Joe Brand has been announced by Kevin Acklin, President of Business Operations, as the new radio play-by-play voice for the Pittsburgh Penguins Radio Network today.

Brand will be responsible for the play-by-play duties for all regular-season and playoff games of the Penguins. He will mostly be accompanied in the booth by Phil Bourque, a long-time color analyst and winner of the Stanley Cup twice. Paul Steigerwald will be back as the host for pre and post-game segments.

Acklin announced, “We are thrilled to welcome Joe Brand into the Penguins family and acquaint him with the finest fans in hockey. The Penguins have had the privilege of some of the greatest game commentators occupying that chair, and we anticipate Joe making his distinct impact here in Pittsburgh.”

The 33-year-old has now joined the Penguins, following a three-season tenure as a studio host and occasional play-by-play broadcaster with the Chicago Blackhawks on WGN Radio 720 AM. His main responsibilities in Chicago were hosting pre-game, intermission, and post-game shows for all of the Blackhawks’ regular season games. Additionally, he hosted a weekly radio show called ‘Blackhawks Live’.

Brand not only performed hosting duties but also acted as the primary play-by-play broadcaster for Blackhawks preseason and selected regular-season games. This was particularly true last season when John Wiedeman was unavailable. During these times, Brand worked in the booth with former NHL players Troy Murray and Hockey Hall-of-Famer Chris Chelios.

Not only is Brand skillful at calling hockey games, but he also has over ten years of experience in commentating on baseball, football, basketball, and other sports at both professional and collegiate levels. The native of Chicago, Illinois, has had the opportunity to commentate on select regular-season White Sox games on ESPN 1000 WMVP and also host their pre- and post-game shows. Additionally, he has collaborated with the Kane County Cougars from the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball, in the capacity of a radio and television broadcaster.

Brand graduated from Illinois State University, where he earned a degree in broadcast journalism.