Barry Melrose, a longtime NHL analyst for ESPN and former professional hockey player and coach, is retiring from broadcasting after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, he announced Tuesday. “I’ve had over 50 extraordinary years playing, coaching and analyzing the world’s greatest game, hockey,” he said in a statement, according to ESPN. “It’s now time to hang up my skates and focus on my health, my family, including my supportive wife Cindy, and whatever comes next.” The 67-year-old added that he was “beyond grateful” for his athletic career and his near-three-decade run at ESPN, saying that he would “now be cheering for you from the stands.” Before signing with the network in 1996, Melrose coached the Los Angeles Kings, leading the team to the Stanley Cup Final in his first season in 1993. He returned briefly to the bench in 2008, coaching the Tampa Bay Lightning for 16 games before making his way back to ESPN. In a statement, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman called Melrose “a unique, one-of-a-kind person” and said that “hockey on ESPN won’t be the same without him.”
