In a summer marked by departures, the Ducks filled at least one vacancy Friday when they hired Aaron Cooney as the play-by-play announcer on their web platform, Ducks Stream.
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Cooney, 36, filled in for longtime play-by-play man Steve Carroll intermittently and, following Carroll’s retirement last season, will step into the role full-time.
Cooney had worked in various capacities with the Kings and Ducks, and had been doing play-by-play for the Ducks’ top minor-league affiliate in San Diego for the past three campaigns.
Cooney began this tenure in earnest during last year’s playoffs after Carroll called his final game, joining Alexis Downie and former Ducks winger Emerson Etem on Ducks Stream.
“It’s an honor to join a first-class organization in the Anaheim Ducks and I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity to call games for Orange Country,” Cooney said in a statement. “I was lucky enough to experience the loyalty and passion of Ducks fans firsthand during the team’s Stanley Cup Playoffs run last season and I look forward to sharing many more special moments with the fanbase in the future. It’s an exciting time for Ducks fans and I can’t wait for the season to start to be part of it all with Emerson, Alexis and the entire Ducks Stream team.”
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Cooney’s ascendance came on the heels of news that Aly Lozoff would not return next season to her familiar spots on the ice and between the benches. The Ducks will operate without a sideline-style reporter for 2026-27. Lozoff, whose career has also traversed the legal field and world of modeling, had previously served in the same role for the Vegas Golden Knights.
A Pittsburgh native, Cooney started out as a radio intern with his hometown Penguins before spending seven years wearing a multitude of hats for the Ontario Hockey League’s Erie Otters. He worked in broadcasting, marketing and media relations for the Otters, including during most of Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid’s junior career and Erie’s run to the Memorial Cup Final led by Detroit Red Wings sniper Alex DeBrincat.
Cooney then volleyed between the Ducks and Kings organizations, and made his on-air NHL debut during a Ducks-Penguins game in 2025.
“We’re so pleased to name Aaron as the new radio voice of the Ducks,” Ducks president Aaron Teats said in a statement. “He is a bright new voice in the NHL and has earned this opportunity.”
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