Gene Principe

Eugenio Principe (born February 26, 1967) Principe attended Austin O'Brien Catholic High School and became interested in sports broadcasting as a teenager. After a year and a half in Grande Prairie, he became a reporter for CFCN-TV in Lethbridge, eventually transitioning to a full-time sports reporter in the summer of 1990.

Principe later moved to Global-owned CKND-TV in Winnipeg, In 1995, he was hired by Global to work for CIII-TV in Toronto, where he continued to host Sportsline. Given the opportunity to cover his hometown team, Principe returned to Edmonton in August 1998 to become the host of CKEM-TV's Edmonton Oilers broadcasts, as well as its evening sports show. In March 2002, he called his first two National Hockey League games as a play-by-play announcer when he filled in for regular announcer Kevin Quinn. Principe travelled to Dubai in 2005 to film a documentary covering the Dubai Mighty Camels of the Emirates Ice Hockey League.

During the 2006 Stanley Cup playoffs, Principe was scheduled to cover only the first round matchup between the Oilers and the Detroit Red Wings, before leaving for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, since the Oilers were unlikely to advance. However, after the Oilers won the series, he was held back to cover the second round. When the Oilers advanced to the third round, Principe was given a choice of staying to cover the Oilers, which he was already "pretty entrenched in" and where "fellow Italian Fernando Pisani was lighting it up", or fly to Germany to cover the World Cup, which was a "pure dream", especially with the Italy national team in contention for the cup and his wife being German.

Use of puns As a host of Oilers broadcasts, Principe is well known for his use of puns and skits during his pre-game segments. According to Principe, he was inspired by fellow broadcaster Ron MacLean, and began using puns as a way to uplift fans during the 2006–07 NHL season. The season followed the Oilers' defeat in the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals, and included a stretch where the Oilers had won only two of their last 20 games. That same year, during a pre-game commemoration of the Edmonton Police Service's 125th anniversary, Principe made several police-related puns, before being handcuffed by an officer, who informed him that he had exceeded the "legal limit for puns" and was being sent to the "pun-itentiary".

Personal life Principe is married to Karen Principe , who he met during his time in Winnipeg; together they have three children.