Sunday, December 28, 2014

Broadcaster Profile- Dan Rusanowsky, San Jose Sharks

I hope each and every one of you had a wonderful Christmas and for our Jewish friends, a Happy Chanukah! For me, I'm preparing to go to back to calling college hockey again next weekend- as I will depart for Minneapolis, Minnesota on New Year's Day as Merrimack will take on Minnesota in the Mariucci Classic on Friday. In the meantime, it's time to spotlight our next hockey radio voice- this time another NHL voice, Dan Rusanowsky of the San Jose Sharks.



Dan Rusanowsky is a household name in the Bay Area, serving as the radio voice of the San Jose Sharks. Arriving in San Jose in 1991, Dan has been at the mike for nearly all of the Sharks games in his illustrious career, beginning at the venerable Cow Palace in Daly City and then moving on to the Sharks current home, the SAP Center in San Jose. Dan's broadcasting career began in the college ranks, as he provided play -by-play for his alma mater, St. Lawrence University from 1979 to 1986. From there he moved on the AHL, where he became the radio voice of the New Haven Nighthawks. Arriving in San Jose, he provided the play by play for the first 774 games of the Sharks existence, a streak that was snapped by a car accident. Upon returning to the booth after this experience, he has not missed a beat and has not looked back since. His 1000th Sharks broadcast occurred on March 21, 2004, in a game against Edmonton. He has also been featured on Westwood One doing play by play for the network's Game of the Week.

Dan produces all the broadcasts on the Sharks radio network, and he also runs and operates the network as well. He has been paired with several radio analysts over the years, the first one being Pete Stemkowski, the former New York Rangers forward. For the past several years he has worked with Jamie Baker, who like Dan was a St. Lawrence alum. Former NHL player Bret Hedican is Dan's current radio analyst, who was brought in for 2014-15, when Jamie Baker was moved to television to pair with Randy Hahn on the Sharks television network.

Dan's passion is hockey, but he has been involved in other sports as well, including baseball, as he has worked with the Oakland A's in a segment called Dan's Dugout, and Dan's Diamond Notes for KFOX radio (which is the flagship station for Sharks hockey). He is also a huge motor sports fan, as he has reported on numerous races including the San Jose Grand Prix, and has extensive knowledge of NASCAR and Formula One.

For his outstanding work on the air in Northern California, Dan was elected into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame in the sports category.

Here is a sample of Dan's work, as you can hear him describe Tomas Hertl's 4th goal of a Sharks game against the New York Rangers:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6T_Pa9YoPjo

And a feature where Dan discusses an important Sharks playoff moment. There are a few of his calls blended in here:

http://video.sharks.nhl.com/videocenter/console?id=598034

I have had the pleasure of tuning in to Dan on many occasions, and always enjoy doing so. If you would like to hear Dan's play by play on the Sharks broadcasts, check him out at http://www.kfox.com/ . You can also hear him by accessing Tune In radio on mobile devices. or by downloading the Sharks app, which gives you the ability to listen live through the listen live feature.



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