I am not a big fan of Jack's broadcasting, but as I have said before, wish him well. No need to slander a person who has an ailment.
NESN UPDATE - NESN’s Jack Edwards announces retirement
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Donnie Shulzhoffer
Rocket Surgery
What ailment? He has just recently stated he is healthy. And no one is slandering him. Just pointing out the obvious that he has trouble spitting out some words.
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Sheppy
Registered User
I feel like he just tries to be overly perfect in pronouncing names that he kind of tongue ties himself half the time. That's one issue I notice most of the time.
Jacks great. Hope he’s well and around for a long time. Unless Goucher wants to come back.
If people actually read the entire article I cant see how one wouldnt find it sad and scary in a way.
Donnie Shulzhoffer
Rocket Surgery
It is. But the positive for me is that he acknowleges it and is not in denial.
It is sad and scary. I have a vision issue that is hard to describe - the closest thing I can explain it to is when a traffic camera shakes when it is windy. It first happened in 2020 when the first lockdown happened. I have passed every test - MRI, CT scan, numerous types of eye exams, have seen 3 neurologists including a neuro-ophthalmologist. They have no explanation but it is still happening. Terrifying if I let myself think too long about it because I have no idea if it will change for the worst. They tell me is "could" be stress and anxiety because they have no other answer. Four years later....
The brain is a mystery, Jack's case shows that and he has the best looking at his issues. I hope so much that he can recover, I can't imagine the frustration he suffers from every day.
no paywall
Edwards hasn’t discussed the change publicly until now. In part, he says, because his doctors remain mystified about what has happened.
“I did not have some kind of accident,” he says. “I do not have cancer. I don’t have dementia. I haven’t had a stroke. All of that’s been confirmed by Mass. General neurology.
“They’ve done tests that seem like I’m going through some sort of science-fiction scene, but it’s really true. The images of my brain literally reveal nothing. That’s my joke with them.”
Edwards says he has been given no specific diagnosis or medical term for the change. He says he is in “robust” health and grades out as “superior” on intellect tests his doctors have given him.
“It doesn’t fit in any slot,” he says. “There have been a couple of guesses, but they haven’t made a definitive diagnosis and they’ve been working on me for a year and a half. It’s very frustrating, as you can imagine, for me to have this slowdown in my speech.”
Edwards is genuinely hopeful that speech therapy will help him get back to where he wants to be. And if not?
“I’m treating it like an in-season injury, something that’s going to get better,” he says. “If I, or NESN, decide that I’m hurting the product or costing the fans an enjoyable experience, I will say goodbye. But we haven’t had any discussions like that.
“l love my job, but I know that retirement isn’t that far off,” he adds, noting that his retirement plan will be to ski roughly 100 days a year.
“I’m going to turn 67 next month. I hope to make a graceful exit when the day comes.”
NESN’s Jack Edwards opens up about his speech issues, saying he is fine medically and puzzled himself
Jack Edwards, NESN's exclusive voice of the Bruins since 2007, has experienced slow and slurred speech, although he's medically fine.
www.boston.com
Edwards hasn’t discussed the change publicly until now. In part, he says, because his doctors remain mystified about what has happened.
“I did not have some kind of accident,” he says. “I do not have cancer. I don’t have dementia. I haven’t had a stroke. All of that’s been confirmed by Mass. General neurology.
“They’ve done tests that seem like I’m going through some sort of science-fiction scene, but it’s really true. The images of my brain literally reveal nothing. That’s my joke with them.”
Edwards says he has been given no specific diagnosis or medical term for the change. He says he is in “robust” health and grades out as “superior” on intellect tests his doctors have given him.
“It doesn’t fit in any slot,” he says. “There have been a couple of guesses, but they haven’t made a definitive diagnosis and they’ve been working on me for a year and a half. It’s very frustrating, as you can imagine, for me to have this slowdown in my speech.”
Edwards is genuinely hopeful that speech therapy will help him get back to where he wants to be. And if not?
“I’m treating it like an in-season injury, something that’s going to get better,” he says. “If I, or NESN, decide that I’m hurting the product or costing the fans an enjoyable experience, I will say goodbye. But we haven’t had any discussions like that.
“l love my job, but I know that retirement isn’t that far off,” he adds, noting that his retirement plan will be to ski roughly 100 days a year.
“I’m going to turn 67 next month. I hope to make a graceful exit when the day comes.”
“The images of my brain literally reveal nothing. That’s my joke with them.” This is why I love the guy!no paywall
NESN’s Jack Edwards opens up about his speech issues, saying he is fine medically and puzzled himself
Jack Edwards, NESN's exclusive voice of the Bruins since 2007, has experienced slow and slurred speech, although he's medically fine.www.boston.com
Edwards hasn’t discussed the change publicly until now. In part, he says, because his doctors remain mystified about what has happened.
“I did not have some kind of accident,” he says. “I do not have cancer. I don’t have dementia. I haven’t had a stroke. All of that’s been confirmed by Mass. General neurology.
“They’ve done tests that seem like I’m going through some sort of science-fiction scene, but it’s really true. The images of my brain literally reveal nothing. That’s my joke with them.”
Edwards says he has been given no specific diagnosis or medical term for the change. He says he is in “robust” health and grades out as “superior” on intellect tests his doctors have given him.
“It doesn’t fit in any slot,” he says. “There have been a couple of guesses, but they haven’t made a definitive diagnosis and they’ve been working on me for a year and a half. It’s very frustrating, as you can imagine, for me to have this slowdown in my speech.”
Edwards is genuinely hopeful that speech therapy will help him get back to where he wants to be. And if not?
“I’m treating it like an in-season injury, something that’s going to get better,” he says. “If I, or NESN, decide that I’m hurting the product or costing the fans an enjoyable experience, I will say goodbye. But we haven’t had any discussions like that.
“l love my job, but I know that retirement isn’t that far off,” he adds, noting that his retirement plan will be to ski roughly 100 days a year.
“I’m going to turn 67 next month. I hope to make a graceful exit when the day comes.”
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LSCII
Cup driven
I’m happy they haven’t found any medical issues related to why he’s struggling with his speech yet. I suspect they will given enough time, but he’s at least getting professional help with it. Now that being said, while I feel for him, he clearly isn’t up to the task at this point and he needs to step aside. If I were working as a truck driver and couldn’t load my truck any more, it’s not like I’d get to keep my job. Same thing if I was a surgeon but developed a tremor. I get folks hate to see people lose their jobs over things that are beyond their control but that’s life. He should take the time now to figure it out and heal, then come back. It’s what’s fair to him, the team, the organization, and the fans.
McGarnagle
Yes.
- Aug 5, 2017
- 30,782
- 42,429
I'm glad he hasn't had any kind of stroke or dementia.
I think it's just a case of getting old. Happens to everyone. Zdeno Chara aged out of his role and couldn't do at age 44 what he was doing at 28. He had to step aside and retire gracefully. For Jack, the mouth and vocal cords aren't keeping up with the brain like they used to.
As the cliche goes, Father Time is undefeated. I'm just glad he's in good health.
I think it's just a case of getting old. Happens to everyone. Zdeno Chara aged out of his role and couldn't do at age 44 what he was doing at 28. He had to step aside and retire gracefully. For Jack, the mouth and vocal cords aren't keeping up with the brain like they used to.
As the cliche goes, Father Time is undefeated. I'm just glad he's in good health.
UncleRico
Registered User
- May 8, 2017
- 9,525
- 12,512
Beyond thrilled for him and his family that he is in fact healthy. I hope he lives a long and healthy rest of his life.
It’s just simply the end of his commentating rope. Go enjoy life Jack!
It’s just simply the end of his commentating rope. Go enjoy life Jack!
Donnie Shulzhoffer
Rocket Surgery
If NESN moves on from Jack I would love to see the most qualified person get the opprotunity.
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LSCII
Cup driven
I'll settle for anyone that can competently call a game at this point. I've never been a big fan of Jack and his prewritten, hack diatribes, but now having the added negative of hearing him struggle just to get the words out has really impacted my enjoyment of the games.
Bearclaw
Registered User
If this really is the end for Jack, I'm still holding out hope that we can somehow lure Goucher back (fat chance, I know).
I feel so badly for the guy, but I'm glad he's healthy as far as he knows. I'm sure it's frustrating and scary as hell.
I've always liked Jack for what he is, though his rants do wear on me. When he's just calling the game is when he's at his best (current issues notwithstanding).
I hope he gets to go out on his terms, but I also hope it's after this season. Zero offense to him, but I think it's time.
I've always liked Jack for what he is, though his rants do wear on me. When he's just calling the game is when he's at his best (current issues notwithstanding).
I hope he gets to go out on his terms, but I also hope it's after this season. Zero offense to him, but I think it's time.
Over the volcano
Registered User
Sounds like he's got the yips. Hope going public about it relieves some of the pressure. Sounded better tonight.
BruinsFan37
Registered User
- Jun 26, 2015
- 1,692
- 1,947
Cusack was 76 when he called this game (10 years older than Jack is now):
It's not just age, whatever it is, I hope they figure it out soon, for Jack's sake.
It's not just age, whatever it is, I hope they figure it out soon, for Jack's sake.
Time for him to be fair to his employer and the fans, and step away gracefully. Call it temporary while he continues with speech therapy and testing to see if he can get it back, but if you can’t perform the basic requirements of your job, you have to make the mature decision to step away.
I wonder if they have scanned Jack for Prion Disease, which manifests in humans as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a rapidly progressive, invariably fatal neurodegenerative disorder believed to be caused by an abnormal isoform of a cellular glycoprotein known as the prion protein. CJD occurs worldwide and the estimated annual incidence in many countries, including the United States, has been reported to be about one case per million population.
Common symptoms of prion disease include:
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a rapidly progressive, invariably fatal neurodegenerative disorder believed to be caused by an abnormal isoform of a cellular glycoprotein known as the prion protein. CJD occurs worldwide and the estimated annual incidence in many countries, including the United States, has been reported to be about one case per million population.
Common symptoms of prion disease include:
- difficulties with thinking, memory, and judgment
- personality changes like apathy, agitation, and depression
- confusion or disorientation
- involuntary muscle spasms (myoclonus)
- loss of coordination (ataxia)
- trouble sleeping (insomnia)
- difficult or slurred speech
- impaired vision or blindness
CharasLazyWrister
Registered User
Well, I take back what I said conjecturing that NESN was "doing nothing about the situation". If Jack is going through speech therapy, that's most certainly something.
Sad for him.
Sad for him.
- Apr 30, 2010
- 26,122
- 17,385
As I was driving home from celebrating my moms bday in Maine this morning, Humpin Around by Bobby Brown came on 90s on 9 and I was reminded of the New Jack Edwards bit on Toucher and Rich in 2011. Peak Jack, IMO.
