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Tomas Tatar was the subject of some back and forth as the quiet period carries on before things pick up around September. Apparently the Penguins have shown interest and with concern around Guentzel availability are willing to do a camp PTO. Tatar, of course, would prefer a guaranteed deal. There isn’t much of an appetite on the board here for a reunion on a 1 year, let alone an extended deal. At 32 he’s nearing the point of either one more 3 or maybe 4 year deal or a string of 1 year deals until retirement.
Detroit is heading to Traverse City again for training camp. I can’t recommend going highly enough if you have the time and can get the tickets. Believe it or not, beyond just the camp there are dozens of vineyards, fantastic restaurants, and tall ship tours may still be going on. I miss going, but it just isn’t feasible. Traverse City is a gem.
Ok, at this point if you’re not interested in the NHL broadcast info, this is where it starts.
The NHL has finally commented on the broadcast situation:
With the 2023-24 season starting on October 10, the NHL is monitoring the status of RSN’s. In a statement to Bloomberg, an NHL spokesperson said “We will be prepared to address whatever circumstances dictate to provide our fans with access to our games.…
Forbes is now talking a lot more about the potential switch in platforms.
I told you all that I sat through about 3 hours of ESPNs parent company (Disney) do their 3rd quarter report for the high level investors. (Welles Fargo, Blackrock type groups etc). At the end a question about Apple was thrown out and it made the CEO Bob Iger seem to level up a little. A question about getting rid of or spinning off assets that are devaluing the company had come earlier but didn’t seem to garner much, until the weekend.
One of the top firms sent an email to the other investors that showed certain holdings were taking the value of the overall company down. ABC was mentioned, and ESPN was also brought up during the call itself. An 8 year veteran of ESPN left the once sports giant over the weekend to work at The Athletic. Dianna Russini left to be the top NFL reporter at the competitor. A move that shocked more than a few people.
I’ve told you that DirecTV lost Sunday Ticket to YouTube TV, which is now the most watched channel in the USA. Now, the NBA wants a raise and the top contenders could well be Apple and YouTube. Oddly, 50% of Youtube viewers now use their TV instead of laptops or devices and with the current writer’s strike more people are moving.
The NBA gets 2.6 billion per year and is asking for 6 billion for the next deal(compare that to the 330 million the NHL gets from ESPN) and has an audience nearly 3x larger at an average of 2 million per game to the NHL’s 700-750k. The mass exodus known as “cable cutting… from 100 million homes to 60 (and dropping) is costing the network about 300 million per month ($8 roughly per sub goes to ESPN). Iger already did a “when, not if… talking point on ESPN going to streaming. This could speed that up dramatically. ESPN’s new betting partner Penn is drawing ire after initial praise. Not good.
Some of you hate this stuff, I don’t blame you. The deal with Bally Sports is upside down and providers aren’t assuring that Bally will have a place in their lineup. I really think the move to YoutubeTV or another partner is inevitable. The DTC (no ads) model isn’t working so streaming partners are pushing the cheaper (sometimes no cost on Youtube) ad model. The unintended consequence of the Hollywood strike has ad companies pouring money into Youtube.
I am more and more convinced that between the purchase of bandwidth by Cellular and internet providers and people ditching cable that streaming is going to take over. Many don’t want to hear it, but at the highest levels this is where the conversations are headed. Forbes is even looking at changes as early as this coming October. I’ll keep you posted as best I can.