An entertaining little column from The Pitch in Kansas City:
Pittsburgh Penguins owner Mario Lemieux held a press conference Wednesday morning to announce that his team would be stepping up negotiations with Kansas City officials. But later, in the same press conference, Lemieux reiterated his interest in staying in Pittsburgh and said that “Kansas City reeks of sewage” and playing hockey there “would be like starting a cricket team in Brooklyn.”
Lemieux began the press conference by saying that the team would relocate to Kansas City if a deal couldn’t be reached with Pittsburgh. The former hockey great then stuck out his right pinky finger, jutted it in the corner of his mouth and slowly uttered, “Or will we?”
I read an interesting post on the New York Metroblog on Monday that got me thinking about ESPN television’s apparent disinterest in the NHL.
I usually prefer to bring up ESPN only when there’s a choice reason to make fun of that network—they certainly provide me with enough opportunities (competitive dominoes anyone? or how about fantasy fishing?!). But today I’m considering the more serious aspects of ESPN’s dominance in sports television coverage.
As NY Metroblogger Chris Baldwin asks, “If a sporting event takes place and ESPN doesn’t have a stake in it, did it really happen?”
What happens when a nice Canadian hockey goalie needs something to do during the off season?
This video made me laugh out loud half a dozen times. Destined to be a classic—or it damn well should be.
*Hat-tip to As Canadian as Possible, through which we found this video by a trackback on another post. ** The creator of this film short is George Plamondon
Everything to do with the trade deadline is competitive in the NHL media, most especially between the two major Canadian sports networks: TSN.ca and Sportsnet.ca. Both are providing live coverage through the day tomorrow, each hoping to predict, break and analyze trades better than the other.
They’ve got some very different ideas on how to do that, but they have some tactics in common—in particular, text message alerts for fans. The SMS text messages are meant to be sent out with updates on trades as they happen, keeping hockey fans up to date, even if they can’t get near a radio or television on Tuesday.
Which one is better? I’ve read the info online and subscribed to both of them now. Here are the pros and cons as I see them:
When Anson Carter got traded from the Columbus Blue Jackets to the Carolina Hurricanes this week, he found himself repacking his overused luggage to move on to play for the 8th team of his career.
The list so far: Washington Capitals, Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Carolina Hurricanes. Robert Lefebvre at Eyes on the Prize also notes that he was originally drafted by the Quebec Nordiques, then moved over to the Colorado Avalanche, adding another organization to the list.
Needless to say, Anson Carter owns sturdy luggage. So what next?
Hockey fans don’t have to play hooky on NHL Trade Deadline Day.
For eight consecutive hours, TSN’s coverage of trade day will be available live on TV, and streamed online over the Internet.
Three of the Top 10 busiest days in TSN.ca history have occurred on NHL Trade Deadline Day.
Fans who watch on TSN Broadband won’t miss any of the action, the specialty service describes, as TSN’s television coverage will be streamed for eight consecutive hours – including interviews with players/coaches, analysis, reaction and commentary.
Great news for Canadian fans away from their televisions on a work day, but I’m uncertain about whether non-Canadians will be limited in their access via foreign IP connections. But it’s safe to guess that it could be an issue.
TSN has been taking on some innovative ideas in their hockey coverage this year. I wonder what the competition at Sportsnet is up to?
I read an interesting post on the 