Dave Strader wins Foster Hewitt Memorial Award

Dave Strader, who is calling games again after missing time while fighting cancer earlier in the season, has been named the winner of the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award for outstanding contributions as a hockey broadcaster.
Strader was diagnosed with bile duct cancer in May but returned as television play-by-play announcer for the Dallas Stars and NBC Sports in February.

His 38-year career began in 1979 with the Adirondack Red Wings of the American Hockey League. He's also worked for the Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers and Arizona Coyotes, as well as at ESPN, ABC and NBC.
"Dave is extremely worthy of this distinction as his body of work, both locally and nationally, has thrilled millions of hockey fans all around North America and Europe," said Chuck Kaiton, president of the NHL Broadcasters' Association, whose members voted on the award. "He is a very deserving winner of the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award, and the NHL Broadcasters' Association is proud to have him represent us."

It also was announced that long-time hockey writer Cam Cole has been named the winner of the Elmer Ferguson Award for excellence in hockey journalism.
Cole retired in 2016 after a 41-year career that saw him cover the Edmonton Oilers dynasty as the columnist at the Edmonton Journal, as well work at the National Post in Toronto and the Vancouver Sun. He covered more than 30 Stanley Cup Final series and 16 Olympics.

"For 20 years I have had the pleasure of calling Cam Cole co-worker, colleague and best of all a friend and couldn't imagine a more worthy recipient of the 2017 Elmer Ferguson Award," said Scott Burnside, president of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association, which voted on the award. "Cam's elegant and thoughtful prose has long been savored by fans of all sports but at the heart of it Cam's always been a hockey guy chronicling the rise of the Edmonton Oilers in the 1980s and sharing his unique perspective on the sport covering 30 Stanley Cup Finals. Blessed with a wry wit and a graceful way of conveying even the most pointed criticism, Cam is widely regarded as one of the greatest Canadian sports writers of all time. You'll get no argument from this quarter."
Strader and Cole will be recognized at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto as Media Honorees. They will be honored during the 2017 Hockey Hall of Fame induction weekend Nov. 10-13.
The 2017 Hockey Hall of Fame inductees will be announced June 26.