Courtesy Boston Globe

(May 1, 2009) Jack Edwards may be the most polarizing figure on the New England sports media landscape. No local broadcaster can match the Bruins television play-by-play voice's cache of catchphrases, not to mention his habit of launching into a sum-it-all-up soliloquy as the final seconds tick off the game clock.

It's almost become a game of anticipation: What in the world will Edwards come up with this time?

Whether that's considered a good thing depends upon a viewer's perspective and tolerance for hyperbole. His phrasing choices - known as "Edwardsisms" on a popular hockey message board - can be taken as genuinely passionate or indulgently hammy. His most discussed call came in the final moments of the Bruins' Patriots Day victory over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series. Edwards likened the early-departing Montreal fans to "a red-coat retreat," while introducing the phrase "ragtag bunch of farmers" to the lexicon.

Edwards, who is in his fourth year calling Bruins games for NESN and his second doing both home and road games, is aware of the criticism as well as the plaudits. He has a message for those on both sides of the debate.

He wouldn't change a syllable. And he's certainly not going to change who he is.

"Yeah, it does generate a lot of reaction," says Edwards, who along with color analyst Andy Brickley will call Game 1 of the Bruins' Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Carolina Hurricanes tonight. "The way I see it, there are two types of play-by-play guys. The first is vanilla ice cream and white bread with nothing on it. I am not that.

"I try offer unique observations and pass them along to the emotional observer. Anyone who claims to be dead-center unbiased isn't being honest . . . All I ask of those self-appointed bastions of objective morality is this: Lighten the heck up. Hockey is a form of entertainment. You're supposed to enjoy it."

Some might wonder if Brickley, whose skate-sharp wit and trained eye for his sport's subtleties makes him the Jerry Remy of the puckhead set, is ever tempted to give Edwards a poke check to the ribs in the midst of one of his monologues.

"Nah, it screams passion to me," said Brickley, who spent four seasons with the Bruins (1988-92) during his 14-year professional playing career and is in his ninth season with NESN. "Jack's not vanilla, fans know that, yet he's very accurate. When Jack has something to say, whether it's written or verbal, it's intelligent."

Edwards doesn't temper his opinions on the air, so it's hardly surprising that he's just as outspoken away from the microphone. When asked if it's frustrating to him that NESN will not broadcast Games 2 and 5 of this series - Versus owns exclusive rights for both contests, while NESN holds exclusive regional rights for the other five games - he is particularly candid.

"Yeah, it's very frustrating, because we have been there all season and know the team better than anyone," Edwards said. "I don't think it's fair, either, taking away local rights during the playoffs. But it's obvious why they do it - they would be blown away in the ratings by the local carriers.

Not that Edwards is counting on the NHL to change its policy.

"The NHL has never wised up about anything in my memory," he said. "I've spoken my piece on how they handle certain things."

Both Edwards and Brickley are confident the Bruins will advance to the next round, though they both say they maintain a healthy respect for Carolina. While the Hurricanes were 0-4 against the Bruins this season, getting outscored, 18-6, they are a playoff-tested, veteran-laden bunch.

"No matter who they drew [as a second-round opponent], I'd say the Bruins' advantage was favorable simply based on how they played this year," said Brickley, who said the depth and talent of this Bruins club reminds him of the 1989-90 Stanley Cup finalists he played on. "But Carolina is probably a little more evenly matched just based on how well they have played the last six weeks. They've been tremendous. They have guys who have won [the Stanley Cup]. [Forward Eric] Staal, [goaltender] Cam Ward, they know what it takes this time of year . . . This series won't be the center of attention nationally, but from our standpoint it's a very interesting matchup."

The sense that great achievements may be in store for the Bruins became even more palpable after they swept longtime nemesis Montreal. Edwards, however, says he recognized that this could be a special season for the Black and Gold long before the postseason began.

"I'll tell you, I got that feeling in mid-to-late December. I said to [Bruins radio broadcaster] Dave Goucher, who I sit next to on the plane, 'Enjoy every single moment of this, because the stars may never line up this way again.' "

Which just happens to be the same approach Edwards takes toward his job - whether you like it or not.

"I haven't covered the Kentucky Derby or Wimbledon, but I've done pretty much everything else in my career," he said. "And there's nothing like NHL playoff hockey. Nothing."