51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø

April 25, 2025

April might be exam season, but it’s also a big sporting month. The Stanley Cup finals begin, the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) hosts the majority of their playoff games, and the NFL draft takes place. This year, all these events have a 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø connection. We sat down with Dan Polischuk (BA ‘10) – colour commentator for Kitchener Rangers’ home games and 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø Athletics Coordinator, Sports Information and Communications – to talk about the Kitchener Rangers, the Toronto Maple Leafs, and 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø quarterback Taylor Elgersma’s shot at being drafted in the NFL. 

How long have you been calling the Kitchener Rangers’ home games for Rogers TV broadcasts? Can you tell us how you got started?  

I've been the colour commentator for Kitchener Rangers broadcasts on Rogers TV for the past three seasons and for five seasons total since the start of the 2017/18 campaign. 

My role with the station evolved from doing play-by-play for 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø football, hockey and soccer webcasts, which began in 2009 shortly before I graduated.   

I first started as a fill-in host on the Rangers broadcasts in 2016 and, with the trust and guidance of some amazing producers and fellow broadcasters, was eventually able to follow in the footsteps of some legendary commentators and land a seat in the broadcast booth. 

The Rangers are just the sixth team in OHL history to win a playoff series after trailing 3-0. They won game seven in overtime against the Windsor Spitfires on April 22. To you, what was the most impressive thing about that series? 

What impressed me the most about the team's ability to make that dramatic comeback was the maturity and tenacity they showed – especially at their young age – after going down three games to none.   

There seemed to be a different kind of confidence they exuded, compared to other teams who have been in a similar position. From the coaching staff down to all the players, the outlook was to take things one period and game at a time, which ultimately helped put them in the right frame of mind - making a monumental task more manageable. 

They were united in that mindset and belief, which ultimately made a seemingly impossible scenario the actual outcome.   

Did you grow up playing hockey?  

For a number of reasons, I didn't play hockey growing up, but I fell in love with the sport when I was about seven years old.   

My grandparents immigrated to Kitchener from Ukraine at the end of the Second World War and Toronto Maple Leafs hockey was my grandpa’s favourite. That passion trickled down to me and turned into something we always bonded over.   

Whether it was talking about the game that just happened or the one coming up, there wasn't a conversation where the blue and white weren't brought up.   

The interest in who they would be facing each game night just started the ball rolling in what later became my hockey fandom. 

What’s your favourite part of being involved in calling Rangers games?  

My favourite part is maintaining the connection to a team that has been influential to me in a lot of ways. 

Being born and raised in Kitchener, our dad would take us to games regularly and I would always listen to the legendary Rangers’ broadcaster Don Cameron on the radio – at home or on the car ride from the rink when we would need to "beat the traffic". That piqued my interest in broadcasting.  

Now, being in the same booth after legends like Mr. Cameron and Gary Doyle – who I feel fortunate to call a good friend and mentor now – while working with my wife Erin and our two daughters Sophie and Gracie in the seats at the Aud, and them watching "daddy" on TV is just so special to me.  

Plus, it’s so much fun. My broadcast partners Sean Furfaro and Jason Hagholm, our producer Ryan Giesbrecht, and the entire crew make it such a blast coming to the rink that, win or lose, I leave with a smile on my face. 

The Rangers will face the London Knights in round two starting Friday, April 25. The Knights won the last game against the Rangers in the regular season. What do you expect for that series? 

I expect the series against London to be electric! London will certainly come in as the favourite but Kitchener has been the underdog all season long. There were skeptics who were saying the Rangers wouldn't even make the playoffs in what many considered to be a "rebuild" season. 

The difference for me is in the crease where the Rangers have the best goaltender in the Canadian Hockey League in Jackson Parsons. He has the ability to "steal" games, which he did with a pair of shutouts against Windsor. Can he do that against the highest scoring team in the league this past season?  

If Kitchener plays within their system, gets contributions from all four lines, and stays disciplined by not letting the Knights get under their skin, they've got a solid chance to shock the junior hockey world again. 

I'm taking the Rangers in seven games.  

The series begins Friday, April 25 in London and comes to The Aud on Monday, April 28 for Game 3. 

Your role at 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø is Coordinator, Sports Information and Communications. You work on a variety of different things, like writing stories, creating social content, hiring students, and website updates. What do you find most enjoyable?  

I absolutely get the most fulfillment providing a platform for my student staff to grow their creative skill set, whether it's producing amazing video and graphics or writing engaging game recaps and alumni features.  

I'm also proud of the focus put on providing opportunities for women in sport. Each of our team's five student writers and team lead are women, along with an amazingly talented graphic designer and videographer. As a full-on "girl dad", I feel an obligation to do my part in creating pathways for the individuals I work with now, and for them down the road. 

We recently posted a and his new audiobook/podcast detailing his 60-year journey as a Toronto Maple Leafs fan. How are you feeling as a Leafs fan watching the Stanley Cup playoffs?  

To this day, I remain a die-hard Leafs fan, but I'm definitely a pessimistic one. I've just invested too much time, money, and tears (when I was younger!) in my 39 years on this planet to consider not to stick with them. 

I'm enjoying the renewed playoff rivalry with the Battle of Ontario, and with Craig Berube at the helm, I feel like there's something special brewing this postseason. Then again, I've thought that plenty of times since 1994! 

Pivoting to football because how can we not after the recording-breaking season 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø had? You had a front row seat to 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø’s Yates Cup win this past fall. What do you think Taylor’s chances are of getting drafted to the NFL during their draft April 24-26? And what was your favourite part of the football season? 

I believe that Taylor will continue re-writing the program's record books and become the first Golden Hawks football player to be drafted by an NFL team. My guess is somewhere between the fifth and seventh rounds during Saturday's third day of the draft but, even at that later stage, what a monumental moment that would be for Taylor, 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø, and aspiring professional football players across the country. 

My favourite part of the season was truly seeing (and recording) the reaction of our The joy and happiness were just on another level.  

Leading up to the game and ultimately seeing the peak of it, the renewed passion for everything Golden Hawks was like nothing I’ve seen since I was a student and celebrated our last Vanier Cup win in 2005.  

One last question. 51³ÉÈ˸£ÀûÍø is a proud supporter of Canadian Blood Services (CBS), and you’ve donated blood more than 50 times (!). What led you to donate the first time – and to continue donating so many times?  

I'll stick with the sports theme and explain it in this way: you trade a little bit of blood in such a short period of time, but the return is so huge that you could potentially help save someone's life. That's a deal I'll make every day of the week and twice on Sunday.  

It all started randomly when I noticed an article in the local newspaper which touched on someone needing a serious amount of blood just to survive a car accident. For some reason, my thinking flipped to "What if that was someone close to me? Wouldn't I want them to have access to all the resources available to get them through such a traumatic event?" After researching CBS and the process of donating, I tried it and never looked back.   

The staff are all so incredible. Plus, chocolate chip cookies are my kryptonite and CBS seem to know this by always keeping a good stash of them available for the post-donation snack.