canucks skate on.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 25 November 2008 )
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