Don La Greca Named New Jersey Devils Play-by-Play Announcer for MSG Networks

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MSG Networks announced today that ESPN radio and New York Rangers radio analyst Don La Greca is the newest play-by-play announcer for the New Jersey Devils, replacing Bill Spaulding. La Greca will call Devils games, alongside hosting his radio show on ESPN Radio with Alan Hahn and Peter Rosenberg.

A longtime Devils fan, La Greca calls this “a dream come true.” If you want proof of his fandom, check out La Greca’s Devils Stanley Cup tattoo on his leg. In a sense, he is a man of the people.

The Hawthorne, New Jersey native has been the Rangers’ radio announcer since 2005 and will finally get his chance to call games on television.

La Greca joins the booth with Ken Daneyko, with whom he already has a personal relationship. “To work with the legend Ken Daneyko makes it that much sweeter.”

The ESPN Radio host revealed he was a finalist for the same role three years ago when Spaulding was given the job. Spaulding took to social media, thanking the organization, teammates, and fans for his time with New Jersey.

There was no mention in the press release of why Bill Spaulding was let go by the network.

The transition from radio to television will take some getting used to for La Greca, but Don has close to 25 years on ESPN platforms, most notably “The Michael Kay Show,” with New York Yankees play-by-play announcer Michael Kay. He has had some legendary rants over the years, including the time he called out New York Giants tackle Evan Neal for calling fans “hamburger flippers.”

Devils fans should be excited about this hire. Not only is La Greca a Devils fan, which is a huge plus, but he is one of the most well-known voices in the New York Metro area of the last quarter century.

It won’t be an easy job for La Greca, as he follows Gary Thorne, Mike “Doc” Emrick, and Steven Cangialosi in a long lineage of great New Jersey Devils play-by-play announcers.

“To be the voice of the team that got me into hockey as a kid, a team that represents my home state with an incredible fan base, and to follow in the footsteps of some of the great play-by-play voices in the sport is an absolute dream come true. I can’t wait for the season to start.”