Allen: Keating Tough Act to Follow as Detroit Broadcaster

Veteran broadcaster John Keating, a fixture on Detroit Red Wings’ telecasts, has announced his retirement at the end of the Detroit Red Wings season.

“It came down to this,” Keating said this morning on the social media site X. “There haven’t been enough sunsets with the family in Grand Haven on the Lake Michigan coast.”

Keating’s glib, entertaining, creative approach to the FanDuel Sports Network pre-game and post-game studio work has kept Detroit fans interested for years and years. He was strong in his preparation and always serious about reporting why the team was going well or why it wasn’t.

But he always makes sure we are having some fun, even if it just trading humorous insults with analyst Chris Osgood.

He will be a challenging act to follow.

There aren’t adequate words. Really. Keats is an all-time human being who’s had as much influence on my own career as anyone I’ve met in sports broadcasting. He was the first person to reach out in 2015 when I moved to Detroit. And he’s encouraged me seemingly every day since. https://t.co/oBBrgnvqMg

— Johnny Kane (@Johnny__Kane) December 20, 2024

As Keating, 67, grew older, his approach and material stayed fresh.  Fans found comfort in him sitting behind his desk. They knew he knew the team’s history. He understood the relationship between the fans and the team. That was true of both the Detroit Tigers and Red Wings.

“A couple of years ago,” Keating tweeted,  “I was out for a ginger ale with my boss, Jeff Byle, who is a long-time pal. And he graciously told me at the time, ‘You tell us when you want to be done. You’ve earned that.’

“Trust me,” Keating added. “In this business, that’s as good as it gets,”

Keating, owner of numerous Emmy awards, is from Madison Heights. He attended Grand Valley State University. His time covering the Tigers and Red Wings dates to working first for PASS. He then was with Fox Detroit through the naming change to Bally Sports and now FanDuel Sports Network