Chiefs broadcaster moving to NHL

Syracuse, NY - The Syracuse Chiefs announced today that the National Hockey League's Columbus Blue Jackets have added broadcaster Bob McElligott to the club's broadcast team. He will join veteran play-by-play announcer George Matthews on all games broadcast via the Columbus Blue Jackets Radio Network, including flagship stations WBNS-AM, Sports Radio 1460 The Fan, and WWCD-FM, CD 101.

In addition to his play-by-play duties with the Chiefs, the Somerset, Pennsylvania native also has broadcast the Chiefs weekly radio show, Inside Pitch. In 2007, he served as the radio broadcaster for the Triple A Baseball All-Star Game.

Bob has also been the radio and television voice of the Syracuse Crunch, the current American Hockey League affiliate of the Blue Jackets. He has been a morning sports anchor on radio stations WSYR-AM, WSEN-FM, WFBL-AM and WOLF-FM and has broadcast Syracuse University football and basketball games for ESPN 360, as well as a variety of college and high school sporting events for Time Warner Cable.

McElligott will be replaced on the Chiefs' broadcasts by Jason Benetti, who has been serving as his broadcast partner this season.

Benetti is an SU graduate and has worked with Windy City of the independent Frontier League, as well as the Houston Astros single-A affiliate in Salem, VA. He also serves as the play-by-play voice of High Point University (Division I) basketball and is a pre-game studio host for ISP Sports, working with Florida State over the last two years and providing coverage of the Big East Basketball Tournament.

"We are thrilled that Bob has gotten an opportunity to go to the NHL," said Chiefs' General Manager, John Simone. "We are glad to able to move Jason into our top broadcast position."

McElligott will remain with the Chiefs until late July.