Hockey on E!?
OK, hockey's back. Great. The bad news, at least for those of us who miss the sport, is finding it on TV could be tough this winter now that ESPN has passed on its $70 million option to televise games the next two seasons.
According to this Philadelphia Inquirer report, Comcast wants to bid on hockey. Wonderful. The cable operator that's already conspiring -- along with Orioles owner Peter Angelos -- to keep the Nationals off TV on the East coast, including in Washington, now wants to corner the market on the NHL. If they make the most attractive offer, then all the more power to them. But we in the Triad are beholden to Time-Warner and wouldn't be able to view the Comcast sports channel(s) that would be broadcasting the majority of nationally televised games. (NBC, unlike ESPN, has not opted out of its contract with the great lockout league.)
As the Philly Inquirer story suggests, Comcast might have an answer for hockey fans in Time-Warner land: They own the E! Channel, Style and the Outdoor Life networks. Just think of the potentially bizarre programming juxtapositions you'd have. Gary Thorne reminds viewers: "After the game, keep it here for the raunchy madness of 'The Howard Stern Show.'"
Comments (1)
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I sincerely hope that we will be able to watch Hurricanes games in the same quantity as the previous years. I have always enjoyed seeing so many of them on Fox Sports South. Its great to have hockey back....now if only we could see it.
Posted on July 22, 2005 12:34 AM