Did Eddie Olczyk retire from broadcasting? Why did Eddie Olczyk retire?

Eddie Olczyk did not retire from broadcasting, but instead joined the Seattle Kraken broadcast team in August 2022 as a television analyst, bringing his 15-year career with the Chicago Blackhawks to an end.

Olczyk told the Athletic after the switch:

“It was not an easy decision. But Chicago is home, it’ll always be home.”

Though the specifics of Olczyk’s switch are unknown, it’s very likely that he made the change to pursue other opportunities. “But I just felt like I needed to take a step back and pursue other opportunities that presented itself,” he said to The Athletic.

However, a team source told The Athletic that the Blackhawks’ leadership was “surprised” by the news after it was published by The Athletic.

According to the source, the Blackhawks offered a “multiyear contract extension” and thought they had a verbal agreement “weeks ago.”

Because of Olczyk’s national duties with TNT and NBC’s horse-racing coverage, the deal offered him a higher per-game rate but did not include all 82 games.