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On Wednesday night, the hockey community lost legendary play-by-play announcer Bob Cole, who died at 90 in St. John's, Nfld. Cole was synonymous with the game as the voice of "Hockey Night in Canada" for decades.
His iconic moments, such as the Montreal Canadiens winning the Stanley Cup or Hall of Famers scoring milestone goals, shaped the game's narrative and left an indelible mark on the hearts of Canadians who grew up listening to his calls.
Thankfully, the world got to share Cole's love of the game, as he often broadcast the Stanley Cup playoffs and the decisive games in the finals on a national stage and at home across North America.
Today, people all across the broadcasting world are sharing their memories of Bob Cole, who inspired countless individuals to get into the game and forge their careers. Indeed, the hockey world has lost one of the greats.
Top 5 calls of Bob Cole's legendary career in the booth
#5, "Oh my goodness! Curtis Joseph"
Heading into their first-round matchup with the Dallas Stars in 1997, the Edmonton Oilers had yet to win a playoff series in five seasons. As the tension mounted in the Game 7 showdown, the score remained deadlocked at 3-3, pushing the game into overtime.
Curtis Joseph pulled off a miraculous behind-his-back save, keeping the Oilers' season alive. Within a few minutes, Todd Marchant got a breakaway and scored the game-winner, giving Edmonton their first playoff series win in half a decade.
#4, "Two goals on the night. Scores! Mats Sundin!"
Since Cole worked for the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC), he was the voice for almost every Saturday Night game, which usually featured the Toronto Maple Leafs and Canadiens.
It was fitting that Cole was behind the call when Mats Sundin became the first and only player in Toronto history to score 500 goals.
In an overtime contest on Oct. 14, 2006, against the Calgary Flames, Sundin picked up a loose puck in the neutral zone and skated across the blueline to fire home the winner, which turned out to be his 500th goal.
The milestone goal meant too much to the player, the team, the fans, and Cole, who had the privilege of calling so many of the captain's goals during his time with the Maple Leafs.
#3, "He scores! Gilmour!"
The last time the Maple Leafs skated in the third round of a playoff season was in 1993, when Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings beat them in seven games.
Toronto needed to get past the St. Louis Blues to reach the Conference Final. In a thrilling seven-game series in the second round, Doug Gilmour set the tone with an overtime goal in Game 1, giving the Maple Leafs a 2-1 win.
With the puck behind the net, Gilmour fooled everyone in the building, including Toronto netminder Joseph, as he spun around and tucked home the game-winner at 3:16 overtime.
#2, "Score! Yzerman!"
By 1996, the Detroit Red Wings were on the verge of winning the Stanley Cup, claiming the championship in 1997 while becoming one of the top teams in the NHL for a decade.
Even though they lost in the 1995 Stanley Cup Final, the Red Wings were trying to get back to the final four when they lined up against the Blues and Gretzky in the 1996 Division Semifinals.
As the seventh game of the series went to two overtimes, captain Steve Yzerman would score one of the most iconic goals in NHL history by slapping one home on Jon Casey to give Detroit a 1-0 win.
As in so many magical moments like this one, Cole was in the building calling the game, giving viewers at home one of the best calls.
#1, "Look at Lemieux. Oh, my goddess. What a goal. What a move."
Mario Lemieux achieved some memorable accomplishments throughout his Hall of Fame career. Whether scoring five goals in a game, collecting three points in his first NHL game in three seasons, or compiling one of the most extraordinary statistical careers of all time, nothing may be as unique as his breakaway goal in the Stanley Cup Final.
After years of failing to qualify for the playoffs, the Pittsburgh Penguins finally went on a run in 1991, leading to the first of back-to-back championships. In Game 2 against the Minnesota North Stars, Lemieux caught a pass, split the two defensemen, and scored one of the most iconic goals of his career.
The moment means so much to the Penguins and their history that a statue of Lemieux cutting through the defenseman stands outside of PPG Paints for fans of every generation to remember the play.
As Lemieux, who ended up sprawled out on the ice, tucked the puck home on netminder Casey, Cole gave us one of his most memorable calls by simply saying, "Oh, baby!"
