NEW YORK (NewsNation Now) — After 47 years behind the mic as a play-by-play sportscaster for professional hockey, Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick is calling it a career.

Emrick got his start calling games for Bowling Green State University (Ohio) in 1971 before moving up to the NHL ranks a decade later.

He remains the only broadcaster ever inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, has won eight Sports Emmy Awards, and has spent the past 15 seasons as the lead play-by-play announcer for NBC Sports.

“It was 50 years ago this fall, with pen and pad in hand at old Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, I got my first chance to cover the National Hockey League. Gordie Howe was a Red Wing, Bobby Hull was a Blackhawk, Bobby Orr was a Bruin,” said Emrick. “A time like this makes me recall that we have seen a lot together. The biggest crowd ever, 105,000 at Michigan Stadium. A gold medal game that required overtime between the two North American powers in Vancouver.”

“Things change over 50 years, but much of what I love is unchanged from then to now and into the years ahead,” he added. “I still get chills seeing the Stanley Cup. I especially love when the horn sounds, and one team has won and another team hasn’t, all hostility can dissolve into the timeless great display of sportsmanship – the handshake line. I leave you with sincere thanks.”