Flyers analyst Coates 'gratified' ahead of retirement after 43 years

Steve Coates says he knew it was time to hang up his skates in 1980 because of "illness."

"I had kind of retired from hockey, quite frankly, for health reasons," he said. "When I was in Syracuse (of the American Hockey League), they were sick of me."
It's that kind of humor that helped Coates become a beloved Philadelphia Flyers icon during his 43 years as a television and radio broadcaster. His final broadcast will be when the Flyers visit the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCH, NBCSP, ESPN+, SN NOW).
Coates announced March 24 that this would be his final season because of problems with his right eye. The Flyers honored the 72-year-old during a pregame ceremony April 1, titled "Coatsey's Last Call," and players wore No. 43 jerseys with Coatsey on the back during warmups ahead of their 6-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres.
"If you had told me that I was going to be a broadcaster for the Philadelphia Flyers for 40-some years, you got no chance," Coates said. "It's surreal. I can't even put my finger on how I feel. I just feel so gratified at the whole thing but humbled at the same time."
Coates' broadcasting career began when the Flyers hired him as a radio color analyst for 30 games in 1980-81, where he worked with Hockey Hall of Fame member Gene Hart.
But those 30 games nearly got cut to one.
"I was surprised I didn't get fired the first game working with Gene Hart when I spilled coffee all over his notes," Coates said.
Despite his soggy origins, Coates persevered and grew into a comfort zone as a broadcaster that allowed him to seamlessly move from radio to television, and back to radio for the last several seasons. The one constant throughout has been his unique sense of humor mixed with the knowledge of a hockey lifer who played seven seasons professionally, including five games for the Detroit Red Wings in 1976-77.
"I'm representing the guy sitting and drinking a beer in a recliner at home," Coates said. "And that's what it's about."
Coates credited the three play-by-play broadcasters he worked with for helping him -- Hart, Jim Jackson on television and his current radio partner, Tim Saunders.
"Play by play and color in hockey, it's set/spike," Coates said. "Play-by-play sets, color spikes. And I was fortunate enough to work with three play-by-play guys that were really, really good."

Saunders called working with Coates, "kind of a trip."
"You never know what's going to come out of his mouth, what he's thinking, what he's looking at, so it kind of keeps you on your toes a little bit," Saunders said. "But the best part about Coatsey is he's got the sense of humor. He doesn't mind if I bust his chops about anything and we kind of go back and forth and do that with each other. And that makes it fun.
"He's a legend. He can't go anywhere where there are Flyers fans without being recognized, and it's fun."
Some of those fans grow up to be NHL players, like Philadelphia defenseman Tony DeAngelo, who was a Flyers fan growing up in nearby Sewell, New Jersey.
"You always liked him as a commentator, it was funny and stuff, and now I get to know him as a guy," DeAngelo said. "I actually met him in Carolina last year in the press box, I introduced myself to him when I saw him walking around up there when I was hurt.
"Getting to know him and interact with him has been great after growing up watching him."
In addition to his game-night work, Coates for many years hosted a between-periods TV segment during Flyers games called "Coatsey's Corner." The segments would range from being on the ice with players showcasing various hockey skills, to silly skits where Coates would play Santa Claus giving gifts to players, or one based on him "dreaming" about being the center on a line with Simon Gagne and Claude Giroux, who hilariously criticized Coates between shifts in French.
"We had an opportunity to start doing this and it evolved into something that was educational, we talked about history of the League," Coates said. "It was funny and what was good about the funniness is it really allowed the fans to see a player in a different light. And we had a lot of fun with it. And the players had a lot of fun with it."
Fun was the centerpiece of everything Coates did, on the air and off, and that earned him a special place among Flyers fans. He was swarmed for autographs and pictures during the
Flyers Charities Carnival
at Wells Fargo Center on March 26, and when he traveled to PPL Center in nearby Allentown, Pennsylvania, to watch his alma mater, Michigan Tech, play in the NCAA Tournament.
Retiring from broadcasting won't take Coates away from the fans who adore him. He plans on staying busy, including lots of golf and making appearances with the Flyers alumni association.
"He always has time for everybody," Flyers public address announcer Lou Nolan said. "When somebody says, 'Hey Coatsey,' he'll stop and talk to them. He won't blow anybody off. He's just a great guy who is one of those people that you say to yourself after you meet him, 'That guy's a good man, I wish I'd known him longer.'"