Report: NY Islanders broadcaster Alan Fuehring is a leading candidate for NHL job

New York Islanders fans are blessed to have Brendan Burke as their TV play-by-play man on MSG Networks but are also thankful that when Burke has missed the action, the duty of calling their team's games has fallen into the talented hands (and voice) of Alan Fuehring.

Fuehring has served as the primary broadcast voice of the AHL Bridgeport Islanders since 2016 but has been granted several opportunities in recent seasons to show he is more than capable of handling NHL duties for a prolonged stretch. Whether it has been due to Burke's NHL on TNT commitments or the occasional illness, Fuehring has been ready to step in seamlessly and deliver a professional broadcast while showing good chemistry with Butch Goring and Shannon Hogan.

Now, it appears that 33-year-old Fuehring could be on the verge of landing a full-time NHL play-by-play position. According to Michael Arace of The Columbus Dispatch via The CBJ Center on X, Fuehring "is among the leading candidates, perhaps even the leading candidate," for the open Columbus Blue Jackets play-by-play job. Arace said the comments while a guest on The Cannon Fodder podcast.

Fuehring has been knocking on the door for this opportunity, and with only 32 of these types of jobs available, the possibility that he's under heavy consideration for one of them is a validation of the work that he has put in over the last several seasons. In addition to broadcasting play-by-play, he also stepped in for Hogan as studio TV host when she was out ahead of the birth of her second child. He also contributed prospect report articles to the NewYorkIslanders.com website last season.

Meanwhile, there have been reports that Burke's MSG Networks contract is up after last season, though there hasn't been any indication that the two sides won't work out an extension, even as Burke's name continues to come up in discussions around John Sterling's permanent replacement as New York Yankees radio play-by-play announcer. If Burke is back and his national TV committments remain the same, the organization would need to find a new backup TV announcer if Fuehring lands the Columbus gig. One possibility could be to use radio play-by-play man Chris King in that role on select dates and have color analyst Greg Picker slide over to radio-play-by-play, something he did throughout his college career at Boston University.