Steve Mears (born January 22, 1980) is the television play-by-play voice of the

Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. The Blue Jackets compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern C ...

. He has also called select NHL games for TNT since 2024. He previously delivered play-by-play commentary for the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

Personal life and education

Steve Mears grew up in

Murrysville, Pennsylvania Murrysville is a Home rule municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule municipality in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 21,006 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Greater Pittsburgh, Pit ...

, where he attended Franklin Regional High School. He then attended college at

Bowling Green State University Bowling Green State University (BGSU) is a Public university, public research university in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. The main academic and residential campus is south of Toledo, Ohio. The university has nationally recognized progr ...

where he was the play-by-play voice of the BGSU Falcons. He graduated from Bowling Green State University in 2002. Steve married his wife Kirstin in 2022 and they welcomed their first child, Carter, in 2023.

Career

Central Hockey League and NHL radio broadcasting

Mears served as director of media relations and broadcasting for the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs of the

Central Hockey League The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...

from 2002 to 2006. He was named the Central Hockey League Broadcaster of the Year in 2005. In the summer of 2006, Mears accepted a position as the radio play-by-play broadcaster for the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (N ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

. Mears made his

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

broadcasting debut on October 5, 2006, during a New York Islanders vs

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are an inactive professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division (1996–1998, 2021–2024) and ...

game. Mears stayed with the Islanders for three seasons before joining the Pittsburgh Penguins Radio Network. He served four seasons with the Penguins, covering their radio and TV game broadcasts, hosting "Penguins Live" on Pittsburgh Penguins 24/7 Radio, and contributing to PensTV on the official team website.

NHL Network

In 2012, Mears made his NHL Network debut when he provided coverage of the 2012 NHL

Stanley Cup Playoffs The Stanley Cup playoffs () is the annual elimination tournament to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, and the league champion of the National Hockey League (NHL). The four-round, best-of-seven tournament is held after the NHL's regular s ...

and Stanley Cup Finals. Mears officially joined the NHL Network team in February 2013 as the co-host of NHL Now. During the hockey season, Mears hosted NHL Now! from 4:00–6:00 PM EST Monday-Friday on the NHL Network alongside E.J. Hradek and Michelle McMahon. Aside from NHL Now, Mears also anchored video segments for NHL.com and called play-by-play for the IIHF World Junior Championships.

Pittsburgh Penguins

On May 16, 2017, Mears was named the play-by-play television announcer for broadcasts on AT&T SportsNet for Pittsburgh Penguins games, replacing Paul Steigerwald. On September 1, 2023, following its acquisition of AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh,

Fenway Sports Group Fenway Sports Group Holdings, LLC (FSG), is an American multinational sports holding conglomerate which owns Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox, Premier League’s Liverpool F.C., Liverpool, National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins, NAS ...

announced that Mears would not return to the TV booth. Fenway then hired the team's play-by-play radio announcer, Josh Getzoff, to replace Mears on the TV broadcasts, while he in turn was then selected by the team to replace Getzoff on radio.

3ICE

Starting with the inaugural 2022 summer season, Mears was the play-by-play announcer for 3ICE on CBS Sports.

Columbus Blue Jackets

Mears was announced as the

television play-by-play announcer on July 2, 2024. He will work with color commentator Jody Shelley on Blue Jackets games being broadcast via Bally Sports Ohio.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mears, Steve 1980 births Living people National Hockey League broadcasters Columbus Blue Jackets announcers Pittsburgh Penguins announcers Bowling Green State University alumni People from Murrysville, Pennsylvania