The Foster Hewitt Memorial Award is an annual accolade honoring ice hockey broadcasters in North America. It was named for the Canadian hockey radio broadcaster and newspaper journalist Foster Hewitt, and it has been presented every year at a media luncheon ceremony that occurs late in the year at the Hockey Hall of Fame in BCE Place, Toronto, Ontario, Canada since 1984. The winner is chosen by a committee of members composed of radio and television figures that make up the NHL Broadcasters' Association. It is given "to recognize distinguished members of the radio and television industry who made outstanding contributions to their profession and the game during their career in hockey broadcasting." Each recipient receives a glass plaque, which is put on display in the Hall of Fame's media section. The ceremony associated with the award is staged separately to the induction of players into the Hockey Hall of Fame because media honorees are not considered full inductees.
The first four winners were Fred Cusick, Foster Hewitt, Danny Gallivan and René Lecavalier in 1984. The award was given out twice in two further consecutive years to both Budd Lynch and Doug Smith in 1985 and Wes McKnight and Lloyd Pettit the following year. It has presented posthumously on four occasions, to Smith in 1985, McKnight the following year, Dan Kelly in 1989 and Bill Hewitt in 2007. Dave Strader was named the recipient in April 2017 but he died of a rare form of bile duct cancer called cholangiocarcinoma on October 1, 2017 before the ceremony to commemorate his career that was held the following month. His three children accepted the award on his behalf. It has been presented to broadcasters who have been affiliated with the CBC Television sports program Hockey Night in Canada eight times, followed by the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs on six occasions.
Inductees +KeyIndicates posthumous award
+Recipients of the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award Year Image Recipient Affiliation 1984 — Boston Toronto — Montreal 1985 — Detroit — Montreal 1986 — Toronto — Chicago 1987 — Boston 1988 — Montreal 1989 — St. Louis, CBS, Hockey Night in Canada 1990 — Atlanta, New York Islanders, Los Angeles, Fox, SportsChannel America 1991 — Detroit 1992 Vancouver, Hockey Night in Canada 1993 — Minnesota 1994 — Buffalo 1995 — Hockey Night in Canada 1996 1997 — Philadelphia 1998 Hockey Night in Canada, TSN 1999 — Montreal 2000 Los Angeles 2001 Pittsburgh 2002 Montreal 2003 Edmonton 2004 Hartford/Carolina 2005 — New York Rangers 2006 — Calgary 2007 — Toronto 2008 Philadelphia, New Jersey, ESPN/ABC, Fox, NBC/NBCSN, SportsChannel America, Versus 2009 — New York Rangers, Hockey Night in Canada, ESPN/ABC, Fox, MSG Network, NBC 2010 — Washington 2011 — Detroit 2012 — Buffalo 2013 — Buffalo, Hockey Night in Canada, Toronto 2014 — Chicago 2015 — Los Angeles 2016 — New York Rangers, Fox, ESPN 2017 — Detroit, Florida, Phoenix, Dallas, ESPN/ABC, NHL International, NBC/NBCSN 2018 Toronto 2019 — Vancouver, Toronto, Hockey Night in Canada, Sportsnet, TSN 2020 — Hartford, Tampa Bay, SportsChannel America 2022 — Philadelphia, ESPN/ABC, NBC, SportsChannel America, Versus 2023 — San Jose 2024 — Montreal, RDS 2025 — Dallas, Hartford, ESPN/ABC, Fox, Hockey Night in Canada, NBC/NBCSN, Versus 2026 — Ottawa, Toronto, Hockey Night in Canada, TSN, NBC/NBCSN, Sportsnet
Statistics + Multiple winners by Affiliation Name WinsHockey Night in Canada9Toronto7 Montreal6ESPN/ABC6NBC6Fox5Detroit4SportsChannel America4Buffalo3Hartford3Los Angeles3Philadelphia3New York Rangers3TSN3Boston2Chicago2Dallas2Vancouver2Sportsnet2
See also Curt Gowdy Media Award Ford C. Frick Award Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award
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