I work down deep in the jungle of minor league hockey in North America in the Federal Prospects Hockey League with Danbury Hat Tricks. I’m going to tell you about my experience working for the team this season.
It is a shame that the season ended the way it did. The Hat Tricks were first place in their division with a chance to go all the way. Now, you may be asking, how did you get this job? It’s kind of a crazy story.
So, the Hat Tricks played their first game on October 25th. I couldn’t attend because I had a high school football broadcast and even if I wasn’t broadcasting, I would’ve been in Bridgeport covering the Sound Tigers.

How I Got The Job

I ended up going on the next night, when the Hat Tricks were playing Port Huron. Now to be fair, I didn’t go to the team’s job fair, I had assumed that they would have an announcer, and the guy from the night before sounded pretty decent on the game stream.
However, I noticed there was a different announcer the next game.
So during the second intermission, I went to my friend Jack O’Marra, who was my broadcaster for my first season with the Danbury Westerners baseball team. I said to Jack: “Is this guy your real announcer? Do you need an announcer?”, Jack goes to me, “Not really, we kinda don’t have one. We had a guy last night but he’s commuting from Poughkeepsie every night, and this guy is just here so he’s doing it.” I said to him: “I’ll do it, if you need me to” Jack then goes, “Okay, talk to Herm [Sorcher]”.
I had known Herm Sorcher from his days running the Danbury Whalers, I went up to him and said, “Hey Herm, I just talked to Jack, he said you guys need a PA Announcer, or DJ for music, I am interested in doing so”, “Oh wow, really? You’re hired!” that was it, Herm attended a Westerners game that summer where I announced and said that he didn’t realize that was me announcing.

My First Professional Game

So I had my first job in minor league hockey, but I would be told that I would be the second announcer behind the guy who did the game on October 25. I would have to wait three weeks to call my first Hat Tricks game, but at the same time I was given the opportunity to announce multiple Danbury Colonials NA3HL Junior Hockey games before my first game on November 16.
Now, the Hat Tricks’ main announcer couldn’t make both games that weekend, and I couldn’t make the game on the 15, due to a prior commitment that I had. When I walked into the arena on that Saturday night, I was so excited, it was my first professional game as an announcer. I remember speaking with Sorcher, as well as Chris Buonanno, our other managing partner, and Casey Bryant, the director of communications, all saying to me: “Be yourself. Do your thing.”
That night, the Hat Tricks were squaring off with defending league runner-ups, the Elmira Enforcers. I remember just being myself and doing what I do best, while wearing my suit, which I didn’t need to wear again. The Enforcers won the game 8-3, but I remember fans going up to me, some I had known since I was little going back to the Trashers and Whalers days, saying how I did an awesome job.

Patience is Key

The next week, the Hat Tricks took on the then 0-12 Battle Creek Rumble Bees, who would ultimately finish the season at 1-45-2. The original announcer had made it to the game for both games, and I would still stay in the box as the team’s official timekeeper as an off-ice official for the FPHL.
Obviously, I wanted to announce real bad, but I was still getting paid to flip a button on and off and put numbers on the board, and ultimately then control the goal horn. The other announcer then did the next series against Delaware, but couldn’t make the next two games which meant I could do those games before Christmas.
He returned to do the post Christmas game, where I was in the stats booth recording +/- because I had just driven 5 hours from my own hockey game in Maine to work this game as they hadn’t expected me to come. It would be the only time I did that, and the last time that the other announcer worked a game as he left the Hat Tricks for a new job not in sports.

Full Time Professional Announcer

I remember doing back-to-back Colonials and Hat Tricks games along with doing clock and goal horn for the Hat Tricks game. The difference of the Danbury Arena to other arenas is that the penalty box side is under a overhang and that the penalty boxes are open so that there is a walk way to get to the other side of the box which meant I had to block that walkway a few times this season.  Being able to work with my music man Tyler, and my penalty box doorkeeper, former FDNY Tom, was so much fun throughout the season. Although during a game in early February, I had to do both music, PA and clock all by myself, but it was fun as well.

Why am I writing this?

I’m writing this recap, one to show the crazy story of how I became a professional announcer, two because it was so much fun. I might be one of the few people who have loved going to work.
Some fun things happened and I met some cool people, like noted Isles fan and Delaware Broadcaster and Director of Hockey Ops, Mike Basile. I also got to meet some great people on the Hat Tricks like Jonny Ruiz who will always be a favorite, as he is one of the funniest guys you’ll meet, the same with Nicola Levesque, the team’s player-assistant coach.
The Head Coach Billy McCreary comes from a hockey family and is one of the most passionate hockey people I know. Some of the fans have become really close friends and are apart of my Danbury hockey family.
Some things I also did this season was to pick up foam carrots after they were tossed onto the ice. I was able to coordinate the three stars of the game and add a lot and also make people have so much fun during the games as well.
Honestly, this season was so enjoyable and being able to share the experience is something I wanted to do after the season. I thought that I would’ve had to write this later in the year and celebrating a championship, but that is obviously not the case.
Thanks for reading, I know it was a little long but this quarantine life has me spewing out words like crazy. Stay safe out there folks.

Christian Gardecki

A Native of Danbury, CT. Christian is one of the longest tenured Drive4Five writers, Christian Gardecki began writing for Drive4five In May of 2017. Christian covers Minor League Hockey and the Bridgeport Islanders for Drive4Five. Outside of Drive4Five, Christian was the captain of his High School Hockey team and currently attends Hofstra University with a major in journalism. Christian was the play by play broadcaster for the Danbury Westerners summer collegiate baseball team during their 2021 NECBL Championship. Christian also was the Public Address Announcer for the Danbury Hat Tricks Minor Pro Hockey team in the Federal Prospects Hockey League and NAHL Junior team from 2019-21.