SportsHockeyOilers

Edmonton Oilers fans will be thrilled with Sportsnet's playoff broadcast crew this year

Colton Pankiw
Colton Pankiw
|
Apr 17 2025, 7:08 pm
Edmonton Oilers fans will be thrilled with Sportsnet's playoff broadcast crew this year
@EdmontonJack/X

Edmonton Oilers fans will be thrilled with the broadcast crew Sportsnet has selected for their first-round series versus the LA Kings.

To no surprise, Gene Principe will carry on as the series reporter, which he has done for many regular-season and playoff games over the years. Meanwhile, Louie DeBrusk will continue to work as the colour analyst, which he has also done for the Oilers in both the regular season and playoffs for many years.

The one notable change, however, is that Jack Michaels will be the man doing the play-by-play. Michaels has served as the Oilers’ play-by-play voice for several seasons, but has instead called playoff games on the radio.

Michaels has become a favourite amongst Oilers fans for the energy and passion he brings to the broadcast on a nightly basis. He has had some absolutely electric calls over the years, and those should only become better in the playoffs with the stakes elevated to an entirely different level.

The Oilers are set to begin their first-round series versus the LA Kings on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena. It will be the fourth-straight time these teams have gone head-to-head in the opening round, with the Oilers coming out on top of the past three to date.

Unlike the past three years, however, the Oilers won’t have home-ice advantage. That is concerning, as the Kings owned an NHL-best 31-5-4 record on home ice this season. They fared much worse on the road, going just 17-19-5.

The good news for the Oilers is that they are expected to be a much healthier group heading into the series. Mattias Ekholm won’t be suiting up in round one, but it appears as though there is a good chance that Leon Draisaitl, Evander Kane, and Jake Walman are all good to go. Trent Frederic, meanwhile, is listed as doubtful for Game 1, but could be an option later in the series.

ADVERTISEMENT