“Kick save and a beauty!” (great save by the goalie in hockey)
“Kick save—and a beauty!” was a catchphrase of longtime New York Rangers hockey announcer Marv Albert, meaning that the goalie just made a great save with his foot. “Stick save—and a beauty!” is used when the goalie makes a great save on the puck with a hockey stick. “Save—and a beauty!” has also been used in other sports to describe a soccer save and a baseball save.
Fred Cusick (1918-2009), an announcer for the Boston Bruins, and Lloyd Pettit (1927-2003), an announcer for the Chicago Blackhawks, have both been given credit for coining “Kick save—and a beauty!” before Marv Albert used it. Don Cherry, who coached the Boston Bruins in the 1970s, said about a Guy Lafleur goal in 1977, “Wasn’t that a beauty?” It’s likely that “beauty” was associated with Boston Bruins coach Don Cherry and Boston Bruins announcer Fred Cusick in the 1970s, and that Marv Albert developed his “beauty” hockey catchphrase at this time.
Wikipedia: Marv Albert
Marv Albert (born Marvin Philip Aufrichtig; June 12, 1941) is an American television and radio sportscaster. Honored for his work as a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, he is commonly referred to as “the voice of basketball.” From 1967–2004, he was also known as “the voice of the New York Knicks.”
Including Super Bowl XLII, Marv has called the play-by-play of six Super Bowls, NBA Finals and seven Stanley Cup Finals. He has also called the Wimbledon Tennis Championships for TNT with Jim Courier and Mary Carillo. He also worked as a co-host and reporter for two World Series (1986 and 1988). He has also served as co-host of the Breeders Cup (1991–1996).
Albert currently works for TNT, CBS, and the YES Network. He is the secondary voice for New Jersey Nets broadcasts on YES behind Ian Eagle, is TNT’s lead NBA voice, calls NFL games for CBS, and also calls NCAA tournament action for CBS and Turner Sports.
[“Kick-save, and a beauty!” (first used by Fred Cusick)—on older version of Albert’s Wikipedia page]
Wikipedia: Fred Cusick
Frederick Michael Cusick (November 7, 1918 - September 15, 2009) was an American ice hockey broadcaster who served as the Boston Bruins play-by-play announcer from 1971 until 1997 on WSBK-TV (Channel 38) in Boston, and from 1984 until 1995 on NESN. Counting his radio broadcasts, he was a Bruins’ announcer for an unprecedented 45 years, and was an active sports announcer for over seven decades. He is best known for yelling “SCORE!” when a Boston player scored a goal.
Wikipedia: Lloyd Pettit
Lloyd Pettit (1927–November 11, 2003) was a sportscaster in Chicago and Milwaukee as well as the owner of the Milwaukee Admirals.
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His signature catchphrase, which was even worked into the Blackhawks official fight song, “Here Come The Hawks,” was “There’s a shot… AND A GOAL!!!” He retired from broadcasting in 1980 to pursue other business interests and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1986.
Wikipedia: Don Cherry
Donald Stewart “Grapes” Cherry (commonly referred to as Don Cherry) (born February 5, 1934) is a Canadian ice hockey commentator for CBC Television. Cherry co-hosts the “Coach’s Corner” intermission segment (with Ron MacLean) on the long-running Canadian sports program Hockey Night in Canada, and in addition recently joined ESPN in the United States as a commentator during the latter stages of the Stanley Cup playoffs. He is known for his outspoken manner, flamboyant dress, and staunch patriotism.
Prior to his broadcast career, Cherry was a professional hockey player and National Hockey League coach. He played one game with the Boston Bruins, and later coached them for 5 seasons, starting with Bobby Orr’s final 93 games as a Bruin.
Google News Archive
13 May 1977, Windsor (Ontario) Star, “Too much Lafleur leaves Bruins in deep trouble,” pg. 37, col.1:
Cherry marvelled at Lafleur’s second goal, coming off a two-on-one break with Shutt late in the third period.
“How about that last goal?” asked Cherry. “Wasn’t that a beauty?...unbelievable.”
23 February 1985, Atlanta (GA) Journal and Constitution, “Wanted by Marv Albert: People who talk like Marv Albert,” pg. C6:
In hockey, Albert’s best-known line for a save is “kick-save and a beauty.”
Google News Archive
8 November 1985, Lewiston (ME) Journal, “Goalie Keans: ‘a great game’” by Dick Trust, pg. 14, col. 6:
“A head save—and a beauty!” he jokingly imitated a broadcaster.
12 September 1988, St. Albans (VT) Daily Messenger, pg. 10, col. 2 photo caption:
Save and a beauty
(A save by a soccer goalie—ed.)
15 July 1990, Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN), “Teacher helps North corner the title”:
On the Canadian prairies, they would have said, “Kick save and a beauty, eh?”
28 September 1992, Mobile (AL) Register, “Sports Airwaves” by Barry Jackson, pg. 2C, col. 4:
Best line: ESPN’s Dan Patrick, on Tampa Bay Lightning female goalie Manon Rheume: “She gives new meaning to the phrase, ‘Kick save, and a beauty.’”
Google Books
I’d love to but I have a game:
27 years without a life
By Marv Albert with Rick Reilly
New York, NY: Doubleday
1993
Pg. 136:
I never felt so much pain. Thus the common hockey phrase: Groin save and a beauty!
Google News Archive
26 November 1998, Boca Raton (FL) News, pg. 2B, col. 2 photo caption:
Stick save - and a beauty: Bruins goaltender Byron Dafoe sprawls on the toe to deny a shot by Panthers center Kick Muller in the second period.
Google Books
Sports on New York Radio:
A play-by-play history
By David J. Halberstam
Lincolnwood, IL: Masters Press
1999
Pg. 79:
(Marv—ed.) Albert’s patented line in hockey usually followed a flurry and a great save by the goalie. With typical Albert flair, it was “stick save and a beauty!”
Pg. 353 (Ten Most Popular Phrases):
Marv Albert….......“Kick save and a beauty!” great save by the goalie in hockey
Google Books
A Sportswriter’s Life:
From the desk of a New York Times reporter
By Gerald Eskenazi
Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press
2003
Pg. 147:
He (Marv Albert—ed.) had his deep voice, knowledge of the game, which he painted extremely well, and his signature exclamations: “Kick save—and a beauty!” for the Rangers, and a resounding “Yes!” for a Knicks’ basket.
Sports Illustrated
Friday July 23, 2004 2:35PM
Master of the Mic: NHL
By Michael Farber
MY TOP-FIVE CALLS/CATCH PHRASES
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4. “Kick save, and a beauty.” While some credit Chicago Blackhawks telecaster Lloyd Petit with inventing the phrase, the estimable Marv Albert, whom we would gladly listen to doing play-by-play on anything, made it his own while working the radio side for the Rangers in the 1960s.
Vox Daily
Fred Cusick: Voice of the Boston Bruins
By Stephanie
Dec 14, 2006
As Don Cherry would say, “What a beauty!”. Fred Cusick has become a living legend in the history books of the Original Six Boston Bruins Hockey Club.
Google Books
The Enlightened Bracketologist:
The Final Four of everything
By Mark Reiter and Richard Sandomir
New York, NY: Bloomsbury: Distributed by Holtzbrinck Publishers
2007
Pg. 38:
Sportcaster Signature Calls by Richard Sandomir
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“Kick save and a beauty.” Lloyd Petit
Canada.com
Breathtakingly bad
The Detroit Lions of the National Football League have just finished the worst season in NFL history. In this era of league-wide parity, the Lions managed the near-impossible record of zero wins and 16 losses.
By The Vancouver Province
December 31,2008
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As Don Cherry would say: “that’s a beauty.”
The Globe and Mail (Canada)
Shoalts: And the answer is ...
Last updated Thursday, Apr. 09, 2009 9:20PM EDT
BOSTON – Here’s the answer for my trivia question – haven’t got one for you, Eric – the fellow who coined the phrase “Kick save and a beauty,” was Fred Cusick, the long-time television voice of the Boston Bruins.
kgb answers
Who coined the phrase, “a kick save, and a beauty”?
We can find no one origin for this. It’s just commonly said in hockey commentating.
Answered by kgb agent Daniel J on Monday, November 30 2009 at 07:30PM EST
Source: akicksaveandabeauty.com