Sam Rosen will be back on the mic for Games 5 and 6 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs Eastern Conference Finals.
Multiple reporters acknowledged that the New York Rangers play-by-play voice was at the team’s practice on Thursday. And NHL.com’s Dan Rosen acknowledged on X (formerly Twitter) that the 76-year-old Rosen was in good spirits and thrilled to return to Madison Square Garden for a series tied at two games a piece.
Sam Rosen (no relation) is back on the Rangers’ radio call tonight. He’s standing next to me right now at the Rangers’ morning skate. He’s doing well, in great spirits, thrilled to be back in the rink. Great to have him back.
— Dan Rosen (@drosennhl) May 30, 2024
Rosen was absent for the first four games of the Rangers-Florida Panthers series, which left ESPN New York’s Don La Greca to fill in the call for ESPN NY 98.7. La Greca still serves as the backup radio play-by-play announcer for the Rangers and revealed last week that Rosen had been dealing with spells of dizziness, which led to a hospitalization.
“I’m also doing Games 2, 3, and 4 of the series, filling in for Sam Rosen,” La Greca said last week. “Sam is OK, but I know there’s a lot of people wondering what’s going on with Sam. He was suffering some dizziness. He had to go to the hospital. He got a clean bill of health. He’s OK. All is fine, but he did have a little bit of an issue.”
La Greca never revealed whether he’d be calling Games 5 or 6 because there wasn’t enough information about Rosen’s health at the time. It was also not clear if either game would be necessary after the Panthers took a 1-0 lead in the series.
Regardless, there’s a bit more clarity on both ends, and it’s good to see Sam Rosen back in the booth sooner rather than later.
