A Sad Day for Hockey: Mike Lange stepping out of broadcast booth

Words like “legendary” and “icon” are very over-used in this day and age, but there is no doubt that Mike Lange is truly legendary and iconic in a very real meaning of the words. The fixture and soundtrack to the Penguins has announced his retirement from his play-by-play duties, after calling Penguin games for 46 years.

With his creative and fun goal expressions, Lange has made an indelible mark on franchise history in Pittsburgh. His voice is synonymous with hockey, and Penguins hockey at that, from even beyond the start of the Mario Lemieux days and through modern times to Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Lange’s first season with the Pens was in 1974-75, he left for one season in 1975-76, but has worked continuously on TV or the radio with the Pittsburgh hockey team ever since.

If you would like to send on words of your own to Mike, here’s a way the team has opened up.

Certainly we can all only wish the best of luck and health and happiness to Mike. His voice provided so much joy and information to Penguin fans over the years and it is truly difficult to imagine a future without hearing the voice of the Penguins in a regular setting.

Luckily, we won’t have to go totally without Lange, as the press release indicates Lange will be staying with the Penguins Radio Network and “fans will continue to hear Lange’s voice during radio appearances and various Penguins programming.”

Here’s a great Lange-inspired shirt to help remember the good old days, you can purchase it through this link.