Hockey Night in Canada

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Tuesday, March 11, 2014By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday, March 11, 2014

George Stroumboulopoulos to host Hockey Night in Canada next season

George Stroumboulopoulos said it will be a “dream” to anchor next season’s Hockey Night in Canada.

Rogers Communications introduced Stroumboulopoulos at a press conference on Tuesday as one of the new faces of Hockey Night when the telecom and media firm takes control of Canada’s NHL broadcasting rights.

The multiple Gemini award-winning talk show host of CBC’s George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight will join Hockey Night’s Ron MacLean and Don Cherry, along with Sportsnet’s Daren Millard and Jeff Marek as the “cornerstones” of the new hockey coverage, Rogers said in a release.

Stroumboulopoulos said that a big role in the hockey media world was a long-standing dream of his and Marek’s since they started their careers in promotions at the Fan 590 radio station.

“It took 20 years to get to this place,” Stroumboulopoulos said. “What a dream.”

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

The hiring of the fast-talking Stroumboulopoulos as the new face of Hockey Night is the first major personnelchange made by Rogers after acquiring the NHL Canadian broadcasting rights in a blockbuster 12-year, $5.2-billion deal in November.

Scott Moore, president of Sportsnet and NHL properties for Rogers, introduced the “top line” of his hockey broadcasting scene during a live telecast from the CBC studios. While the CBC may have been “where the tradition of broadcasting hockey began,” Moore said, he’s hoping to bring a “fresh face” to the game.

Hockey fans can look forward to big games being broadcast on different channels such as Citytv and on additional days, including Sunday, Moore said. More announcements to come will include new technology for mobile devices.

“You do have to be aware that people are watching hockey differently. They’re watching it with two, three or more screens.”

Moore also faced a sharp question about the absence of women on a broadcast team he called “the face of hockey on Rogers.” (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

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Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Wednesday, November 27, 2013By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday, November 27, 2013

What the new Rogers-NHL deal means for the CBC

National broadcaster to earn no revenue from hockey

The CBC is in trouble. It is losing all of its hockey revenue – but keeping about 320 hours a year of hockey, including Hockey Night in Canada – under the NHL’s new Canadian broadcast rights deal.

Rogers is making big moves to control ever more Canadian media and the announcement on Tuesday that they’re essentially taking over hockey rights across Canada is an enormous move.

Losing hockey is a big deal for the CBC. They’ll keep Hockey Night in Canada for four years on a sub-contract from Rogers, but they don’t own the content anymore. They will not even get the advertising revenue from the broadcasts. They also will not pay for the rights to the games. All that falls to Rogers.

CBC President and CEO Hubert Lacroix acknowledged that the next season of Hockey Night in Canada will be very different.

“Starting next year, Rogers will assume all editorial control (all editorial decisions with respect to the content, on-air talent and the creative direction of HNIC – we have the right to be consulted and there is a commitment to excellence) under the new agreement,” he wrote to CBC staff in an internal memo.

“While this deal will result in job losses, the staffing impact would have been much greater had we lost hockey entirely, as CBC is still producing hockey. Preserving HNIC also allows CBC to maintain a capacity to execute a sports strategy and fulfil lits existing contractual obligations (i.e. Olympics, Pan-Am, FIFA),” he continued.

Lacroix was unclear on which jobs, and how many, would be cut as a result of this deal.

Later, in a press conference with Rogers, Lacroix tried to remain positive but had little to add.

“Rogers takes on all of the revenues from all of the properties. We have no costs that come with that. We don’t pay any broadcasting rights,” he said. “Our friends at Rogers pick up all of the revenue.”

Asked what CBC gains from the deal, he said the CBC has maintained the right “to promote some of our programs through the iconic Hockey Night in Canada.”

That was it. Rogers refused to comment on any specifics of Don Cherry’s future. (Source: Canada.com)

Wednesday October 12, 2011

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday October 12, 2011

Former NHLers may sue Cherry

Former NHL players Stu Grimson, Chris Nilan and Jim Thomson are considering legal action over Don Cherry’s rant about fighting in hockey.

They issued a joint statement early Tuesday morning calling Cherry’s comments “damaging and inflammatory” and his attempts to qualify them “entirely ineffectual.”

Cherry singled out the three men as “pukes”, “hypocrites” and “turncoats” for speaking out against fighting in the sport during the first “Coaches Corner” segment of the season on CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada last Thursday.

He accused the men of not wanting current players to make a living as enforcers as they did and criticized them for linking drug and alcohol abuse to that role.

On a subsequent show Saturday, Cherry expressed some remorse over using the word “pukes,” but that doesn’t satisfy the former players.

“We’re considering all alternatives including legal recourse, of course, given the nature of Don’s comments,” Grimson told The Canadian Press on Tuesday from Nashville.

“We are curious to know what remedies we have, if any, under the law probably in Canada simply because that’s where most of these events took place. ”

Grimson is a lawyer with the Tennessee firm Kay, Griffin, Enkema and Colbert, which specializes in corporate litigation and intellectual property. The law firm issued the statement. (Hamilton Spectator) 

 

Saturday June 7, 2008

June 7, 2008

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday June 7, 2008

R.I.P. Hockey Night in Canada theme song

The Hockey Night in Canada theme song, considered by many as this country’s “second anthem,” has been silenced after talks between its creator and the CBC broke down late Friday afternoon.

Kevin Kemp, a lawyer representing composer Dolores Claman, said the broadcaster stopped the process: “We asked for a meeting to continue negotiations,” he said. “They weren’t prepared to agree to that.”

Just a few hours later, the CBC put out a statement saying that the broadcaster was “saddened” that it couldn’t reach a deal, and formally announcing a competition for a new theme song. The winner will receive $100,000.

The Hockey Night in Canada theme was written by Ms. Claman in 1968, and went on to become one of the most recognized tunes in the world. The future of the song has hung in the balance since 2004, when Ms. Claman and her agent sued the CBC, charging that they had used it in ways that were not covered by their contract.

Months of talks between the CBC and Ms. Claman’s representative, Toronto agent John Ciccone, ultimately proved fruitless. This week, CBC producer Scott Moore announced that the broadcaster would hold a competition to choose a new song if an agreement could not be reached with Ms. Claman.

At 4.59 p.m. Friday, one minute before an announced deadline of 5 p.m., Mr. Moore told Ms. Claman’s agent that they were not prepared to amend their previous offer for the continued rights to the song, and would go ahead with the proposed competition to find a replacement. (Source: Globe & Mail)

…And here’s the tune in all its glory…

 

Friday February 6, 2004

February 6, 2004

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday February 6, 2004

Will French schtick choke Cherry?

Don Cherry’s voice is as loud as the garish suits he wears. No surprise there. He’s an outspoken fixture on CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada.

He’s spent years perfecting the persona he puts out for public consumption. Sure, hockey’s the topic, but when it comes right down to it, Cherry is an entertainer. He’s a personality. He’s loud, he’s brash, he’s opinionated. He’s also a snappy dresser. That’s Cherry’s schtick.

So should he be assessed a penalty — maybe even a game misconduct — for his latest high-schticking incident?

He’s under investigation by the federal official languages commissioner, who’s looking into alleged anti-French remarks Cherry made on air.

Cherry’s choice of words is often inappropriate, sometimes offensive. He plays the buffoon and occasionally goes too far. Even so, we wouldn’t want to see him benched. But we’d have no problem with a firm warning. (CP)