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Articles and Opinions
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Written by Matthew Coller
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Saturday, 09 October 2010 04:59 |
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The New York Islanders finally found a radio station with the signal strength to provide game casts to listeners, but the choice is raising eyebrows. Radio Hofstra University (WRHU) will now carry Islanders games. The fact that the team is going with a college radio station is unique on its own, but the most of the head-scratching is over the amount of participation during broadcasts by Hofstra university students.
Chris Botta, who covers the Islanders for Islanders Point Blank, said the team will keep broadcaster Chris King, but allow Hofstra students to cover intermissions, sideline reporting and even possibly serve as color commentators. Students would also run all the technical and audio aspects.
The Islanders competition, the Rangers and New Jersey Devils, are on two of New York City’s biggest stations ESPN Radio and CBS-owned WFAN. BusinessInsider.com columnist Adam Fusfeld said of the move, “This is a pretty embarrassing situation for the Islanders…it’s just one more reason the Islanders need to take the first train out of Long Island.”
While Fusfeld’s words are harsh, he isn’t the only one sounding off, Eric Mirlis, who used to work public relations for the Islanders wrote a seething blog post ripping the team’s decision to use college students, in the post he said:
“Look at every analyst on every broadcast you watch. The overwhelming majority are former players or coaches, who have a knowledge of the game that is more intricate and in depth than anyone really cares to realize. I’ll always be of the opinion that a former player or coach should be in that spot, especially one that has ties to the team that fans can grab onto and relate to on a personal level. You will also find the occasional media member as the analyst. This is how Chris King originally got into the Islander broadcasting biz, how Sherry Ross became the Devils radio analyst and how Suzyn Waldman earned her way onto Yankee broadcasts. None of them played the game professionally, but all had an insight into the game that came with years of being around the game and all deserved the opportunity they got to show their stuff on the air.”
A quality radio or TV broadcast can be a major asset to a sports franchise (think about how much the YES Network benefits the New York Yankees), so it’s difficult to say the quality of a college station’s game cast will be anywhere near the level of ESPN or WFAN. Not difficult, impossible. Not to mention the move takes away potential jobs for out-of-work media professionals who have the ability to produce a broadcast. The Islanders’ move essentially drives down salaries for those working in radio by saying, “why should we pay a pro when a college student can do it for free (or super cheap).”
This is the problem newspapers have run into over the past 10 years or so and the state of print journalism is sad to say the least. It is understood by all that the move about cutting costs, but if AHL teams who draw 4,000 a night can afford to pay professionals, many are going to ask why an NHL team can not.
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
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NHL News
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Written by Matthew Coller
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Friday, 08 October 2010 04:37 |
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The NHL and the creator of Spider-Man seem like an unlikely duo, but the league and Spider-Man creator Stan Lee announced a new partnership to form Guardian Media Entertainment LLC. Lee will create 30 Guardians, one to represent each NHL team, as a series of superheroes.
Executive Vice President of Marketing for the NHL Brian Jennings said via NHL.com that working with Lee can help reach a new audience, "To be in business with Stan Lee and to be able to bring his latest superheroes to our fans is incredibly exciting to all of us at the NHL," said Jennings. "We are in constant pursuit of new ways to engage our fans and to introduce new fans to hockey, and the business of Guardian Media Entertainment does exactly that."
Motion-capture technology will be used by Vicon House of Moves, who also worked on Ironman 2. A teaser package will be unveiled during the Oct. 8, 2010 panel presentation of The Guardian Project at New York's Comic Con, the entire project will be unveiled Jan. 30, 2011. Watch the NHL.com video
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
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Television
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Written by Joe Tetreault
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Wednesday, 06 October 2010 17:02 |
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NESN will deliver live and exclusive high definition coverage of up to 72 Boston Bruins games during the 2010/11 season, the network's 26th season covering Bruins hockey. The season gets started in historic fashion as the Bruins travel to Prague in the Czech Republic with two games against the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday, October 9th and Sunday, October 10th. NESN's coverage will begin with WB Mason Bruins Face-Off Live at 11:30 AM on Saturday and at 9:30 AM on Sunday.
"Over 25,000 Bruins fans showed up at TD Garden in September to get an early glimpse of Tyler Seguin and the Bruins rookies," said Joel Feld, NESN's executive vice president of programming and executive producer. "NESN knows there is a level of fan passion and excitement this year that will make our coverage more exciting than ever. With the return of our veteran broadcast team and the debut of The Big Bad Bruins Show with Kathryn Tappen, NESN is the definitive source for all Bruins action, news and information."
Former ESPN anchor Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley return for their sixth season together in the NESN broadcast booth. They will be joined by reporter Naoko Funayama who enters her third season with the network. Kathryn Tappen will once again lead NESN’s studio team as host of WB Mason Bruins Face-Off Live, NESN’s intermission coverage and Bruins Overtime Live presented by Ace Ticket. She will once again be joined by former Bruins favorites Mike Milbury, Barry Pederson, and Gord Kluzak.
In a financially motivated decision, Edwards and Brickley will not be in Prague with the Bruins for their season opening games with the Coyotes, calling both games from NESN's studios to save on expenses. However, Funayama will be on-site in Prague. Edwards told Chad Finn of the Boston Globe that the decision, while disappointing is understandable.
Brickley will set the stage for the regular season on Thursday, October 14 at 7:00 PM with The Bricks: 2010/11 Bruins Season Preview; a half-hour special that will look ahead to the coming season and introduce Bruins fans to the team’s exciting off-season additions. Brickley will also make his pre-season predictions about the Bruins and the rest of the league and look back at the team’s season opening trip to Prague.
NESN will launch a new weekly show called The Big Bad Bruins Show on Saturday, October 23 at 6:00 PM. Hosted by Kathryn Tappen, the Original NESN Entertainment production will feature in-depth one-on-one conversations with Bruins players, a regular segment with Bruins President Cam Neely, and weekly reports from reporter Funayama.
The Instigators with Milbury will return for its third season on Thursday, October 28 at 10:30 PM. Milbury holds back nothing when sharing his opinions on the hottest issues and latest controversies in the NHL. Edwards and Brickley will once again mix it up with Milbury on a regular basis along with other special guest commentators including another episode this winter featuring former Bruins coach and hockey icon Don Cherry.
NESN’s in-depth coverage of the Bruins also extends online with NESN.com’s Bruins beat writer Doug Flynn providing daily Bruins news and analysis along with a live blog during every game. Edwards, Brickley, Tappen and Funayama will also contribute regularly over the course of the season. NESN.com offers the network’s best Bruins highlights and interviews in addition to interactive fan forums, polls, photo galleries, quizzes and Top 10 Bruins prospect lists.
NESN’s Bruins coverage also extends to fans outside New England who subscribe to a sports package that includes NESN National, the network’s national television service. NESN’s pre and post-game shows, Bruins in 2 replays, Bruins Classic games, The Bricks, The Big Bad Bruins Show and The Instigators are all available to NESN National subscribers throughout the season. NESN’s Bruins game broadcasts can also be enjoyed outside New England by purchasing the NHL Center Ice package.
Source: NESN
 Joe Tetreault is Managing Editor of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He can be contacted here through The Biz of Baseball
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NHL News
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Written by Matthew Coller
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Tuesday, 05 October 2010 02:55 |
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After a lockout caused the NHL to miss the 2004-05 season, the league was sitting at rock bottom. The league left the most recognizable company in sports ESPN and joined forces with a virtually unknown (to hockey fans at least) network Versus, signing a three-year, $207.5 million deal that included an option for three more seasons.
On the back of the new rules, the Winter Classic, the Olympics and incredibly intense playoffs and Stanley Cup Finals, the league has found its way to relevance, even substantial popularity. And just in time for a new TV deal.
SportsBusiness Journal reported Monday that the NHL expects to take score big with their next deal, possibly even see a 50 percent boost from the aforementioned contract. That would increase the numbers to more than $115 million per year, or $3.87 million per team per year.
The NHL’s momentum could cause the price to go up, SBJ says both ESPN and FOX are considering putting together offers. The ratings on Versus increased significantly since the first year of the contract, the network averaged 118,175 viewers in ’06. Last season the NHL on Versus saw 775,000 viewers through the first 54 telecasts of the Stanley Cup playoffs, then posted 3.6 million viewers for Game 2 of the Stanley Cup, Versus’ highest rated game in the network’s history.
Signs point to Versus retaining the deal, the network has increased distribution from 64 million households to 75 million and its asset value has doubled from $625 million to $1.3 billion. It would be well worth it to Versus to increase the offer by 50 percent; where would they be without their partnership with the NHL? SportsBusiness Journal featured a Turnkey survey which found that 50 percent of more than 1,100 senior-level sports executives said the NHL would stay on Versus. Both ESPN and NBC scored 38 percent of the votes (those polled could vote more than once).
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
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Articles and Opinions
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Written by Jeff Levine
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Monday, 04 October 2010 16:10 |
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Although a potential labor conflict is still over two years away, the upcoming NHL season feels like to many a make or break year. At some point during the 2010-11 season, the hockey world will get its first look at Donald Fehr 2.0, as the seminal sports labor leader shifts from his short-lived retirement from the MLBPA into a new role with the NHLPA. Fehr’s leadership is expected to morph the NHLPA from a punching bag into a formidable bargaining force.
Fehr, 62, should be a bridge leader for hockey’s fledgling union. As an unpaid union advisor, Fehr has already assisted the NHLPA with its new executive director search as well as revamped the union’s constitution. However, his most significant impacts surely lie ahead.
Many within the hockey world are holding their collective breath in anticipation of how Fehr, once installed, with interact with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman. While some believe Fehr will adopt a more militant approach that former union chief Bob Goodenow successfully exploited during the late 1990s, it is more likely that Fehr will take a moderate viewpoint when interacting with whom many refer to as the most powerful person in hockey.
While Fehr will not always adopt an adversarial nature when dealing with the league, there are more than a few contentious issues to be bargained over. The league’s most important issue is probably tinkering with the salary cap. League executives will most likely negotiate with the union to reduce the percentage of hockey-related revenue, currently at fifty seven percent, which is allocated toward paying player salary. Fehr will not give up any percentages without league concessions.
Players will also want to address financial topics as well. A major sore spot is most likely the escrow concept. Players, who under the current CBA, deposit eighteen percent of their earnings into a league-mandated escrow account, will want to renegotiate the current escrow system. Of course there are other issues. The players want to address NHL involvement with the Sochi Olympics, long-terms contracts, and whether the league and its players can change their relationship from one of being adversarial to one of partnership. There are other issues but, because hockey’s financial landscape is at times precarious, these financial issues will probably be the most fiercely negotiated.
Although the current CBA does not expire for another two years, the NHL and its stakeholders cannot afford another lockout. Both sides must strike a cooperative tone and negotiate an accord that fine-tunes the new NHL financial model. The new CBA should also include additional mechanisms to help correct the financial woes that many southern US franchises are still experiencing within this troubled economy. Now that the NHL has, over the last five years laid a new foundation, both Fehr and Bettman must work together to ensure that this foundation and the momentum of the new NHL is not lost to another lockout. As the season starts on Thursday, it is only a matter of time until these labor events begin to unfold.
 Jeff Levine is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is a sports attorney, and the Executive Director of One Sports and Entertainment, International.
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Articles and Opinions
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Written by Matthew Coller
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Friday, 01 October 2010 20:34 |
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The Summer of Kovalchuk ended with a “fair” contract for Ilya, a ridiculous penalty imposed on the Devils and the NHL with new restrictions on long-term deals. All’s well that ends well (unless you are the Devils or anyone who covered this mess). The words “circumventing the cap” were pounded into our collective brains as bad. The league sent a message to NHL executives to play nice or lose draft picks.
If the league thought it tied up all the loose cap circumventing ends, they were wrong. Just weeks after the Devils were penalized, the Chicago Blackhawks opened up nearly $6 million of cap space by loaning goalie Christobal Huet to Switzerland. Huet was benched midway through last season for poor performance, leaving the ‘Hawks with a replacement level goalie with superstar salary. Shipping Huet across seas to get around his cap hit or, say, circumvent the salary cap, was no different than the Devils’ attempt to sign Ilya Kovalchuk to a 50-year contract.
The Blackhawks aren’t the only club using any means possible to erase their bad decisions. The New York Rangers dug an AHL sized hole and tosses Wade Redden’s $6.5 million cap hit in it. The Toronto Maple Leafs’ GM Brian Burke told SportingNews that since these types of moves aren’t against the Collective Bargaining Agreement, there is nothing wrong with them. Sound familiar?
The SportingNews story notes that agents will be taking action on future big money contracts to include no-movement clauses to ensure teams don’t bury their clients in the AHL or send them to Prog.
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
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