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Chris Chelios was let go on 6/5. I didn’t have the information at the time, as 300 employees were walked out and the focus was on shows being cancelled. We know that the NHL is not ESPNs top priority in sports broadcasting, but sorry to see Chelios lose the opportunity. For those who don’t know, his move back to Chicago was to take care of an ailing parent. I’ve only met him a couple times but seemed very genuine.
The 2023 draft is set to air night 1 on ESPN, SN and TVAS. Day 2 is NHLN, SN and TVAS. Knowing that there is a push for ratings, there may be some free streams out there.
Yahoo Sports is adding that Fubo TV and ESPN+ will also have the draft with the new price of ESPN+ being listed as $10, $85 for Fubo and cable rates for ESPN and NHLN. This, to me, is a problem.
I haven’t heard from many of you that ESPN+ was a fantastic investment. Pay $10 to watch day 1 when you’ll have video updates free on twitter and potentially youtube within minutes and can probably listen on some stations.
I’m getting a vibe that people are sick to death of paying for extra TV. Laying down $10 to watch day 1 and having the cable package for NHLN to watch on day 2 (or adding ESPN as well) just speaks to the out of touch nature of the front office. The 5+ paid destinations for the NHL isn’t growing the game. Spending is down almost across the board and I don’t see efforts by the office to reach out and gain fans during a tough time that will be more willing to pay when disposable income is a bit more abundant.
There is no easy answer to the financial situation and no priority by the parent company to make access any easier. I was recently sent an article that cable subs are way down. Streaming via VPN and flat out piracy are gaining steam. If you use a VPN, be sure it’s reputable and secure. I don’t recommend pirated broadcasts or any other content for that matter. If you have passwords saved on the device you’re using, the runners of those sites can get ahold of quite a bit of information. If you’ve ever had a data breach, it’s a nightmare. I had one that originated from the ATM at my bank. Someone had slipped a scanner into the card slot and tried making purchases in England. Luckily, my bank caught it, but I had to change a lot of my information.
On the trade front, there’s an interesting hiccup in getting DeAngelo back to Carolina. Philly agreed to retain salary but it’s been less than a year since the move. There’s some debate in the offices as to whether this practice violates rules pertaining to trades. There are plenty of names popping up, and some news out of Boston. They sent Taylor Hall out (and Foligno) and it’s rumored they’re trying to make room for Bertuzzi. Hall had a 6 million dollar deal and more needs to be done. This has me wondering if the Bertuzzi ask was similar to the Larkin deal. We’ll find out soon enough.
I truly hope in the next day or so the NHL decides to make the draft available free via stream. I wasn’t thrilled with ESPN+ and the $3 price increase doesn’t have me motivated to go back.
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
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