Confirmed with Link: Legendary Pens broadcaster Mike Lange dies at age 76

[DesertedPenguin]

Along with Eddie Johnston and Badger Bob, Mike Lange might be one of the most iconic faces of the Pittsburgh Penguins off of the ice.

Sadly, he's passed away at age 76.

"The forever voice of the Pittsburgh Penguins, legendary broadcaster Mike Lange, died in his Pittsburgh home on Wednesday, sources close to Lange confirmed. He was 76."

Legendary Penguins broadcaster Mike Lange dies at 76

Lange last called a Penguins game in 2021, when his considerable health issues forced him to step down from the radio booth.

www.nytimes.com

EDIT: Dave Molinari, who is an old school reporter who doesn't write as much anymore, has confirmed.

Click to read more...

 

[ThosePuckingPenguins]

I’m 33 years old and I can honestly say I’m not as big of a hockey fan without Mike Lange. RIP to an absolute legend.

 

[Mr. T]

Guy bummed me smokes and bought a round of drinks for me and my friends when we ran into him at a bar.

I ran into him a couple times afterwards and he remembered that and offered me a cigarette each time.

All my lasting memories of this team include his amazing voice. RIP to the best that ever did it.

 

[Zirakzigil]

Terrible news. Thoughts going out to his family.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Just a downright tragedy in Pittsburgh sports, no other way you can put it. I didn't know he wasn't doing well but I guess it's not surprising.

I still regularly listen to old retro Penguins games from the 80s and 90s and hearing his voice was always so pleasing. Super sad to hear about this.

 

[Randy Butternubs]

Rip you legend

 

[Jacob]

76 is a nice full life. Great broadcaster, even better human being. RIP to one of the best to ever do it.

 

[orby]

Lange was one of a kind, and among the best hockey PBP guys ever. For almost my entire life, he was the sound of Penguins hockey; the magic he brought to the broadcasts is impossible to replicate. He will be missed greatly, and by many.

 

[DesertedPenguin]

Just a downright tragedy in Pittsburgh sports, no other way you can put it. I didn't know he wasn't doing well but I guess it's not surprising.

I still regularly listen to old retro Penguins games from the 80s and 90s and hearing his voice was always so pleasing. Super sad to hear about this.

When he wasn't able to make it to Jagr's ceremony, I had a feeling he was struggling. Those two were very close.

 

[Pancakes]

That really sucks. So many fond memories of Mikey. I'll never forget him.

I'm not sure I have the words right now to say more than that.

 

[eXile3]

I still associate his voice with the hockey of my childhood. This sucks. I wouldn’t be a hockey fan without you Mike.

 

[tom_servo]

Huge loss. One of the greatest voices in hockey history, and one of the great characters in Pittsburgh history.

 

[Pancakes]

Guy bummed me smokes and bought a round of drinks for me and my friends when we ran into him at a bar.

I ran into him a couple times afterwards and he remembered that and offered me a cigarette each time.

All my lasting memories of this team include his amazing voice. RIP to the best that ever did it.

I think this is what stands out to me most about Lange. Everyone who met him has a story about what a kind, gentle, soul he was. He was obviously a legendary broadcaster and every Pens fan will remember his calls.

But he was by all accounts a first rate human being too.

 

[BusinessGoose]

People hated him sometimes, but i never had an issue

Really too young, still

Total legend

 

[Le Magnifique 66]

Rest in Peace Mike!

 

[Empoleon8771]

This one hurts more because he was an even better person than he was an announcer. He was an amazing play by play guy for the Penguins but I've never heard anyone talk poorly of him. It's tough to come up with words for it, I just hope he and his family are at peace. There's nothing really else I can say about it.

I'm just browsing twitter to find as many of his all-time clips as I can at this point.

 

[TNT87]

Simply the greatest. I used to record his goal calls at the end of the games when he was recapping the highlights. This is my favorite call from him listening to it on the radio. I still get chills hearing it.

 

[Empoleon8771]

When he wasn't able to make it to Jagr's ceremony, I had a feeling he was struggling. Those two were very close.

Just saw an article on this too that I wanted to share:

Riding the Bus With Jagr | By Mike Lange

Twenty-six years later, lots of Mike Lange catchphrases have come and gone. But that one, beyond a shadow of a doubt, will always be my favorite of the bunch.

www.theplayerstribune.com

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

Had a t shirt with a muscle bound Penguin holding a hockey stick on the front and a bunch of his calls/sayings written on the back. Probably bought it in the Strip. Certainly wasn’t licensed/official. I wish I hadn’t worn it out. I think it was put out after the back to back Cups in 91-92.

A voice of my youth. He and Cope. We used his calls when we played street hockey. I musta said Hallelujah Hollywood and Look Out Loretta a million times each.

A decent dude I met a couple times, including at the 2007 draft here in Cbus, where he took a break from his Diet Coke and cig to let a buddy snap a pic of us and have a short but lovely chat about hockey, soda, and the two cities I’ve called home.

Tomorrow, I will buy Sam a drink, and get his dog one, too.

EDIT - found a pic if the back of that t shirt

 

[Pens1566]

f*** no!

 

[SomeDude]

Damn it.

 

[JRS91]

It still makes me seethe that they took him off the broadcast crew.

 

[Still Apps]

His expressive voice was, and will always be the essence of Penguin hockey for me. RIP Mr. Lange.

 

[DesertedPenguin]

It still makes me seethe that they took him off the broadcast crew.

When he was initially fired in 2006, his performance really had slipped. Fox Sports Pittsburgh could have handled it a lot better, too.

It was a huge relief when the Penguins picked him up internally for the radio broadcast. I think it was a bit of a wake up for Lange, too, and he had a bit of a career renaissance.

Sometimes even the legends need a reset in their careers.

 

[Snooki Stackhouse]

The guy was an amazing PBP broadcaster. The gravelly voice was so distinctive and calming. If I turn on highlights, his voice transports me back to the 1990s and early 2000s as a kid watching with my family. It's a shame I didn't hear him much in the Crosby era except through highlights as I only occasionally listened to radio live. I suppose nobody works forever and nobody lives forever but when guys like that go the world is just less vivid.

We really had it made in Pittsburgh in the 90s between him, Hillgrove, Myron, and Frattare.