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Shorty and Murph fight back tears honouring their Canucks broadcast 'captain' John Garrett

Trevor Beggs
Trevor Beggs
|
Apr 29 2026, 6:24 pm
Shorty and Murph fight back tears honouring their Canucks broadcast 'captain' John Garrett
@Sportsnet/X

From Dallas to Edmonton, the entire hockey world is grieving John Garrett after his sudden passing.

But it was only fitting that the men who knew him best toasted him for all of Canada to see.

John Shorthouse had an emotional interview with Mike Halford and Jason Brough on Vancouver radio airwaves earlier on Tuesday. Later that night, he was joined by Dan Murphy on Sportsnet before puck drop between the Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks.

“I’ve been blessed to have worked with Cheech, to know Cheech and to have been influenced by Cheech,” Shorthouse said.

“He is… the consummate person that makes the world a better place.”

Murphy echoed the same sentiment, sharing insights from travelling alongside Garrett for more than 20 years.

“Almost two decades with Cheech on the road, 100 days a year… and we didn’t have one argument over anything important,” Murphy said.

“You know how hard that is to travel with someone for 1,500 days and never see them snippy or angry or disrespectful? But that was Cheech. You couldn’t be in a bad mood around him. He was kind, genuine, and generous.”

“I don’t know how much money he gave to people on the street, but he was always willing to stop and talk and give.”

While the trio has entertained Canucks fans for most of the 21st century, Garrett was the leader, according to Shorthouse.

“Cheech was always our captain,” Shorthouse said. “He was the steward of our ship. This blew us all away. This was just incredibly, emotionally devastating.”

“I don’t know what else to do, other than to toast Cheech,” Shorthouse said as he cracked a Coors Light on live TV, in honour of his late friend.

Former Canucks defenceman and Sportsnet panellist Kevin Bieksa also chimed in with his thoughts on the beloved broadcaster.

“My favourite memories of him… are sitting around, shooting the breeze, and making fun of each other.”

Bieksa mentioned travelling with Garrett while with the Canucks, and how the Trenton, Ont., native would make him smile, even if the defenceman had a rough night on the ice.

“I’d say something to Cheech like, I’d chirp him about Lotto 6/49, his goals against average, and right away he’d fire back like ‘don’t worry, Kev, those four goals you were on the ice for, none of them were your fault.'”

“I would just laugh, and I just love that camaraderie.”

Garrett spread his infectious attitude to Canucks players, fans, and his teammates in the broadcast booth, right until the end of his life. That’s something Murphy alluded to while fighting back tears at the end of his touching tribute.

“I’m just so filled with love and joy that I got to work with him for one more week here at the end, because it had been a while, and it was to be treasured.”

Garrett was working alongside Murphy for coverage of the Utah Mammoth and Vegas Golden Knights series on Sportsnet before his unexpected passing.

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