from Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press,
Paul Woods remembers his early days in the radio booth were quiet ones. The Detroit Red Wings had called and offered him the chance to be color commentator, and he was happy to do so because he wasn't doing anything else.
But sitting next to Bruce Martyn and speaking up wasn't as easy as it sounded for the former player.
"I was thinking a lot of things, but not saying them," Woods told the Free Press. "I wasn’t very good. That’s the best way to describe it, and that was for a long time, too. Then all of a sudden it just started to change."
Woods replaced Paul Chapman as color analyst to Martyn, the play-by-play announcer, in 1987. Nearly four decades later, Woods will be celebrating his 3,000th game as commentator Monday when the Wings host the Los Angeles Kings.
"I’m still excited for every game," Woods said.
continued
Woods has a different way of phrasing. Something like this. Ex. "He really needs to play a consistently responsible game if he wants to stay in the line-up, Filip Zadina".
Congratulations to Paul Woods, who I often good-naturedly poke fun at. Trying to get a word in on the great Bruce Martyn must have been difficult. Martyn was one of the great and dominant radio play by play talents. I approached Martyn for his autograph in my game program after a Sunday game in DC almost 30 years ago, waiting for him to record the quick wrap-up that would be played on WJR the next morning. When he finished I got his autograph and he said, Dont you want Paul Woods too? (Woods was still seated next to him). I hadnt really considered it but certainly said Yes, please."
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