NBC Playoff Dates Through The Conference Quarters

NBC released further playoff dates for the 2011 chase for the Stanley Cup. Nothing out of the ordinary, but here is what we know:

April 16, 1PM ET
April 17, 3PM ET
April 23, 3PM ET
April 24, 3PM ET

I’ll keep following how NBC maps out it’s playoff dates throughout the rest of the Spring.

NHL Overtime Now Doing a Complete Show For the Night Owls, and Other Solid VERSUS Changes

I never did get as much info as I hoped for from my trip to Washington, though now I’ve stretched it into a second day, so I guess that’s a victory. However, there is something else that struck me hockey-wise that happened, just by luck and circumstance.

During the trip, I stayed at my uncle’s house in Baltimore, and after a night out, I got home around 1AM. I hung around for a little bit to update the website, then turned on the 2AM run of VERSUS’ NHL Overtime, mostly because I like to keep tabs on the country’s only American-produced nightly NHL highlight show. Though it did settle in with me as I sat down to watch it that it was a rerun, and therefore, would not include highlights of the Vancouver-San Jose game, which was “epic” from what I’d heard, but started late and ended well after the 11PM run of Overtime’s midnight ending. So I sat and expected to be disappointed.

However, the exact opposite happened. As affable host Liam McHugh went into what I thought would be a short Vancouver-San Jose update, it turned out to be the highlights of the entire game. Was I dreaming? Had my uncle’s cable somehow managed to get NHL Network in the few hours I was gone? I watched again on Monday night, and that too had updates of late games, and the same tonight. VERSUS has now made it so that the 2AM ET rerun of NHL Overtime is the complete wrap-up of the night in hockey. I tweeted McHugh about it, and was told they’d been doing it for awhile.

Now, there is a drawback in that the analysts are not there to break it down, but until VERSUS takes the plunge on an additional live show, or moves the show to, say, 1AM ET permanently (and it essentially will once the post-season begins) this is the best we can get, and frankly, it isn’t too bad. Just good that the show doesn’t seem like a wasted watch during it’s late night (or early morning, as an additional repeat shows at 8AM ET) airing.

In addition, I love the way they’ve tinkered with Hockey Central’s pre-game editions, which used to be a largely studio-based operation. Now, from my count, more than half the show features some element from the arena, whether it be analyst/reporters doing interviews, or a play-by-play man breaking down some statistics, or just having the studio guys talk during the On-Ice Live segment, much of the show is becoming an actual pre-game to the contest you’re about to see and less an attempt to force debate and issues. Again, this is a great idea.

Another new VERSUS wrinkle was shown off last night: for the first time since, I believe, the opening night of OLN’s coverage of the National Hockey League (when Jack Edwards was in Tampa Bay, as well as Bob Harwood in another city) they had a reporter located at a game VERSUS was not airing – in this case, Rangers/Islanders. John Boruk provided inside info from the Garden. This is a terrific idea, especially in such a jumbled Eastern Conference where every game can mean something. Hopefully, this is a chance for Bob Harwood to run out the string, as he mentioned when he’d been let go. Maybe instead of forcing chatter during six intermission reports of playoff games, we can get reporters doing live hits from games on off nights. It’d be cool for VERSUS to have a reporter at all eight Stanley Cup Playoff match-ups.

For now though, the edited in NHL Overtime and this experiment is enough to show that VERSUS is progressing since the merger with NBC, and continually in ways that are for the better, at least for hockey fans.

Your Announcers and Open Thread For Canes-Sabres

Carolina vs. Buffalo, 7:30 PM ET, VERSUS (HD)
Play by Play: John Forslund
Color: Eddie Olczyk
Inside the Glass: Brian Engblom

How Would MLSE Sale Change Canadian Media?

From Jared Clinton at 2 For Boarding:

After months of speculation from media outlets about when, and if, the OTPP would actually pull the trigger on the sale and move their stake in MLSE, the deliberation finally came to a head. La Presse reported early Saturday morning that OTPP has, in fact, looked into unloading their majority stake in the sports most valuable franchise. The supposed price-tag? 1.3 billion dollars for a stake of two-thirds. Though MLSE encapsulates far more than just the Leafs, they are the most important asset to the aptly named company.

But what does this mean for the game?

This could signal more than just a sale of the most polarizing of all Canadian sports teams. For the sports fan north of 45, the potential sale has lead to talks of a potential monopoly of the sports media market.

To use financial terms, the current viewership of the game in Canada is oligopolistic. We have three main networks which control our viewing; CBC (with it’s flagship broadcast Hockey Night in Canada), TSN, and Sportsnet. While the CBC is government owned, TSN and Sportsnet are privately owned and publicly traded companies that could have much to gain from the purchase of an incredible asset such as the MLSE. Bell Media*, the corporation set to own all assets involved with the television side of what was formerly CTVglobemedia, is the primary owner of all things TSN, including all affiliate stations. While TSN may be considered by those in the eastern provinces as the greatest power and at the forefront of hockey media, out west the tip of the hat often goes to Sportsnet — the station owned by media giant Rogers Communications — which boasts regional coverage that panders to the local fan and features programming specifically for those located in their markets.

The NHL Must Prepare For A Sports Landscape All to Itself in 2011-12

I’m not here to pretend I understand anything about what’s going on with the potential of a season-impeding NFL lockout. Here’s what I know: if they don’t play, I don’t have work on Sundays. More importantly, however, it leaves a massive void in the sports and sports television landscape on Sunday, afternoons in particular, where two separate networks dedicate 4-8 hours per Sunday on NFL football, while another dedicates 4+ more in primetime, as one of the most popular network television programs in the country.

As little as I understand about the NFL’s labor situation, I understand even less about the NBA’s. Here’s what I do know: if there is an NBA lockout that takes any time out of their season in addition to the NFL having problems, it leaves the National Hockey League with the sports world to itself once the World Series ends, save for college football, which rarely runs over. It’s an opportunity, folks, one that we may never have again.

The goal for the NHL is to be aggressive. Be very aggressive. The 1998-99 NBA season did not start until February, and the National Hockey League did little to nothing to take advantage of it via television or in appealing to their fans. However, times were different then: the league was in a lame duck television contract with FOX (who were busy cutting games instead of adding them). This time, they’ll have relative labor peace, and a new television deal with potentially an added network (whether it’s ESPN or Turner) that will need to fill tons of hours of programming due to the lack of basketball and football.

This is my way of telling, no, imploring the NHL: create a schedule that prepares for there to be no other sports with it in the fall. Throw a ton of games on Sundays to garner attention from fans looking for a game to check out on their day off that would typically spent either at an NFL game, or at the bar watching them. Discount the Sunday games to remind fans that the players and owners have at least a public face of peace and wanting to “play for the fans.”

Get NBC, VERSUS, and whoever else is televising the National Hockey League involved. Put more hockey on network television than ever before, and put it on while the NFL and NBA are gone. Take advantage of this chance to have people paying attention to hockey in October, November and December like never before. Build success into the Winter Classic instead of having to build it off of the Winter Classic.

And don’t do this simply before the NBA or NFL returns. If the NBA comes back in January again, be even more aggressive. Make sure the NHL on NBC airs every Sunday. Don’t give the competition a week off, and see if you can build something against the NBA On ABC. Maybe the NBA would return to fantastic ratings, but with NHL ratings sitting at the bottom of the totem poll (and not growing on broadcast like it is on cable) why not try something new? Air doubleheaders with regional coverage, give a chance to grant every team in the league that deserves it a national profile, something teams like Los Angeles, Buffalo, San Jose and others outside the big NBC 7 or so teams haven’t had before.

(Incidentally, let me use this as my chance for the day to implore that NBC air Chicago-Tampa Bay as the NHL Game of the Week on April 3rd. Thanks guys!)

Look, I know I’m an optimist. Maybe the NFL could come back sooner than anyone thinks, or maybe not miss time at all, and the NHL would be stuck with 12-13,000 crowds in every market for three months. They could get burned. But the planets are aligning for hockey like never before, and they stand to gain nothing if they spend an NBA- and NFL-less fall and winter in a holding pattern.

Your Announcers and Open Thread For Sharks-Blackhawks

San Jose vs. Chicago, 8:00 PM ET, VERSUS (HD)
Play by Play: Mike Emrick
Color: Eddie Olczyk
Inside the Glass: Pierre McGuire

Caps Set New Ratings Milestone

Via Dan Steinberg:

When this Caps season ends, there will be another blog post about another year of record ratings. In the meantime, we can take the milestones as they come.

So here’s another one. Two seasons ago, the Caps’ local broadcasts on Comcast SportsNet didn’t hit the 2.0 ratings mark until the playoffs. Last season, the Caps hit at least 2.0 14 times in their 76 CSN broadcasts.

Well, Friday’s game against the Hurricanes averaged a 2.18 on CSN in the D.C. market, good for about 51,000 homes., according to Nielsen data. That was the 15th time the Caps have hit at least 2.0 this season, which is obviously something that’s never happened before. And they needed just 59 broadcasts to get there.

 

 

Should NBC Pick Tampa-Chicago for Game of the Week After First Match-up Draws Good Numbers For VERSUS?

This story is going to be Part 1 of my campaign this week to get NBC to choose Tampa Bay vs. Chicago as the April 3rd Game of the Week over Rangers-Flyers and Wild-Red Wings. I can’t honestly say I’ll have any further arguments on the case, but I think this could make a pretty strong point. However, it will likely be a better game than either of the other two, and the numbers for the two teams’ first game this season shows that there is a substantial interest in both outside of local markets.

VERSUS’ “bonus” telecast of the Wednesday night game between Chicago and Tampa Bay drew 285,000 viewers. The game did not air on VERSUS in Chicago, though it did in Tampa Bay. Comcast Sportsnet aired the game in the Windy City. This was the most-watched game of the season on VERSUS when either local market had been blacked out. The only prior bonus game even close to Wednesday night was the much-ballyhooed Montreal-Boston grudge match on February 9th, which scored 263,000 viewers.

The Wednesday night broadcast drew nearly as many viewers as the network’s two exclusive games that week, Washington-Tampa Bay (341,000 viewers) and Colorado-Minnesota (299,000). The episode of Hockey Central that aired after Blackhawks-Lightning had higher viewers (125,000) than the episode that aired after the games on Monday (111,000) or Tuesday (120,000). Tuesday night drew the most viewers of the week for NHL Overtime (45,000). The game out-drew 23 exclusive VERSUS games this season.

So, here you are NBC. 285,000 folks who were either Tampa fans, out-of-town fans or were just curious to check out the Blackhawks and Lightning watched. You can pick another potential snoozer between the Rangers and Flyers, another re-peat, somewhat dull pick in Wild-Red Wings, or you can take this. Give Steven Stamkos a national platform for the first time in his career, show a team outside of your typical 7 (Rangers, Flyers, Penguins, Capitals, Bruins, Red Wings, Blackhawks) that really deserves the stage and a chance to get the same 0.8 final rating that the league seems to get whether they have an “established” match-up or not.

Do the correct thing and get this game on the air.

(Source: Son of the Bronx)

Hawks/Caps on NBC Down From Last Year, Even with Last Week

According to Sports Business Daily (reg. required), the NBC broadcast of Blackhawks-Capitals on Sunday afternoon drew an 0.9 overnight rating, down 10% from the similar broadcast last year (WSH/CHI, 3/14/10: 1.0) though drawing the same as the NHL On NBC broadcast last week (PHI/NYR, 3/6/11: 0.9). This marks the third sub-1.0 overnight rating of the season for NBC, and the third in four weeks. The only sports programs that drew lower ratings on network TV this weekend were the Atlantic-10 Championship, the U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix, and a Daytona 500 special.

Everything took a hit this weekend because of college hoops. The NBA drew only a 1.7 on ABC for Magic-Suns, which may be an all time low for the league on that network, and was down 43% from last year. College basketball dominated the weekend, and the time change (couple with the fact the game was airing at 11:30 in Chicago anyway) may have hurt NBC as well.

The NHL on NBC has an average 1.2 overnight rating to this point in the season, down 8% from a 1.3 at this point last season. The NHL On NBC returns with Rangers-Penguins next Sunday at 12:30 PM ET.

NHL On NBC Overnights This Season
January 1 – Washington vs. Pittsburgh: 2.8
January 23 – Philadelphia vs. Chicago: 1.1
February 6 – Pittsburgh vs. Washington: 1.0
February 13 – Boston vs. Detroit: 0.9
February 20 – Regional Coverage*: 1.2
February 20 – Pittsburgh vs. Chicago*: 1.2
March 6 – Philadelphia vs. NY Rangers: 0.9
March 13 – Chicago vs. Washington: 0.9
Season-to-Date Average: 1.2

NHL on NBC Overnights for 2009-10 Season

Jan. 1, Philadelphia vs. Boston*: 2.6
Jan. 17, Chicago vs. Detroit: 0.8
Jan. 24, Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia: 1.3
Jan. 31, Detroit vs. Pittsburgh: 1.2
Feb. 7, Pittsburgh vs. Washington: 1.3
Mar. 7, Detroit vs. Chicago: 1.2 
Mar. 14, Washington vs. Chicago: 1.0
Season-to-Date-Average: 1.3

 

Milbury and McGuire Talk Fighting

Courtesy of NBC, here’s Pierre McGuire and Mike Milbury’s conversation on hits to the head and fighting during the first intermission of NBC’s telecast of Chicago-Washington on the Game of the Week Sunday:

Milbury on Zdeno Chara’s hit on Max Pacioretty: “This collision crystallized all of the players concerns about getting hurt. Too many concussions, too many injuries. The GMs have got to decide about what’s an acceptable level of risk for players in the NHL, whether it’s hitting or any other aspect of the game. And they’re not going to get it done at the meetings down in Florida this week. They’re going to have to: put together a blue ribbon committee to make some recommendations; take their time over the summer; and revisit the rules they made in 2004 that changed the game. (There is) so much speed, 40 percent more hitting (today) than in 2004. Concussions are off the charts. “They’ve got to look at the equipment, the playing surface, and they definitely have to take a look at how the players get educated to this stuff because ultimately they’re responsible. One thing they can go to the meetings and come away with immediately is make this one simple change: take away the partitions…get the things out of there so the players don’t run into them. They do that all the time. The Pacioretty hit, which is deemed not suspendible, never would have happened if those things aren’t there.”

McGuire: “I agree with you in terms of the partitions. Last winter during the Olympic Games in Vancouver I worked about 45 games (most from the inside-the-glass position). There was never any glass between the two benches. There was no problem. I worked a game last year in the National Hockey League between the Florida Panthers and the Montreal Canadiens. There was never a problem with no glass. That’s the first big step. “But I also think there’s another step they have to go to. They really have to get rid of this seamless glass…Get rid of it.”

Milbury: “All around. And one step more. There going to have to look at the role of fighting and whether or not it has to be changed in any way shape or form. There’s too much of this going on. We’ve got to accept that we’ve got to make some changes in terms of player safety.

McGuire: “The one positive thing about this is that everybody’s paying attention to it and I think we’re going to have some good ideas to help fix it.”