Buffalo Sabres play-by-play man Rick Jeanneret was almost the victim of an uncommon workplace hazard during Tuesday night’s broadcast of the Sabres’ game against the Los Angeles Kings.
Jeanneret was forced to call the game from ice level, situated between the team benches, after the elevator at First Niagara Center responsible for taking people to the press box was broken.
“This all started out as a lark,” he said during the MSG broadcast. “The elevator that services the press box was broken down when I arrived at the building this afternoon, around 2:30. So I said, ‘Well OK, we’ll just do it between the benches with Rob Ray.’ At the moment that I said it, I was kidding. Well, not anymore.”
Jeanneret may have been joking about the broadcast, but he took his safety very seriously. He donned a helmet and face shield for the duration of the game that the Sabres equipment staff had marked with “RJ” on the front.
It was a good thing he decided to wear the helmet, too, because during the second period, Kings forward Jordan Nolan was checked into the boards and went flying into the space where Jeanneret was, nearly tackling the announcer. Coincidentally, the Sabres hired Nolan’s father, Ted Nolan, as their interim coach Wednesday.
Check it out below.
