Eddie Olczyk, making Illinois’ first sportsbook wager at BetRivers Sportsbook in March 2020, will be part of NBC’s coverage of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.
Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
When NBC carried the NHL, lead analyst Eddie Olczyk, a passionate horseplayer, longed to be part of the network’s Kentucky Derby coverage.
“I tried to sell my boss, [executive producer and president of production] Sam Flood, on that for five years,” said Olczyk, now the lead analyst for TNT. “ ‘Hey, look, I don’t want to take anybody’s job, but if there’s a spot that opens up on the Derby coverage, I’d love to be a part of it.’ And for five-plus years, Sam gave me the Heisman.”
That changed with the help of NBC horse racing analyst Randy Moss. At the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Olczyk was calling a game with Doc Emrick when he noticed Moss walking by in the stands. As the first period wound down, Olczyk raced to meet Moss.
“Our stats guy tells the story, I said, ‘That’s Randy Moss; he does horse racing on NBC,’ ” Olczyk said. “And he said Doc was going ‘Three seconds, two,’ he looked over, my headset was already on the desk when the period ended. I ran and introduced myself to Randy, and we talked horse racing.”
The conversation left an impression on Moss, who spoke with Rob Hyland, NBC’s horse racing producer at the time, about adding Olczyk. Three months later, Flood gave Olczyk the chance to appear on a few broadcasts, and in 2015, Olczyk made his debut on NBC’s Kentucky Derby coverage.
On Saturday, the former Blackhawks player and analyst will celebrate his 10th Derby as an NBC handicapper and reporter. Coverage of the 150th Derby from Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, will begin at 11 a.m. on USA with prep races before moving to NBC at 1:30 p.m. It also will air on Peacock.
“All we talked about was horses, not hockey,” Moss said. “After the second period, he came back and sat down again, and all we talked about was horses. It was very obvious at that point that Eddie Olczyk was not just a hockey guy. He was very knowledgeable about horse racing. He’s been a fantastic addition.”
The Derby favorite is Fierceness, but the colt drew the No. 17 post, the only one of the 20 without a winner. That won’t dissuade Olczyk from using him in bets.
“He’s tactical,’’ Olczyk said. ‘‘Yeah, he’s gonna be wide to start, but how talented he is, I think he’ll be fine. The question is: Can he go the mile and a quarter? But I’m not as concerned as a lot of other people.
“The two favorites [Fierceness and Sierra Leone], you have to use them just because they’re that talented, the connections are that awesome. But there’s lots of value, and a lot of my bets are going to be around Catching Freedom, who I think might get the race set up.”