Matt Buckler: Bob Neumeier was all about the passion

Oct. 28—Bob Neumeier had two strikes against him as a hockey announcer. He had an untrained voice and a Boston accent. He sounded like no one else in Connecticut.

Ask anyone who followed the New England Whalers on radio, however, from the team's move to Hartford in 1974 to its acceptance into the National Hockey league in 1979, and they'll tell you one voice stands out above all others — Bob Neumeier's.

Neumeier had a passion for broadcasting that more than made up for his flaws.

When the game turned into high drama, no one was better at getting people emotionally involved than Neumeier. He wasn't just fire on the ice, he was a towering inferno.

Neumeier died Sunday at 70 from congestive heart failure. He spent most of his career in Boston, and also covered horse racing and Olympic track and field for NBC.

It all started in Hartford in 1974, when Neumeier started with the Whalers at an entry-level position. He hosted a five-minute radio show every morning and also wrote stories for the program.

Bill Rasmussen, WWLP-22 alumni who would later go on to invent ESPN, was the team's director of broadcasting.

Neumeier filled in for Rasmussen on occasion and then took over the job full time.

That's when the magic started. His breakthrough game was considered to be the 1975 playoff game between the Whalers and the Minnesota Fighting Saints, known as "The Brawl at the Mall."

That one game, however, doesn't define him. Because so few games were televised at the time, Neumeier not only called the game, he taught the game to many people who were unfamiliar with the sport.

On road games he didn't have a color announcer — he didn't need one. Few were more knowledgeable about the game than Neumeier.

He also was creative. Players used to get two minute penalties for "No redeeming social value" or for "growling" at an opponent.

Neumeier was also known for his honesty. In the mid-'70s, many team announcers would stay away from negative stats. Neumeier pulled no punches.

Some of his descriptions were legendary, including "another senseless Marty Howe icing." Neumeier was there to call the game, not make friends.

Broadcasting, however, was only one part of Neumeier's life.

During an era when radio and TV people would stay away from sportswriters, Neumeier made friends with everyone. He figured we all had the same job.

One of his closest friends was former Journal Inquirer Sports Editor Randy Smith, who accompanied Neumeier on many excursions to places such as New Haven Teletheater and the Northampton Fair.

When the Whalers had a game in New York, the two were known to stop at Aqueduct to give them something to do in the daytime.

Neumeier was always fun to be around. Between races the conversation turned to sports, and no one knew more than Neumeier.

Neumeier never called a game in the NHL for the Hartford Whalers. When the World Hockey Association folded after the 1979 playoffs, Neumeier moved on to WFSB-TV3, where he was part of perhaps the best local sports team in the history of the Hartford market — Neumeier, Dave Smith, and Khambrel Marshall.

After a few years in Hartford, Neumeier went on to his dream job, anchoring sports at WBZ-TV4 in Boston.

He later worked for what is known now as NBC Sports Network Boston. He went back to hockey play-play play as the radio voice of the Boston Bruins.

He also was host of a Boston sports reporters show on WSBK-TV38 where he was the breath of fresh air among Boston homers such as Bob Ryan and Joe Fitzgerald.

Then he landed another dream job — an expert commentator for NBC's horse racing coverage. He was perfect for it. He always had something unique and he could say a lot in a short period of time. He was a great interviewer.

And it all started in Hartford, where Neumeier introduced the market to a new team and a new sport.

When Neumeier first was hired at Channel 3, one of his first assignments was to cover the final round of the Greater Hartford Open at the Wethersfield Country Club.

Neumeier tried to get into the press tent, but was stopped by a security guard who claimed that Neumeier didn't have the proper credential.

Then one of the writers in the tent shouted out, "Don't you know him? He's Bob Neumeier, voice of the Whalers," he quickly was allowed into the tent.

Neumeier accomplished great things in a 47-year broadcasting career.

For those who followed the Whalers in the WHA, however, he always will be remembered as the voice of the Whalers.

He didn't have the deep voice. And he didn't have the perfect accent. But he had the passion, and no one in Hartford ever had more.

Follow Matt Buckler for more television, radio, and sports coverage on the JI's Twitter @journalinquirer, and see his articles on the Journal Inquirer Facebook page.