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The Versus/NBC/ESPN Quandry

July 19, 2009, 2:06 PM ET [ Comments]
Paul McCann
Nashville Predators Blogger •Predators Radio Network • RSSArchiveCONTACT
There have been several interesting pieces published in the last few days about the NHL extending their contract with NBC. Buried in the announcement of the Winter Classic earlier this week, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced a two year extension of the broadcast partnership between the league and NBC. The biggest reason swirling around the hockey media is that the league has set up a scenario where both of their broadcast contracts are up at the same time. This may give the league some leverage when negotiating new deals.

Which of course leads us to the inevitable “hockey on ESPN” discussion…

Look, it would make sense to have the ABC/ESPN connection with the NHL. ESPN is available in more homes, even though Versus has significantly closed the gap over their time as the NHL cable rights holder. The league would get over the air exposure and cable exposure in one contract. But we need to face the facts… hockey will NEVER be given first class treatment by ESPN… never. How do I know this? Just look to the last contract… ESPN shuffled games all over the week, never established a consistent schedule and gave the league minimal coverage on this signature shows.

I know that this is a business discussion… and loyalty in business is a conflict in terms… that being said… the NHL on Versus has been a good thing that deserves to be rewarded. Consistent exposure on the cable channel has grown ratings for the sport. Don’t believe me? Versus was the most watched cable network for games 3 and 4 of the recently concluded Stanley Cup Finals.

Not the most watched sports network… the most watched cable network. I don’t recall that happening ever while ESPN carried the NHL. That’s huge… it shows that hockey is beginning to drive some better ratings. The changes to the game have made it better to watch on television. The impact of HD is helping as well. Two of the “over the air” games were some of the most watched hockey games in over 30 years! The addition of the Winter Classic has turned a day that was completely dedicated to college football, into a destination hockey watching day.

Versus continues to grow, continues to drive into places where it has been struggling a bit, namely hotels and bars, however… no self-respecting sports bar will be caught without it. I’ve noticed a significant uptick in availability of the channel in hotels as well as I travel.

Versus has been a very good partner for the NHL, a steady reliable partner. Versus has earned a little loyalty from the NHL. Many hockey pundits compared the Versus deal to the Sportschannel deal in the 80’s. In retrospect, they were dead wrong. The NHL/Versus partnership needs to continue as it is the best interest of both parties.

ESPN reminds me of the bad boy that the hot girl wants to go after, Versus reminds me of the kind of guy the hot girls ignored in high school and college… but end up wanting to marry. I know that the temptation is there for the league to hop on the motorcycle and piss off the parents… Here’s to hoping that when the time comes, the NHL makes the right choice. Ignore the clamor to go crawling back to ESPN. Dance with the one who brung you.

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What are your thoughts? Should the NHL work to get back to ESPN? Or work to continue driving Versus to more homes?

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Word has it that the Preds/Philly game in March 2010 will be nationally televised on Versus. I don't know if Pred Nation will be able to handle two consecutive seasons with a home game on national TV!

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You are invited to follow me on Twitter. Search for PredPAPaul… Not only will I be updating when I get news or updates… I’ll also be updating during Pred home games in season with information and explanations from the PA box.

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