ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester Americans are preparing to say goodbye to Don Stevens, the voice of the Amerks, who is retiring at the end of the season.
A 57-year play-by-play vet, Don Stevens has spent 40 seasons in Rochester.
“This is something I’m doing till I figure out what I’m going to do when I grow up and I never grew up,” Stevens said.
While Don has yet to grow up, thousands of Amerks fans have grown up listening to his voice.
“The number of people that come up to me that I look at them and think, ‘well, you got to be ten years older than I am’ and they’re say, ‘oh, I’ve listened to you since I was a little baby’ and I go ‘wait a minute,'” Stevens joked.
To those who know him, it’s no wonder the city has taken to Don.
“A great colleague, a mentor, friend, and, let’s face it, he’s a legend,” said Jody Gage, the franchise’s all-time leader in goals, assists, points, and games played, said
Gage is another one of the faces of the franchise, and who’s known Don for four decades.
“He’s almost sort of like an assistant coach, so he’s a part of the team. And then he had to be a broadcaster. So he was truly a teammate,” Gage said, remembering their first season together in the 1986-1987 campaign.
At the end of that season, Gage and the Amerks won the franchise’s fifth Calder Cup in Stevens’ first year in the booth.
“Yeah I don’t wanna say it was downhill from there, but it’s almost been downhill from there,” Stevens joked.
Admittedly, the dry humor of Don Stevens is self-depricating.
“I listen to myself and it’s like chalk on a blackboard to me,” Stevens said.
Stevens said he doesn’t really understand why he is being celebrated. He called the attention “mind boggling.”
Gage praised Stevens’ ability to paint a picture for listeners. “The way he calls a game, you can visualize being there,” Gage said.
Stevens has called thousands of Amerks games, including two Calder Cup championships, and has made the choice to stay in Rochester despite opportunities elsewhere.
“I had a goal at some point earlier on in my career of being in the major leagues, and I had touch base with major league team teams and some different sports. And, I always thought that I would be there, had some good offers. I was offered to do the L.A. Kings, when I was 29 years old and and for personal reasons, I had to turn it down,” Stevens said.
Stevens said he now understands what players mean when they talk about what they’ll miss most. “When I ask and talk to players and do interviews with them and coaches and all that and ask the same question, what are you going to miss? It’s always I’m going to miss the locker room. I’m going to miss my teammates, going to miss, the camaraderie. I get that answer all the time. But now I’m in that position and it’s true,” Stevens said. “What else is there to miss?”
Don Stevens Bids Farewell | Taking a look at the legendary Amerks broadcaster’s career WHEC.com.
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