TAMPA, Fla. - “Gooooooal”

NHL Hall of Famer Phil Esposito claims that sound wakes him up.

His radio partner Dave Mishkin energetic screams anytime the Tampa Bay Lightning score wake a lot of people up.

That’s because in the Lightning’s greatest moments, this duo’s voices speak for every fan.
Be the thunder. These guys are more like an all-out storm.

The Lightning radio broadcast team of Mishkin and Esposito have been providing play-by-play and color insight for nearly 20 years. Loyal listeners will tell you they’re the best. Why do they work so well together? Esposito will tell you.

“Let me answer that,” Esposito said. “Because he’s the boss up there. He does the play by play, that’s what it’s all about. The color guy, can add some things. I can get a little carried away sometimes.”

It’s the New York born, Boston raised Mishkin who sets the tone. He follows the puck, describing in detail the action on the ice.

“We, I think, share a belief that it’s about the game,” Mishkin said. “What is happening now. We’re sensing the ebbs and flows of the game and that’s what we focus on.”

Their chemistry is real. Lightning radio producer Steve Versnick said it works for a simple reason.

“They’re friends,” Versnick said. “There’s a genuine respect for each other. You can fake it short term. But to do it for as long as they have for nearly 20 years now, no you can’t fake that.”

The Lightning are a series win away from their second-straight Stanley Cup Final. It’s exciting times for Bolts fans. And the duo of Mishkin and Esposito are taking everyone along for the ride, one broadcast at a time.

“I think at the end of the day, we end up seeing the game the same way,” Mishkin said. “And maybe some of that is because we’ve called so many games together.”