- Kelly Hrudey says Sportsnet told him on June 19 his contract would not be renewed
- The 65-year-old spent 28 straight years in broadcasting, the last 12 at Sportsnet
- Read below for his full message to viewers and why he says he is not done
Kelly Hrudey is out at Sportsnet.
The longtime Hockey Night in Canada analyst announced Wednesday, in a video he posted to X and Instagram, that the network is not renewing his contract for next season. He waited until the end of the message to shut down the assumption everyone was about to make.
“By the way, this is not a retirement.”
Hrudey opened by putting a date on it.
“On June 19th, I was told that my contract was not going to be renewed for the upcoming season, so big changes in my life,” Hrudey said.
He signed off by passing along what his lawyer of more than 40 years told him after hearing about the announcement. “I’m so excited for act three,” the lawyer said.
Watch the whole thing:
The Islanders drafted Hrudey in the summer of 1980, and he played 677 NHL games across New York, Los Angeles and San Jose before retiring in 1998.
Broadcasting started before the playing did. He worked part-time on Hockey Night in Canada during his last four NHL seasons, then CBC hired him full time the moment he was finished.
That turned into 28 consecutive years on the air, the last 12 at Sportsnet after Rogers took over the national rights in 2014. Most of it came on the studio panel, though he also called games nationally and on Calgary Flames regional broadcasts.
His thank-you skipped right past the on-air stuff.
“I look back and I thank you, the viewer. You might have hated me or loved me. I’m ok with either,” Hrudey said, before naming the producers, directors, control-room crews and makeup staff he spent three decades around. “You weren’t a coworker to me, you were a friend.”
He is leaving in the middle of a total rebuild of hockey on Canadian television. CBC stopped carrying NHL games after last season, ending a run that began on radio in 1936, and 2026-27 is year one of Rogers’ new 12-year rights deal. Wednesday nights now belong to Prime Video, which also picked up playoff series.
Hrudey closed the video by telling viewers the Hrudeys were sending their love. He did not say where act three takes him.
