Mike Lange

Mike Lange
Mike Lange during a Q&A session with fans at RBC Center in Raleigh, December 2011.
Born	(1948-03-03) March 3, 1948 (age 69) Sacramento, California
Occupation	sports announcer

Mike Lange (born March 3, 1948, in Sacramento, California) is an American sportscaster, best known as the radio play-by-play broadcaster for the Pittsburgh Penguins. In 2001, he received the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award for his outstanding work as an NHL broadcaster.

A native of Sacramento, California, Lange joined the Penguins as a radio announcer in 1974 after spending time as a commentator for the San Diego Gulls and Phoenix Roadrunners of the Western Hockey League. He left the Penguins after just one season, because the team was in bankruptcy and he had no guarantee of a job. Lange called Washington Diplomats soccer games, then returned to the Penguins for the 1976–77 season, where he became the central figure of the team's broadcast presence.

From 1976 until 2006, Lange served as the lead play-by-play announcer for the Penguins' radio and television network, never missing a broadcast. On June 29, 2006, citing a desire to go in a new direction, Fox Sports Pittsburgh (now Root Sports) did not exercise the option year on Lange's contract. He was replaced by his longtime radio partner, Paul Steigerwald, in a move that was extremely unpopular with fans. On taking Lange's spot Steigerwald said, "I'm not going to try to replace him. I think he's irreplaceable."

On August 4, 2006, Lange signed a contract to work on Penguins' radio broadcasts. He continues to work the radio broadcasts, alongside former Penguin Phil Bourque, with the 2016-2017 season representing his 40th consecutive year that Lange has announced Penguins hockey.