The Pittsburgh Penguins have parted ways with longtime broadcaster Bob Grove, according to a report first filed by Josh Yohe of DKPittsburghSports.com and confirmed by the Pittsburgh Sporting News.
Grove had been with the team since 1998, serving as the host of the pregame, intermission and postgame shows on the team’s broadcast network, which currently airs on WXDX-FM.
“I’m very disappointed,” he told DKPittsburghSports.com. “But I want to thank the Penguins organization for treating me so well along the way.”
Grove is one of the team’s preeminent historians, having covered the team since the early 1980s with the Washington Observer-Reporter. In 1997, he published a book on the team: Pittsburgh Penguins: The Official History of the First 30 Years.
Grove’s contributions to the broadcast often brought a frame of historical reference to the current day’s events, and the good-natured and friendly demeanor in which he interacted with players and callers alike will certainly be missed.
He also heavily contributed to the team’s 24/7 HD radio channel and was the team’s backup play-by-play radio broadcaster.
Grove has also been the vice president of public relations for Comcast since 2008. Before that, he was the director of media relations for the Port Authority of Allegheny County.
The Penguins have posted the job opening on the NHL’s website, but have not otherwise commented on the decision to remove Grove from their broadcast team, nor have they commented on the status of the team’s other broadcasters.
Photo credit: Pittsburgh Penguins
