The History (2022-Present)
Another year, another Broadcaster Bracket. For those of you unfamiliar, the DIIIHockeyNews Broadcaster Bracket was started back in 2022 as a random idea that was mentioned during a late-night Twitter (now X) discussion of ideas for brackets or poll concepts. When broadcasters were mentioned, I, as well as others thought it was a great idea since at the D-III level and many other levels, the broadcasters tend to be pushed to the side in terms of the game itself. D-III hockey has many longtime broadcasters and also many young, up-and-coming students, who’re trying to set the framework for their future careers. Their work shouldn’t go unnoticed.
This year, we would like to thank our sponsors as we had four regions represented:
DIIIHockeyNews.com – (@DIIIHockeyNews)
CNYHockeyReport.com – (@CNYHockeyReport)
d3photography.com – (@d3photography)
The first-ever bracket quickly gained steam, I posted a sign-up form at about 12:30 or 1am ET with a dentist appointment at 7am that day. By the time I was done and back home checking the form for the heck of it, it had 36 entries… not knowing what to do, I capped it at 40 because I had legitimately no clue how I would even run this thing… So, after some thinking, we got the entries, made the bracket, and found out how to do it. The method was simple, have everyone submit their clip(s) they would like used, make a Twitter poll for 24 hours, and boom. This year, we expanded to Instagram as well as now X and saw growth. We saw 25,542 total overall votes this year.
Broadcasters can make or break a game. There’s been many times where myself and I’m sure many of you reading, have watched your favorite sports team on local television and you have your classic hometown favorite broadcaster you’ve all grown to love and appreciate. However, when your team hits the road or is on a nationally-broadcasted game, you’re given someone new or by default based on the owner of the rights to that particular time slot and/or network. That experience can drastically change your thoughts on the game, whether they’re allegedly ‘biased’, or ‘annoying’, or you simply enjoy hearing your hometown broadcaster.
It seems like for many at the lower levels of sports, it can be a thankless job at times, but that’s the problem. It’s not thankless, people just tend to not appreciate your great work until they’re given no-so-great-work… For parents, you’re the voice they hear when their kid is living out their dream at the school they decided to go to primarily for that reason. You can make their great moments great and their lesser moments less painful.
For me, longtime Hall of Fame broadcaster Rick Jeanneret (7.23.1942 – 8.17.2023) of the Buffalo Sabres made me become a Sabres fan, the first ever team I became infatuated with. I would tune in to games simply because I wanted to hear him go wild, his life was the Buffalo Sabres… I think many others can share that same experience when it comes to their own teams and/or broadcasters they look up to/enjoy hearing. The broadcaster bracket has become one of my favorite aspects of this account / website, as people have gotten to network with some they may not have ever spoken to otherwise, some have gotten paid opportunities from this, and many have gotten recognition from other local news sources as well regarding their participation / success in the bracket.
Broadcasters are the poets of the game—turning fleeting moments into timeless memories, giving voice to the silence between heartbeats when everything in sport hangs in the balance.
Evan Alfano wins the 2025 Broadcaster Bracket
(Logo via Plymouth State Athletics)
This was Evan Alfano of Plymouth State University’s (@easports0151) third year in the bracket, he had not made it out of the 2nd round prior to this year, here’s what he had to say regarding his victory:
“I’m so humbled to be the champion this year! This was my third year in the bracket and prior to this year, I hadn’t made it past the second round until now!! It’s always so much fun to be able to go up against fellow broadcasters from around the country! It’s also a great way to be able to connect with other people in the industry who share the same passion!
This really does mean a lot to me! Ice Hockey is truly my favorite sport to call! I can’t believe the amount of support I’ve received from family, friends, members of the Plymouth State community, etc… Like every broadcaster, I just want to try and make each game as exciting as possible for all family and friends who are watching from home! I’ve been so lucky to watch two great Plymouth State teams this year! A special shoutout to the women’s team, who hoisted their first-ever conference championship [MASCAC] this season! Again, a million thank you’s to everyone who supported me throughout!”
Evan Alfano of Plymouth State University (Photo via Evan Alfano)
I decided to ask the two people who would have a fairly good sample size of Evan’s calls, Men’s Hockey Head Coach Craig Russell & former Men’s Ice Hockey Captain, now Women’s Hockey Head Coach—Ben Chipman.
Coach Russell had this to say:
“Pumped for Evan! He works so hard and prepares for all of our sports in the department with such care and detail. We’re so lucky to have him on our team and can’t think of a better way to honor him than for him to win the broadcaster bracket challenge!”
Coach Chipman gave his thoughts:
“Evan Alfano is the consummate professional. His passion for broadcasting is consistently shown in the way he announces every play, never missing a detail, nor making a mistake. Both as a player and coach, I’ve had the pleasure to have Evan call our games. He has earned all the recognition he deserved and we are so lucky to call him a part of the Plymouth State Athletic Family”.
As mentioned earlier by Evan, here’s the winning goal call for the Women’s Hockey Team winning the first-ever MASCAC Women’s Hockey Championship in overtime #4 (126:54)!
Plymouth State defeats Rivier in the 2nd longest women’s D-III hockey game ever (126:54). (Video owned by Plymouth State Athletics / Little East Network)
Evan’s round-by-round totals: 3,321 total votes
Defeated Wade Bates of Marian ~ 534-194
Defeated Jordan Modjeski of Gustavus ~ 429-359
Defeated Josh Bracken of Curry ~ 668-664
Defeated Jon Smits of Wisconsin-River Falls ~ 836-582
Defeated Evan Harrington ~ 854-586
Congratulations to our 2025 winner Evan, here’s your past champions & runner-ups listed below!
Past Champions:
2022: Matt Meisenbacher – UMass-Boston
2023: Kevin Haas – Northland
2024: Ray Biggs – Utica
2025: Evan Alfano – Plymouth State
Past Runner Ups:
2022: Jon Smits – Wisconsin-River Falls
2023: Josh Powers – St. Olaf
2024: Josh Powers – St. Olaf
2025: Evan Harrington – Buffalo State
