Jack Edwards gives Pat Maroon tense apology for body-shaming comments

Jack Edwards took his medicine on Thursday.

NESN’s Bruins play-by-play man was with the team as it returned to Tampa for the first time since his comments about Lightning forward Pat Maroon’s weight, and the 65-year-old TV voice sought out the three-time Stanley Cup champion.

Multiple outlets reported a tense 10-minute scene in the middle of the Tampa Bay locker room, with Maroon sarcastically asking if Edwards wanted him to step on a scale, according to The Boston Globe.

Pat Maroon’s weight was at the center of an on-air joke told by Bruins’ play-by-play man Jack Edwards in November.Getty Images

“He got his feelings off his chest, and I listened to all of it,” Edwards told The Athletic. “I was not going to walk away. I let him go as long as he could. I wanted him to know I respected him as much as any NHL player for lasting as long as he has. Every single player who has played in the NHL is an unbelievable athlete, and I made that clear.”

Edwards, who has a history of grandiose on-air statements, noted that Maroon was listed at 238 pounds during the teams’ Nov. 29 meeting in Boston, chiding the winger.

“That was Day 1 of training camp,” he said on-air. “I’ve got a feeling he’s had a few more pizzas between then and now. [Intermittent] fasting for Pat Maroon is like four hours without a meal. But hey, three Cups in a row, who can argue with his formula?”

Edwards made his comments about Maroon during the Bruins-Lightning game on Nov. 29.NESN

Edwards also cleared the air with Maroon’s coach, Jon Cooper, after the morning skate, per the Globe. He added that he reached out to the Lightning PR in an attempt to speak with the forward, though Maroon’s response to the situation was a $2,000 donation in Edwards’ name to the Lightning Foundation.

The pair shook hands at the end of their chat, in which Maroon told the broadcaster he had “moved on,” according to The Athletic.

“I’m glad they talked,” Boston forward Taylor Hall, twice a teammate of Maroon’s, told the Globe. “I’m sure Jack had an apology for him, because it’s not the first time Jack’s gone over the line. It’s always best to chat it out.”

Those in the Tampa Bay locker room were a little more skeptical of the outcome.

“I’m just watching to make sure Patty doesn’t rip his head off,” said Lightning defenseman Ian Cole amid the apology scene, per the Globe.