By Nick Veronica

Nate Lull

Chris Cournan will take over broadcasting duties for the Canisius College hockey team this season, replacing Nate Lull, who called the team’s games the last four seasons.

The athletic department confirmed the hire to IAGS today.

Cournan is a recent Bowling Green graduate who went to Clarence High School. A sample of his broadcasting his posted below.

Lull left Canisius to take a full-time job as the sports director at WCDO-FM, a radio station in Sidney, N.Y. near his hometown.

“They didn’t want me to leave at all and it was all on good terms,” Lull said. “I found a full-time radio job close to my family and hometown. I am Sports Director and it was a good fit so I decided I had to try it. Leaving Canisius was so hard for me and I am going to miss it so much. The new building and all that — it kills me to think about not being there. But my family is really important and I know I have to give this a try.

“[I] would love to come back if it was ever a little more full-time,” he added.

Lull was well-liked by those close to the program. In addition to his broadcast duties, he was a generous donator to Movember campaigns, which raise money and awareness for prostate cancer and men’s health issues. This past winter, Lull signed up to give a blood stem cell donation after finding out he was a match for a person fighting leukemia, the same disease the hockey team’s Chris Rumble beat before attending Canisius.

Here’s a sample of Cournan’s work (from his YouTube account) and a blog post detailing a little more about him. The Griffs open the season with an exhibition against the University of Toronto on Oct. 5.

(The best part: “I’m Chris Cournan, and you’re not!”)