Longtime Rangers Announcer is Calling it a Career After 2024-25 Season

Longtime New York Rangers television play-by-play announcer Sam Rosen will hang up the microphone and headset following the 2024-25 season, his 40th season calling Rangers games for MSG Networks. “I’ve been living out a dream for 40-plus years,” he explained in a statement. “To be able to call the games for the team I’ve been cheering for since I was a 10-year-old kid in Brooklyn is magical,” Rosen gushed. He explained that the decision to retire was personal as he would like to spend more time with his family as he gets older.

Rosen was born in Germany but moved to Brooklyn, New York when he was two years old. Rosen grew up going to Rangers games and eventually took over the play-by-play duties full-time in 1984, replacing his mentor, Jim Gordon. Before that, Rosen filled in 1977-78 as the backup to Marv Albert on the radio and to Gordon on the television side. Rosen signed his first contract with MSG Network in September of 1982 when he became the MSG Networks studio host.

Rosen’s first broadcast partner with the Rangers was Phil Esposito before he left to become the General Manager of the Blueshirts in the 1986-87 season. Rosen would go on to call games with former Rangers’ goaltender John Davidson for the next 20 years until “JD” left to become the president of the St. Louis Blues following the 2005-06 season. Rosen has since been paired with Joe Micheletti and this season will be their 19th year together.

Rosen has been inducted into multiple halls of fame, including the National Jewish Hall of Fame in 2008 and the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2016, where he also was the recipient of the Foster Hewitt Memorial. Lastly, Rosen was inducted into the New York State Hockey Hall of Fame this summer.

While known for calling the Rangers, Rosen has also called the NFL on Fox for more than 20 years, different sports for ESPN from 1979-88, MSG Networks Boxing from 1982-92, and the NHL Stanley Cup Final on NHL Radio from 1996-2008. He even called the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.

Rosen is known for his famous call of the Rangers Stanley Cup Championship in 1994.

"The waiting is over. The New York Rangers are Stanley Cup Champions. And this one will last a lifetime."

- Sam Rosen

Rosen is also popular for his energetic call of “It’s a power-play goal” whenever the Rangers score on a man advantage.

While Rosen is known for those calls, he is also known for his passion, enthusiasm, and ability to quickly report what is happening on the ice. While he is a Rangers fan at heart, he can call the games without being a "homer", which is what makes him a true professional. He is one of the greatest hockey play-by-play broadcasters of all time and there will never be another one like him again.

As good as Rosen is as a broadcaster, he is an even better human being. Even though he has had a successful 40-year career with the Rangers it is apparent he does not have a big ego.

I have had the privilege to meet him several times over the years at Madison Square Garden and he always was generous with his time with me. I remember he would meet me down by the ice after the game to talk with this aspiring broadcaster and show me around the Rangers bench, where he knew all the Garden workers by name and they all adored him. He even hosted me in the broadcast booth a couple of times during intermission where I was able to talk to him about the game and broadcasting in general, while even letting me sit in on some of his live broadcasts.

Watching Rosen call a Rangers game enables one to see just how much he loves the team and his job. While Sam Rosen will be missed, there is no doubt that this upcoming season will last a lifetime.

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