Pens-Hurricanes Game 1 Monday

On VERSUS, as Patrick just said.  Monday, likely at 7PM, with Hockey Central prior to.  Expect a mega-schedule tomorrow morning.

Red Wings-Blackhawks Game 1 Sunday on NBC

As announced by Bill Patrick on VERSUS.  This means that Game 1 of the Eastern Finals will be either Saturday night or Monday night.  Likely Saturday night.

Your TV Guide and Open Thread For the Final Night of Round 2

Enjoy everyone, as we look forward to officially being halfway through the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the time the night has ended.

7:00 PM ET, Anaheim vs. Detroit, Game 7                                                                                National TV (US): VERSUS (HD)   
Play by Play: Dave Strader
Color: Darren Eliot
Reporter: Lindsay Soto

National TV (CANADA): CBC (HD)
Play by Play: Bob Cole
Color: Greg Millen
Reporter: Elliotte Friedman

Regional TV (ANAHEIM): Prime Ticket
Play by Play: John Ahlers
Color: Brian Hayward
Reporter: Bill MacDonald

Regional TV (DETROIT): FS Detroit (HD)
Play by Play: Ken Daniels
Color: Mickey Redmond
Reporter: Mickey York

8:00 PM ET, Carolina vs. Boston, Game 7

National TV (US): VERSUS (HD) (Joined In Progress)

National TV (CANADA): TSN (HD)
Play by Play: Gord Miller
Inside the Glass: Pierre McGuire

Regional TV (CAROLINA): FS Carolinas
Play by Play: John Forslund
Color: Tripp Tracy

Regional TV (BOSTON): NESN (HD)
Play by Play: Jack Edwards
Color: Andy Brickley
Reporter: Naoko Funayama                                                                                                                                         

Apparently, People in Pittsburgh Were Enthusiastic About this Game Last Night

According to SBD’s John Ourand on Twitter, the Pens-Caps Game 7 did a ridiculous 25.0 rating in Pittsburgh.  1 in every 4 people in the market watched the game, and likely close to 1 in every 2 people with a TV.

Insane.  We’re going to guess that the DC and national numbers were a tiny bit lower.

The Inevitable Return of the Great White Hope

Don LaGreca’s on NHL Live! today, at least for the first hour.

Enjoy.

We Imagine Gary Bettman Enjoyed Game 7 The Least of All

 

NHL Commish Gary Bettman

Well that was unpleasant for everyone involved.  Game 7 of the Penguins-Capitals series was one big fat stinker.  Some observations from the deciding game:

• It’s a shame that this will be the final game Daryl “Razor” Reaugh calls this NHL season.  He had the broadcasting series of his life.  Working with Mike “Doc” Emrick brought out the best in both announcers.  I’d like to see VERSUS go with three man booths, a la NBC, for the Conference Finals and special events, so that guys like Razor and Andy Brickley can keep working through the Conference Finals.  Or at least add a second reporter gig.
• Everyone’s going to complain about NBC only airing two Conference Final games total, but that’s really no more than FOX or ABC ever aired.  Even when either network had two high-profile Conference Finals, they refused to air both of them (Think Rangers/Flyers and Red Wings/Avs in ’97, or Devils/Flyers and Stars/Avs in ’00).  NBC’s simply doing what they can to keep hockey semi-relevant on their schedule so they can say they aired some action before the Stanley Cup Finals begin.
• No matter what, the NHL has to simply be pissed at what an awful game this was.  It’ll likely cost the NHL a few hundred thousand viewers in the totals that would’ve flocked to a close third period of Pens-Caps.  That said, if the Red Wings and Bruins pull through tomorrow night, every game of the Conference Finals will draw better than a million viewers on broadcast television, which would be a huge step forward for the league as far as legitimacy goes.