Mike Lange: A Tribute to 40 Years

Opening Night for any NHL team is an eventful one.

The Penguins open up the season Thursday night against the Anaheim Ducks at Consol Energy Center. While a new head coach and General Manager dominate the headlines, there has been no change in the broadcast booth.

40 years of no change to be exact.

Mike Lange, the Hall of Fame broadcaster called his first Penguin game on October 9, 1974. Lange will celebrate the anniversary by calling the Penguins-Ducks from the radio booth with former Penguin and two-time Stanley Cup Champion, Phil Bourque.

When people think Penguins, they think Mike Lange. He is known for his famous goal calls and has done it on both the radio and television side for four decades.

I produce the "David Todd Show" on 970 ESPN in Pittsburgh. I've grown up watching Penguins hockey, I've had the pleasure of meeting Lange more recently in the Penguins radio studio while taping promos with Executive Producer Ray Walker, and David came up with the idea to do some of his greatest calls of some of the best moments in Penguin history during a segment.

With that, I put together a two minute montage of Lange's calls of some of the historic moments in Pittsburgh hockey history. Three different version of the Pens theme song "Boys of Winter" can be heard, too.

Here's that tribute: