Hall of Fame broadcaster Ted Darling, the voice of the Buffalo Sabres for more than 21 years, died Thursday at the age of 61. Darling had suffered for five years from Pick's Disease, an Alzheimer's-like degenerative illness.
He broadcast Sabres' games from their expansion season of 1970-71 until 1991. Darling was behind the microphone for virtually every great moment in franchise history, including Buffalo's lone appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals in 1975 and Gilbert Perreault's 500th career goal on March 9, 1986. Darling won the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1994, one year after he was inducted into the team's Hall of Fame. The Sabres honored Darling with a moment of silence before Friday night's game against the Los Angeles Kings.
