Rod Phillips was a radio broadcaster for 630 CHED

CHED (AM)

CHED is a talk radio station in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, broadcasting at 630 kHz on the AM dial and is owned by Corus Entertainment.The station originally began broadcasting at 1080 AM in 1954, until it moved to its current frequency in 1965....

 in Edmonton, Alberta. Phillips is best known as the play-by-play man of the World Hockey Association

World Hockey Association

The World Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major competition for the National Hockey League since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926...

 and National Hockey League

National Hockey League

The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

's Edmonton Oilers

Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....

 since 1973, succeeding longtime Edmonton Eskimos

Edmonton Eskimos

The Edmonton Eskimos are a Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. They currently play in the West Division of the Canadian Football League . Edmonton is currently the third-youngest franchise in the CFL, although there were clubs with the name Edmonton Eskimos as early as 1895...

 broadcaster Bryan Hall

Bryan Hall

Bryan Hall nicknamed "Hallsy", is a Canadian radio presenter and retired radio play-by-play broadcaster for the Edmonton Eskimos on 630 CHED in Edmonton, Alberta....

 despite having no experience in the field. He is most famous for his loud, long scream of "scoooooooooores!!!!!", considered a classic for Oilers fans. Many fans attending games brought their radios to Rexall Place

Rexall Place

Rexall Place is an indoor arena in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada situated on the north side of Northlands. It is currently the home to the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League, the Edmonton Rush of the National Lacrosse League and the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL...

 to listen to his broadcasts, and many people watching games on television turned down the sound to listen to his coverage. In 2003, Phillips received the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award

Foster Hewitt Memorial Award

The Foster Hewitt Memorial Award is an award named after Foster Hewitt and presented by the Hockey Hall of Fame to members of the radio and television industry who make outstanding contributions to their profession and the game of ice hockey during their broadcasting career...

, and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame

Hockey Hall of Fame

The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...

.

Prior to being a hockey broadcaster, Phillips hosted Edmonton's first-ever late-night television show in 1967.

Rod Phillips is the uncle of Ottawa Senators

Ottawa Senators

The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

 defenceman Chris Phillips

Chris Phillips

Chris Phillips is a Canadian professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League . He has been a member of the Ottawa Senators for his entire career, which began with the 1997–98 season. He also serves as their alternate captain and is regarded...

.

Phillips announced his retirement on May 28, 2010. Although retired, he still broadcast 10 more games of the 2010-2011 season, referred to as a "farewell tour" and dubbed "Rod's Classics". These ten games included the Oilers greatest rivals: Calgary Flames

Calgary Flames

The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...

, Detroit Red Wings

Detroit Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...

, Phoenix Coyotes

Phoenix Coyotes

The Phoenix Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in Glendale, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their home games at Jobing.com Arena....

 née Winnipeg Jets, Montreal Canadiens

Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...

, New York Islanders

New York Islanders

The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

, Dallas Stars

Dallas Stars

The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...

, Boston Bruins

Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...

, Colorado Avalanche

Colorado Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise...

, Philadelphia Flyers

Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

, and Los Angeles Kings

Los Angeles Kings

The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...

, in that order.

Rod called his 3,542nd and final game on March 29, 2011, officially marking his retirement. During a pre-game ceremony before the game, the Edmonton Oilers honored the Hockey Hall of Famer with a banner marked not with a sweater number, but, rather, the number 3,542 which references the number of games he called for the Oilers.

Rod Phillips signed off his final game the way he always did, albeit slightly differently: "Good night, and goodbye, from Rexall Place in Edmonton!"

On-air durability

Well known for his on-air durability, Phillips once even tried to call a game while suffering a bleeding nose so bad that it blurred his vision and was known to call games even while sick with severe colds. Phillips had only missed 9 periods of Oilers hockey - two full games missed due to illness and three first periods missed after participating in on-ice ceremonies - until November 2008, when he missed a 7 game road trip only after being banned from flying by his doctors due to an ear infection. At the time, Phillips said that felt that he was 'letting people down.' Bob Stauffer, the regular color commentator, filled in for him on during the road trip, an admirable performance which led many to speculate Stauffer would be Phillips' eventual replacement. Upon Phillips' retirement, Jack Michaels was named as his replacement.