Raise YOUR Voice!

John C . from Trenton, New Jersey

Maybe the planets are aligning for Mike Lange’s return to serving as the play-by-play voice of the Pittsburgh Penguins on television. However, Penguins’ fans everywhere
should not have to spend one second awaiting Lange’s return.

Why? For one simple reason. LANGE SHOULDN’T HAVE BEEN TAKEN OFF TELEVISION AFTER THE 2005-06 SEASON AND NEED TO MAKE A RETURN TO IT.

In Lange, the Penguins’ have a treasure. He is at the top of his profession. In fact, he made it there 17 YEARS AGO.

In 2001, Lange became a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame as a broadcaster when he was named the winner of the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award. Named after the great Canadian hockey announcer Foster Hewitt, the award is presented by the Hockey Hall of Fame to members of the radio and television industry who make outstanding contributions to their profession and the game of hockey during their broadcasting career. The annual winner is chosen by the NHL Professional Broadcasters Association.

Winning the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award means that Lange has earned the respect of his peers in the broadcast booth. Again, that occurred 17 YEARS AGO.

In addition, Lange has the respect of the fans. He is the man they WANT to be behind the microphone describing Penguins’ game. The existence of this Web site – bringbackmike.com – is proof.

The fact that Mike Lange T-shirts are being sold is further proof that Lange is beloved by the fans. Why? His commentary is from the heart. He makes watching or listening to the game exciting. And it’s more than his “Lange-isms.” On radio, it also has to do with his ability to smoothly communicate exactly what is happening on the ice and how the puck moved from points A to B to C. That’s difficult for a radio play-by-play announcer to do in a game that is as fast-paced as NHL hockey.

As a result, fans including myself share in Lange’s enthusiasm for Penguins’ games.
 
The fact the Penguins are marketing Mike Lange T-shirts to me also is a sign of respect by the team for Lange. This likely is the first instance of a professional sports team marketing merchandise bearing the name of one of its broadcasters.

My take is that if Lange is benefiting financially from the sale of the T-shirts, it’s completely justified. It’s a way for the Penguins to help him make up for the revenue he lost by being taken off television.

After all, there’s no question Lange has helped put fans in the seats of the Civic Arena/Mellon Arena in his 30-plus years announcing the games.

There are certain names that always will be linked in history. In sports, examples are Jack Hamilton and Tony Conigliaro. Juan Marichal and John Roseboro. And Todd Bertuzzi and Steve Moore. And unfortunately, Mike Lange will always be linked for Penguins’ fans to Steve Tello, who believed a fresh set of eyes was needed on Penguins’ television.

The fact that Tello has taken his obviously “special” brand of sports television management to FSN Houston came as welcome news. Recently, I also became aware of the fact that Lange has the current year remaining on his radio contract and Paul Steigerwald has one year remaining on his television contract.

(I’m not among those who care to bash Steigerwald. The man has a job to do. He’s mediocre at best. We know that. Lange is unique. We know that as well. Leave Steigerwald alone, already. Until the Lange is back on television, turn off the volume on the television and turn on the radio commentary.)

Tello is one of two people in professional sports whose name should come to mind if the following question posed is, “How does he still have a job?” The other is Isiah Thomas of the New York Knickerbockers. No explanation necessary.

As a result, the planets could be aligning for a return by Lange to television. Let’s hope that’s the case.

But as a long-distance fan of the Penguins (I live in New Jersey now and lived in New Jersey when I heard Lange for the first time on KDKA-AM on opening night of the 1974-75 season.), my perfect scenario would be a return to the simulcasts that the Penguins offered for many years.

Thus, the genius of Mike Lange as a broadcaster would be available to the greatest number of Penguins’ fans. Meanwhile, the television management genius of Steve Tello is now the problem of FSN Houston.

Goodbye, Pittsburgh. Hello, Houston. Let’s remember the immortal line from an astronaut in the damaged Apollo 13 spacecraft -- “Houston, we have a problem.”

Meanwhile, Lange will continue to make hockey nights in Pittsburgh special.

John S. Chester Jr.
Trenton, NJ