Darren Dreger (born June 13, 1968[citation needed]) is a Canadian sportscaster for TSN, and is one of TSN's Hockey Insiders. He had previously hosted Leafs Lunch on CFMJ AM640 Toronto Radio.
Darren Dreger | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 13, 1968 |
| Alma mater | Western Academy Broadcasting College |
| Occupation(s) | Sportscaster, and analyst |
| Employer | Bell Media |
| Known for | Sportscaster on The NHL on TSN |
| Spouse | Holly |
| Children | 2 |
Broadcasting career
editAfter graduating from the Western Academy Broadcasting College, Dreger was immediately offered a job from a radio station in Winkler, Manitoba. However, on the same day, he was offered another job closer to home, which he accepted.[1] Beginning in 1992, Dreger lent his voice as a play-by-play announcer for the Brandon Wheat Kings. This lasted until 1993 when he was hired to replace Daren Millard at CTV Winnipeg.[2] While there, he also conducted play-by-play for the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League.[3]
From Winnipeg, Dreger moved to Edmonton in 1997 to report on Edmonton Oilers games and was subsequently hired by Sportsnet as a national host for their NHL package in 1998.[4] Dreger was the former host of Hockey Central on Rogers Sportsnet between 1998 and 2006. On July 14, 2006, it was announced that Dreger would leave Sportsnet and join TSN on July 31, 2006, hence 'crossing the parking lot'.[citation needed]
Dreger won a Gemini Award in 2010 in the Best Sports Reporting category for his coverage of the firing of NHLPA Executive Director Paul Kelly. He was the only reporter in Chicago when the news broke and therefore had sole coverage.[5] In October 2014, Bob McKenzie and Dreger began appearing as a full-time contributors on NBCSN, until NBC Sports lost the NHL hockey rights to both ESPN and Turner Sports in 2021. This was due to the fact that TSN lost their NHL broadcasting rights package to Sportsnet.[6][7]
Personal life
editDreger was born in Red Deer, Alberta, and grew up in Saskatchewan. Dreger and his wife Holly have two children together, a son and a daughter.[8]
References
edit- ^ Kelly, Brad (August 8, 2015). "Brooklin's Darren Dreger a hockey insider for TSN". durhamregion.com. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
- ^ "Hockey Players + Students + Books = Jets Reader Club". Shoal Lake Crossroads. Manitoba. December 7, 1993.
- ^ "Job Hunt Continues for Ritchie". Brandon Sun. Manitoba. August 7, 1996.
- ^ Stewart, Lanny (January 10, 2017). "Journal Q & A with Darren Dreger". empireadvance.ca. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
- ^ Dowbiggin, Bruce (September 7, 2009). "TSN's Dreger lands quite a fish in NHLPA derby". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
- ^ "Dreger, McKenzie set to join NBCSN". Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ Deitsch, Richard. "Meet NBC's new hockey personalities in this week's Media Circus". Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ "TSN's Darren Dreger has one cool backyard rink". o.canada.com. December 13, 2013. Archived from the original on August 13, 2015. Retrieved November 29, 2019.