“I am deeply saddened” – Keith Olbermann pays tribute to Larry Brooks after Hockey Hall of Fame journalist dies at 75
Keith Olbermann, TV personality and host of GQ’s ‘The Resistance’, photographed in New York City on February 7, 2017. (Photo by Chris Sorensen for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
On Thursday, November 13, journalist Larry Brooks passed away at the age of 75. Brooks, who was a hockey columnist for The New York Post, had also been the recipient of the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award from the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018.
The Larry Brooks-John Tortorella run-ins were a thing of legend.
Rest in peace, Brooksie pic.twitter.com/wOpEXC723P
— Mike Beauvais (@MikeBeauvais) November 13, 2025
Keith Olbermann, who is a fellow journalist and sportscaster, was shocked at the news of Brooks’ passing, and paid a tribute to him in an X post, writing:
“I am deeply saddened to have to post this. Larry Brooks was once a baseball best guy here and considerate to punk kids like me 46 long years ago. He has been a friend and a constant support. My profoundest condolences to all others who loved him”
Per the NYPost, Larry’s death came after a brief battle with cancer. The sports journalist had worked with the media outlet for 38 years on two tenures. Brooks’ death comes five years after his wife, Janis, passed away in 2020. He is survived by his son, Jordan, daughter-in-law, Joanna, and two grandchildren, Scott and Reese.
“Earned a place among the legends”: NY Post executive sports editor Chris Shaw honors Larry Brooks
In the wake of Larry’s death, his colleague, Chris Shaw, the executive sports editor at the NYPost, paid a tribute to the journalist by saying:
“For the last three decades, no one covered a sports beat in this city better than Larry did on the Rangers. Well before the Hockey Hall of Fame enshrined him, Larry had already earned a place among the legends who have graced the pages of The Best Sports in Town.”
Brooks was equally respected by the athletes he covered as well. Sean Avery, a former left-wing player for the Rangers, said about him:
“I like to think that I was a guy who could change the momentum of a game when I came on the ice. Brooksie could do that with the swipe of his pen. The guys that really understood playing for the Rangers all had a good relationship with Brooksie because he loves hockey players.”
Mark Everson, who was Brooks’ fellow hockey writer at the paper for years, and also his friend, said about him:
“He was the best hockey writer of the past 50 years… He said he was lucky to get to The Post, but The Post was even luckier to have him.”
It’s no surprise that Larry Brooks also had friends beyond his workplace, one of whom was James Dolan – the CEO and executive chairman of MSG Sports.
Remembering the journalist, Dolan recounted how the two of them would occasionally catch up with Brooks giving him “his unabashed opinion on how the franchise was doing and what we needed to do to win”. While these thoughts of Larry’s never appeared on his NYPost columns, they were treasured by Dolan, who said he will “miss it dearly”.
