Faust out as TV play-by-play voice

Kings fans’ broadcast experience changed dramatically Monday when the team announced that it would be transitioning to a simulcast and that television play-by-play announcer Alex Faust would not return next season.

“It’s gratifying that the hardest thing I’ve done today is keep up with the avalanche of well-wishes. It’s truly overwhelming,” Faust said via phone.

The simulcast will feature the heretofore radio play-by-play man Nick Nickson alongside analyst Jim Fox and another former King, Darryl Evans, whose role will shift from radio analyst to simulcast “personality.”

The Kings released a statement Monday affirming their confidence in the “experienced and formidable” group of broadcasters who will work the simulcasts. They reiterated that there was no further information regarding the organization’s broadcast rights and content distribution for the upcoming campaign.

“The LA Kings sincerely thank Alex Faust for representing the organization and our community with dignity and class over the last six years,” the statement read. “Alex is an extremely talented and passionate broadcaster with a bright future in the NHL and sports on the whole. We wish him the utmost success in the years ahead.”

This severance occurred amid myriad uncertainties in the local sports broadcasting landscape around the country, largely due to developments in the bankruptcy proceedings of Bally Sports’ parent company Diamond Sports Group. Recent rulings regarding the company’s agreements with Major League Baseball might have been the strongest signal yet that broadcasts rights to 45 franchises across four leagues — including the

Kings, Ducks and Clippers — are in peril for Diamond. Major League Baseball already assumed control of the San Diego Padres’ rights, a potential harbinger of similar flux for the other Bally-affiliated franchises.

“The regional sports TV business is in serious distress, and Los Angeles is one of the many markets affected,” Faust said in a Tweet. “The team is currently without a TV rightsholder partner for next season, and I was told my role was a casualty of the current climate.”

Faust, 34, had been in the position since 2017, filling the shoes of Bob Miller, who for more than four decades was to the Kings what Chick Hearn was to the Lakers or Vin Scully was to the Dodgers. Faust said that he left his post with his “head held high,” and was especially proud of the Kings’ newfound success in the Los Angeles area Emmys during his tenure.