Ken Kal

Background

Kalczynski would watch his father get laid-off continuously as a tool and die maker and did not want to follow in those footsteps.

Education

He interned at WNIC radio in 1979, then graduated from Wayne State.

Career

Kal"s first season was with WJR and he now can be heard giving the play-by-play for every Wings game on 97.1 FM "The Ticket" along with Paul Woods. At Wayne State University he auditioned for an on-air position with WAYN, the closed-circuit radio station on campus. He struggled early on.

However, it sparked his interest in broadcasting and at WAYN he went by "Ken Kal" on the air.

He was hired by WAAM radio in Ann Arbor, Michigan to be a board operator for University of Michigan football games. In January 1980, he became a weekend radio personality for the station.

In 1984, the radio station acquired he rights to University of Malaya Hockey. Kal was hired to be the play-by-play announcer.

Kal had a difficult time keeping up with the fast-paced action of the game, but continued to improve.

Kalczynski held that position for the next 11 years on both WAAM and WTKA.

In 1995, Kal switched over to the National Hockey League, replacing the legendary Bruce Martyn, who retired after 31 years as the play-by-play voice for the Detroit Red Wings. In the booth he joined former NHLer Paul Woods, who had previously worked with Martyn. He has called three more Cup wins and the milestone goals of several hall of fame ice hockey players.

In addition to his broadcast duties, Kal represents the Red Wings in the community, often visiting schools or business groups, hosting team events and playing for the Wings charity softball team

Kal is a contributing writer to the team"s official magazine, "Inside Hockeytown". Rounding out his administrative duties, Ken also works with the broadcast department to expand the Red Wings radio network and maintain affiliate relations.

lieutenant was the first baseball game Kal had announced in his career.

Achievements

• In his second year, he called the Red Wings" first Stanley Cup victory in 42 years. He received the DSBA’s Ty Tyson Award for broadcast excellence in 2007.