In hockey, there are very few things as iconic as the NHL on ESPN theme. “Brass Bonanza” — the Hartford Whalers goal song — might be a close runner up, but as nostalgia goes, the NHL on ESPN theme takes the cake.
The 2021-22 NHL season officially began on Tuesday and for the first time in nearly 17 years, hockey is back on ESPN! NBC is out as the NHL’s primary rights holder and in are ESPN and Turner Sports for the next seven years. Before puck drop between the NHL’s opening game between the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions Tampa Bay Lightning and the Pittsburgh Penguins, ESPN paid homage to its roots with an intro video highlighting the making of the iconic theme tune.
Narrated by mega hockey fan Justin Bieber, this six minute tribute to one of the best sports themes in history will give you chills.
It's the soundtrack to some of hockey's most iconic moments 🏒
As the ESPN @NHL theme song we all love returns tonight for the first time in 17 years, @justinbieber takes a look at how it all came to be. pic.twitter.com/Peq6n1GQoG
— ESPN (@espn) October 12, 2021
I want to run through a brick wall, folks. Equating music and hockey makes so much sense, as any hockey fan knows there’s a musical quality to the sport with the sounds of the puck’s movements and the skates on the ice.
Centering this intro video around the theme tune’s composer Bob Christianson is a brilliant move, as you hear him perfect the iconic tune and add its iconic elements in real time. Plus, it’s great to see the stars of the game reacting with such joy to hearing a theme of a generation.
And the ending? With the full orchestra playing the theme full blast after ESPN analyst Barry Melrose passes the baton back to Christianson? Pure poetic perfection.
Bravo ESPN, hockey is finally home.
