Longtime NHL Kings broadcaster Bob Miller tomorrow is expected to announce that he will "retire from his play-by-play duties" after 44 seasons, according to Helene Elliott of the L.A. TIMES. Miller, 78, "suffered a mild stroke" during All-Star weekend festivities in L.A. in January, a year after he had "undergone quadruple bypass surgery." His heart operation led him to "work a reduced schedule this season and to limit his travel, but even a lighter workload appeared to tax him." Miller, who was honored with the Hockey HOF's Foster Hewitt Memorial Award in '00, is "likely to maintain a connection to the Kings’ organization in some capacity, and to the extent he feels comfortable for as long as he wants to be involved." The Kings "hired an array of announcers to fill in for him earlier this season" and recently brought in Ralph Strangis, a former play-by-play announcer for the Stars, to "work alongside Miller’s broadcast partner of 27 seasons, TV analyst Jim Fox" (L.A. TIMES, 3/1).
STEALING THE MOMENT? In L.A., Tom Hoffarth asked what the L.A. TIMES story on Miller's expected retirement is "based on ... Speculation? Sources?" The Kings have scheduled a "major announcement" for tomorrow afternoon on Miller's future, and Hoffarth asked of the Times story: "What’s the point of writing it that way? Sure, if that’s what it’s going to be, they’re going to take that opportunity away from Miller? Stay classy" (INSIDESOCAL.com, 2/28).
