Remember Fox Sports South and Southeast? It feels like so long ago that we were hearing something along the lines of "We are Fox Sports! We are Carolinas!" before every Carolina Hurricanes game. That fell apart, leading us to Bally Sports. Less than three years later, we were graced with FanDuel Sports Network. All of this change so quickly and at the end of the season, the Canes were without a home.
It has been a tumultuous time for sports broadcasting, especially at the local level, aided by bankruptcy filings, liquidation, and plenty of other big business terms that the average sports fan doesn't care about. They just want to be able to watch their team play without fear of blackouts, which are an entirely separate issue. On Tuesday, the Canes put a plan in place.
The organization announced the creation of its own network to serve as its means of broadcasting games during the season. Owned and operated by Hurricanes Holdings, LLC, the effort will be in collaboration with the NHL to ensure that the fans are getting their games. The Blue Jackets, Blues, and Wild will reportedly do something similar with their broadcasts with the league's help.
While very little is known about the name and several other key details, one thing we do know is who will be in the booth to call the games. The press release confirmed the returns of Mike Maniscalco and Tripp Tracy for play-by-play and color commentary duties, respectively. While there weren't many doubts about this being the case, it's nice to have it in writing.
Tracy will enter his 28th season with the team as the color commentator, becoming one of the most iconic faces of the franchise with his off-the-charts charisma and stories that range in their believability. Maniscalco has manned the microphone as the team's voice since the 2020. He was named the NC Sportscaster of the Year for 2025.
It's unclear whether the same goes for Shane Willis and Hanna Yates on the pre-game show, but those details will almost certainly come to light before the season begins. Regardless, it's nice to know that there is a plan in place for the season, and that the Hurricanes will largely be in control of things. It's one less thing for the fans to worry about when watching the Stanley Cup champions.
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