Edward Nieman Joins Tauros' Staff

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NAHL Minot Minotauros

Edward Nieman Joins Tauros' Staff

August 26, 2024 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Minot Minotauros News Release


Minotauros' fans have been accustomed to broadcasts led by the play-by-play stylings of Tauros' Director of Operations, Ken Oda. This season fans will hear a new voice on the mic, but not a new voice in the Tauros community.

Edward Nieman has been interning with the Minotauros for the past two seasons writing articles for the team website, posting on social media, and completing other various tasks for the organization. A student at Arizona State University he was first approached about participating in the broadcast last winter and jumped at the opportunity.

"[Ken] asked me if I would do it, and I thought it was a great opportunity," said Nieman. "I could help him out. I could help myself out in getting some experience."

Nieman is no stranger to being in front of the microphone, starting his broadcasting career in high school at Loyola Academy in Illinois. Nieman discovered his passion for sports broadcasting by first watching then wanting to be involved in his school's sports atmosphere despite not being much of an athlete. Nieman's first broadcast was one of his school's football games.

"My high school was a football school so it was kind of a big ordeal," said Nieman. "... I would say my first broadcast [I was] over prepared, I was really scripted, I was nervous. But, it turned out well, it turned out ok, because of the people around me helped me through it. "

Nieman has only grown since that broadcast, having learned valuable lessons from each time putting on the headset. He has continued to follow his passion for sports broadcasting at ASU where he has done play-by-play as well as create and host his own radio shows at the student radio station.

Nieman tries to make his broadcasts free-flowing and relaxed, balancing being prepared with not wanting to script the game, he said. One way he likes to prepare is by talking with those directly involved.

"I really like to talk to people, you know, on the team, even if it's just like a conversation, I think that's a good route that you can take to kind of get a general feeling of what's going on with a program or what's going on with a team, is just talking to the people and being around them," said Nieman.

Nieman will have plenty of chances for those interactions being in-person through December while serving as the primary play-by-play broadcaster for both home and away games. Nieman will be joined in the booth by Oda when at home, with Oda providing color commentary. Oda's influence on Nieman will be present whether he's sitting beside him or nowhere close.

"You're probably going to hear a little bit of Ken in me. I've been listening to Ken more than any other play-by-play guy for like the past year or so just by nature of me listening to the games," said Nieman. "But I won't be as good as Ken, I will tell you that. You know, it's not going to be great off the start, but I'm getting better, hopefully, as the broadcasts go on and you know, I hope I'm just, you know, providing a good experience for the fans that are listening."

One of the main lessons he's going to take away from Oda's play-by-play is his ability to be himself on the broadcast, Nieman said. That ability is something Nieman hopes he can bring when he steps into the position come the start of the new season, one in which he is excited to see, considering the team is coming off its best season in franchise history.

"I really do anticipate them doing well this year," said Nieman. "I would not be surprised if they're right back in the final four angling for a cup."

Nieman said that he is extremely grateful to the organization for the opportunity, and he is excited to be around the Minot community and fanbase that he will be serving.

"It is like a professional sports environment out here," said Nieman. "It is ruckus, it's loud, the fans like really care about the team. So not only being around the players but, I think also being around the fans will help me become a better broadcaster and I think help me serve the Minot community better."

One thing the Minot community will have to wait to hear is Nieman's signature goal call, because he's still working on it, he said, making it all the more important for Minotauros fans to tune into his first game on the call.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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