Sam Rosen To Retire After Next Season (Final Broadcast Tonight)

Had to be National because Dolan lol

Going to be interesting because it's a national broadcast and they'll need to play down the bias a bit (JD will naturally do that as he's a Columbus guy) but not sure how much they can get away with. Sam gun say 'It's a POWERPLAY goal' when Philly capitalizes on their PP? Because we sure as shit won't score on ours lol. JD's OHHHHH BABBYYYY will always be associated with Richter saves for me but he can whip that out for the Flyers as well, wouldn't really bother me.
 
Kenny Albert or Alex Faust.

If it were me I would give it to Faust. Faust is a Brooklyn born guy who is young and should be around for a long time ala Sam. Kenny is nearing 60. His time to take over may have passed.

Kenny just turned 57

Sam will be 78 in August

Kenny could do this job for another 20, 21 years and be the same age as Sam is now.

If anything the job makes more sense for Kenny now if he's over the insane amount of travel he's done juggling NFL and NHL and wants to settle down a bit
 
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Had to be National because Dolan lol

Going to be interesting because it's a national broadcast and they'll need to play down the bias a bit (JD will naturally do that as he's a Columbus guy) but not sure how much they can get away with. Sam gun say 'It's a POWERPLAY goal' when Philly capitalizes on their PP? Because we sure as shit won't score on ours lol. JD's OHHHHH BABBYYYY will always be associated with Richter saves for me but he can whip that out for the Flyers as well, wouldn't really bother me.
This never stops any other broadcasters, haha.
 
This also never stops fans from thinking the broadcasters are fellating the other team.
I grew up only able to watch nationally broadcast games on Fox, and then ABC. So I didn't even know who Sam or JD were until my late teens (though I was very familiar with Kenny and Sal 'Red Light' and then Maloney).

I watched the National games of the Rangers Devils playoffs series (in 97 I think) I think and had no clue Doc was the Devil's pbp guy, I loved the excitement of his call (I was 12 and it was amazing). I didn't know Doc was the Devils broadcaster until I found this site at 19 years old and saw ppl complaining about his Devil's bias when calling Rangers Devils games. This website has taught me how to properly complain about National guys when they call games for us, it truly is an art form.
 
I grew up only able to watch nationally broadcast games on Fox, and then ABC. So I didn't even know who Sam or JD were until my late teens (though I was very familiar with Kenny and Sal 'Red Light' and then Maloney).

I watched the National games of the Rangers Devils playoffs series (in 97 I think) I think and had no clue Doc was the Devil's pbp guy, I loved the excitement of his call (I was 12 and it was amazing). I didn't know Doc was the Devils broadcaster until I found this site at 19 years old and saw ppl complaining about his Devil's bias when calling Rangers Devils games. This website has taught me how to properly complain about National guys when they call games for us, it truly is an art form.
Mods pls pin. For future and all generations.
 
So what kind of special approval did they need to get JD to do this game on Wednesday? I'm really interested in that. Was it as simple as when Messier played for the Oilers Legends in 2004?

Cherish the next week and change with Sam.
 
So what kind of special approval did they need to get JD to do this game on Wednesday? I'm really interested in that. Was it as simple as when Messier played for the Oilers Legends in 2004?

Cherish the next week and change with Sam.

I asked someone in sports media if there is a back story on getting this done AND whether MSG Networks even tried. I might find out on Tuesday.

He told me John Davidson would be at Sam's ceremony a week before the date.

It's just a matter if he can find out.
 
So what kind of special approval did they need to get JD to do this game on Wednesday? I'm really interested in that. Was it as simple as when Messier played for the Oilers Legends in 2004?

Cherish the next week and change with Sam.
Probably went like this:

NYR to JD and Bettman: Can JD do a game with Sam for one of his last games?
Bettman: Absolutely!

Doubt they had to jump through any hoops. Probably a quick phone call to the league.
 
Probably went like this:

NYR to JD and Bettman: Can JD do a game with Sam for one of his last games?
Bettman: Absolutely!

Doubt they had to jump through any hoops. Probably a quick phone call to the league.

Don't know about that. If that were really the case: 1.) Why isn't this reunion on MSG? and 2.) Why didn't J.D. address the Garden crowd on Sam's day?

This is very likely an idea fostered by TNT.
 
Don't know about that. If that were really the case: 1.) Why isn't this reunion on MSG? and 2.) Why didn't J.D. address the Garden crowd on Sam's day?

This is very likely an idea fostered by TNT.
Maybe, but whichever way it went down i'm sure Columbus, NYR, and the NHL agreed on it pretty quickly.
 
Probably went like this:

NYR to JD and Bettman: Can JD do a game with Sam for one of his last games?
Bettman: Absolutely!

Doubt they had to jump through any hoops. Probably a quick phone call to the league.
Conflicts of Interest: JD is an Executive of a competing team.

There's all kinds of rules and safeguarding for Tom Brady being a commentator in the NFL and as a minority owner.
 
Here's how it went down with the Sam and JD reunion.

1.) It was the NHL that went to TNT with the idea.
2.) MSG simply wanted to focus on Rosen so there was never talks of booth reunion. They did the one hour show that included both JD and Micheletti.
 
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Here's how it went down with the Sam and JD reunion.

1.) It was the NHL that went to TNT with the idea.
2.) MSG simply wanted to focus on Rosen so there was never talks of booth reunion. They did the one hour show that included both JD and Micheletti.

That’s not a surprise. Considering how JD’s POHO role ended, this was the only way a Sam and JD booth reunion would happen.
 

Sam Rosen, John Davidson reunite for one last Rangers broadcast: ‘It’s like a family reunion’

NEW YORK — The headsets came off around 10:15 Wednesday night. A few more pictures were taken. Sam Rosen and John Davidson checked their phones, seeing text after text from old friends and colleagues once the TNT broadcast ended.

“It’s like a family reunion,” Davidson said. “It was just a lot of fun.”

For 21 years, Rosen and Davidson were the voices of the New York Rangers, a partnership between broadcaster and analyst that began in the 1984-85 season and ran until Game 4 of the 2006 Eastern Conference quarterfinals, after which Davidson moved into front-office roles for nearly two decades. In between Rosen and Davidson called the Rangers’ lone Stanley Cup win in the last 85 years and were constants in everyone’s homes through the good times (mid-1990s) and bad (late ’90s-early 2000s).

“To me, they’re one of the best broadcast teams ever,” said Steve Mayer, the NHL’s president of content.

It was Mayer who came up with the reunion idea ahead of the season, which Rosen had announced as his 40th and last calling Rangers games, to bring the 77-year-old play-by-play announcer and the 72-year-old analyst back together at the end of this season. TNT was in.

This has been a storybook ending for Rosen, even though the Rangers haven’t obliged with a storybook finish to what’s been a rather dreadful year. When he announced his retirement ahead of the 2024-25 season, he figured some fans would ask for pictures (they have), he’d have some warm moments with the coaches he’s huddled with before every game (he has), and then it would be time to work on his golf down in Naples, Fla.

The people running the NHL’s 32 teams have had other ideas. Every stop the Rangers have made this season has featured not just an ovation from the home crowd when Rosen was shown on the big screen, but an array of gifts and appreciation from teams whose fans have probably only rarely heard Rosen call a game. Former Ranger Jacob Trouba gifted Rosen one of his paintings last month in Anaheim. Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper and Kings president Luc Robitaille gave bottles of wine. Nearly every team, including the Rangers, gifted Rosen a jersey signed by every player.

Maybe the most touching moment was just last week when former Ranger Mats Zuccarello wore a No. 40 Wild sweater with “Rosen” on the nameplate during warmups at Madison Square Garden.

“It’s been overwhelming, heartwarming, rewarding and, in a way, eye-opening,” Rosen said. “As much as I’ve always gone around, made friends and acquaintances and gotten to know people in every city we’ve been in, you don’t realize how much you touch people until you get this kind of response that I’ve gotten. It’s kind of a revelation.”

“He’s a New York institution,” Davidson said, “and not only as a broadcaster. The time he’s put in to make the area a better place, night after night after night. He goes all over the place and raises funds for needy people. He’s there to do it all the time, 40 years’ worth. He’s just been a positive influence for a lot of different people.”

It can’t have been easy for Davidson to step back into the booth at the Garden. He spent two years as Rangers team president before being swept out by owner James Dolan after the 2020-21 season, paving the way for Chris Drury to take over. Davidson went back to the Columbus Blue Jackets, where he’d been for seven seasons before returning to New York, and now he’s in an advisory role with the Blue Jackets.

Davidson helped present Rosen with a gold-plated microphone during a pregame ceremony at the Garden two weeks ago. There are some lingering feelings, but there’s no place he would have been on Wednesday except beside his old friend to call the game.

“It’s always hard, because you care,” Davidson said. “But that’s the past. I’ve talked to a lot of people, my wife, friends — we’re losing a lot of people in this sport. Greg Millen the other day, Ray Shero just today … You’ve got to live your life and be positive about it. This is a great, human sport. You think of this building, people coming from all over to watch a game. You think of the building staff, ushers, everyone. Coaches, players. You have to enjoy it. And I am enjoying every minute of this. Every minute.”

Ahead of the 7:30 start time, the two old hands sat in their booth on the bridge at Madison Square Garden and studied their notes. Rosen spent the morning as he always does on game day, in the Rangers locker room at their practice facility talking with players. Davidson had been stuck in the airport in Florida on Tuesday evening so he used his time to call around to people who know the Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers, including former TNT broadcaster and current Flyers president Keith Jones, to study up.

In the booth, the headsets were donned. They greeted the audience. The TNT studio panel peppered Rosen and Davidson with questions. Henrik Lundqvist and Anson Carter, two of the former Rangers who played in New York when Rosen and Davidson called games, had a couple prepared, including one about when Rosen’s “It’s a power-play goal!” and Davidson’s “Oh, baby!” signature calls began.

A photographer from the Hockey Hall of Fame stopped in the booth to commemorate the night. Jones, in a booth nearby, also snapped a picture as he walked by. The game began and it was like old times, even though the two old friends were technically calling a game from the MSG bridge for the first time. Rosen gestured to the back of the old blue seats when he talked about where they called their last game 19 years earlier; the bridge wasn’t built until the 2010s.

“We’re serious about the games,” Rosen said. “We love the games and we would never do anything to take away from the game. Even though perhaps it has less importance in the grand scheme of things the way the season is unfolding, it’s still a game that’s important to Rangers fans, to Flyers fans, and we treat it as such.”

It was a wild one, an 8-5 Flyers win. Rosen knew he was on the national telecast, so the Flyers goals that might have gotten a little less oomph on the Rangers’ home network got equal time in his calls. Ushers on the bridge brought fans down between periods to say hi, wish Rosen well and take a few photos. He hasn’t turned anyone aside all year.

And then, after a busy third period, it was done. They thanked each other on the air, then off it, with a warm hug and plenty of smiles. Davidson rated his analyst performance “just OK,” drawing a dismissive gesture from Rosen. Plans were made to meet up in Florida. Davidson headed off to his hotel for a quick rest, then an early flight back down south.

There are only a few games left in Rosen’s broadcasting career. Davidson was thrilled he got to be by his side one last time.

“I’d do anything for him,” he said. “And I loved it.”
 
What a disgrace by the Rangers to go out like this in Sam's last season. I'm pretty sure going to take next season off from this team. Unless there is a drastic rehaul of everyone including Drury.
 
I can keep recorded events for 9 months. Until 9 months from now, when the NYR play I'll be listening to this game instead to hear Sam & JD.
 
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