Alan Strachan is a Canadian sports author and journalist. A former sports columnist for ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'', ''

Montreal Gazette ''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the only English-language daily newspape ...

'', and ''

Toronto Sun The ''Toronto Sun'' is an English-language tabloid format, tabloid newspaper published daily in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The newspaper is one of several ''Sun'' tabloids published by Postmedia Network. The newspaper's offices are located at Pos ...

'', he won the

Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award The Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award is an accolade presented annually to a print newspaper columnist or reporter in recognition of their achievements covering the game of ice hockey. The award is "to recognize distinguished members of the newspap ...

in 1993 and is a member of the media section of the

Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and National Hockey Le ...

. He is also a former panelist on ''

Hockey Night in Canada ''Hockey Night in Canada'' (often abbreviated ''Hockey Night'' or ''HNiC'') is a long-running program of broadcast ice hockey play-by-play coverage in Canada. With roots in pioneering hockey coverage on private radio stations as early as 1923, ...

'' and analyst on

The Score The Score may refer to: Films and television * The Score (1978 film), ''The Score'' (1978 film), a 1978 Swedish film, released in Sweden as ''Lyftet'' * The Score (2001 film), ''The Score'' (2001 film), a 2001 crime drama film starring Robert De Ni ...

Career

Strachan joined the

as a journalist in 1973 while also working as a radio show host in Montreal. While working for the Gazette, Strachan was promoted to sports editor. He subsequently hired Glenn Cole in 1977 to fill his former position. In 1980, Strachan joined ''

'' where he was the 1993 recipient of the

. He was likewise named a lifetime member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association. A year later, in 1994, Strachan was hired by the

. He worked for the Sun until 2006 when it was announced his contract would not be renewed. Throughout his career, Strachan worked a panellist on

. This was cut short in 2005 when he was fired from Hockey Night in Canada's Satellite Hot Stove panel. Although the full reason was unknown, Strachan stated it was because "they said it was time to change direction." This did not deter Strachan from continuing his sports journalism career. In 2008, Strachan collaborated with Don Cherry to write ''Don Cherry's Hockey Stories and Stuff.'' Shortly after the release of his book ''Why The Leafs Suck: And How They Can Be Fixed'' in 2009, Strachan was let go from Hockey Night in Canada a second time. CBC stated this was because the cover of the book portrayed Strachan with a Hockey Night in Canada tag without permission. He subsequently moved back to St. Andrews, New Brunswick before Thanksgiving. In 2010, Strachan published a book titled "''I am not making this up: my favourite hockey stories from a career covering the game''" which detailed untold stories from his career in hockey journalism. A year later, his book "''Over the line: wrist shots, slap shots, and five-minute majors''" published more insight into inside stories and anecdotes from his career.

Publications

The following is a list of publications: *''100 years of hockey: the chronicle of a century on ice'' (1999) *''Why the Leafs suck and how they can be fixed'' (2009) *''Don Cherry's Hockey Stories and Stuff'' (2009) *''I am not making this up: my favourite hockey stories from a career covering the game'' (2010) *''Over the line: wrist shots, slap shots, and five-minute majors'' (2011) *''99, Gretzky: his game, his story'' (2013)

Personal life

Strachan is married and has two sons. Despite his career in hockey, Strachan stated his wife kept their son out of hockey due to the violence.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Strachan, Al Living people Canadian sports journalists Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award recipients Journalists from Toronto The Globe and Mail people Montreal Gazette people Year of birth missing (living people)