eliminated from Stanley Cup contention. He then began working as a broadcaster full-time in 1986. That year, he was first teamed with play-by-play man Bob Cole on CBC. Together, the pair broadcast 20 Stanley Cup Finals. In the playoffs, when Cole was working with other color commentators, he also worked with Don Wittman, Chris Cuthbert, and Jim Hughson. During this time, he also provided colour commentary for locally televised Toronto Maple Leafs games. During his tenure, he was paired with play-by-play broadcasters Jim Hughson, Ken Daniels, Jiggs McDonald, and Joe Bowen. In addition, Neale occasionally worked on Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames broadcasts. He left the Toronto telecasts after the 2006–07 season to join the Buffalo Sabres broadcast team. As a colour commentator, Neale has covered the 1998, 2002, and 2006 Winter Olympics and the 1996 World Cup of Hockey and 2004 for CBC. He is known for the same sense of humour he was famous for as a coach, often referring to the puck as "..bouncing like an Indian Rubber (lacrosse) ball", as well as for his estimations of exact distances on the ice. Neale spent five seasons, from 2007–08 to 2011–12, as the colour commentator for the Buffalo Sabres serving alongside Rick Jeanneret, a personal friend of Neale's and fellow Foster Hewitt Memorial Award winner. He spent the 2012–13 season as a studio analyst for the Sabres' pregame show and intermission reports. During the 2013–14 season, Neale served as colour commentator for Toronto Maple Leafs broadcasts on Leafs TV. He retired at the end of the 2013–14 season. On March 25, 2022 Neale served as colour commentator for the Buffalo Sabres , once again alongside Rick Jeanneret in a guest appearance, for a game involving the Buffalo Sabres and Washington Capitals during the first and second periods. Honours In 2010, he was elected as an inaugural inductee into the World Hockey Association Hall of Fame in the coaching category. In 2013, Neale received the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award and thus was honored by the Hockey Hall of Fame. Personal life Neale grew up in Sarnia, Ontario and moved to East Amherst, New York in 1987. He has five children. References 1937 births Living people Buffalo Sabres announcers Canadian ice hockey coaches Canadian television sportscasters Detroit Red Wings coaches Edmonton Oilers announcers Foster Hewitt Memorial Award winners Ice hockey people from Ontario Minnesota Fighting Saints coaches National Hockey League