Today In NHL History - Buble and Shorthouse Sing

On August 20th in 2010, Vancouver Canucks superfan Michael Bublé and play-by-play personality John Shorthouse joined the ranks of Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, and Frank Sinatra tweaking Bob Hope's rendition of the 1938 Academy Award winning classic "Thanks for the Memory", this time in a touching tribute to the club's retiring colorman Tom Larscheid during a hometown sold-out stop on Bublé's Crazy Love tour.

Thanks for the memories
The dinners on the plane, all that weight I gained
Wondering when this hockey team would win another game
How lovely it was

Thanks for the memories
Pavel Bure's blazing speed, Henrik's perfect feeds
Bingo Bango Bongo, when Luongo left his feet
How lovely it was

Thanks for the memories
Your leaving is the pits, we'll all miss you to bits
My favorite call of all, was when you called bullshit
Thanks for the memories

The seeds of the performance were sewn when Bublé shared the broadcast booth with Shorthouse coloring a 7-3 drubbing of the Chicago Blackhawks and the Kerrisdale kid accepted the Burnaby crooner's invitation to one day join him onstage. Eighteen months later Shorty made good on his postgame promise producing this dazzling duet.
Clearly more comfortable calling puck than singing standards, Shorthouse sweated through the serenade like a pro. The memorable performance was followed by a succinct video salutation to the 33 year veteran voice, climaxing with an appearance by the living legend himself.

In the end, it was Bublé who found the perfect words to memorialize the man: "you're a beauty Tom, you're a beauty." A fitting farewell to a beloved member of the Canucks family. How lovely it was, indeed.

That's today in NHL history.