• About: Background & Links

Ross Hollebon's Sports Pub

~ Ice time from #rockthered to the #stateofhockey

Ross Hollebon's Sports Pub

Tag Archives: New York Rangers

VERSUS evolves; Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic adds to Caps coverage

04 Thursday Aug 2011

Posted by Ross Hollebon in Broadcasting, Digital Media, NHL/Ice Hockey, Sports Business, Sports Media, Washington Capitals

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Comcast, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, NBC, NBC Universal, New York Rangers, NHL, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Versus, Winter Classic

The National Hockey League continues to pick up assists in the re-shaping process of post-merger Comcast and NBC Universal.

The relationship between the NHL and NBC was solidified with the 10-year television rights agreement reached last April after both VERSUS and NBC saw large audiences tune in for on-ice action.

And now, one year after the Capitals downed the Penguins, 3-1, at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh and with an audience that continues to grow, VERSUS’ rebrand will be launched with the coverage of the 2012 NHL Bridgestone Winter Classic.

NBC Sports Network will be introduced as the Flyers host the New York Rangers at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park on Saturday, Jan. 2 in the regular season signature game.

“These rebranding efforts are a major step toward a complete strategic alignment of all our platforms and businesses,” said NBC Sports Chairman Mark Lazarus in John Ourand’s story, Exit Versus, enter the NBC Sports Network (subscription required).

This should only enhance coverage of the game and the sport as hockey continues to solidify its footprint in the North American landscape.

On the local front, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic has added a new “Capitals Insider,” Chuck Gormley. Read the CSN Press Release: Chuck Gormley Joins Comcast SportsNet as Capitals Insider for Digital Media.

The regional sports network (RSN) who covers the Caps is taking a cue from the home office and dedicating more resources to their hockey team in Washington.

Gormley is no stranger to the rink, or a team facing high-expectations and demanding fans, after covering the Flyers for over two decades.

And even though the RSN’s may take a while before they share any NBC Sports Network branding, it great for all hockey fans that they are on the same page in the quality and quantity realm.

I’m looking forward to all the coverage this season.

Spark for the Capitals 2011-2012 makeover flame?

08 Friday Jul 2011

Posted by Ross Hollebon in NHL/Ice Hockey, Washington Capitals

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Brandon Dubinsky, Brooks Laich, DJ King, George McPhee, Jeff Halpern, Madison Square Garden, Mike Green, New York Rangers, Roman Hamrlik, Troy Brouwer

Could it have been a fight on December 12, 2010 at Madison Square Garden, and not another short playoff run, that finally proved some major roster adjustments were needed for the Washington Capitals?

In a 7-0 slaughter at the hands of the New York Rangers, Captain Alex Ovechkin not only dropped the gloves to dance with Brandon Dubinsky, but then pleaded for his teammates on the bench to act like they have some pride and a fighting spirit.

Did general manager George McPhee sit down and re-watch HBO’s 24/7 after the early playoff exit and see the ferocity and frustration of his superstar, captured so well by the documentary-style cameras, towards his own bench?

Adding Matt Hendricks last offseason helped, but it was a small step towards what is happening currently. DJ King was probably expected to add a little more than he did, but as an enforcer, he was a one-off tough guy and not part of an overall rugged culture change.

That change is upon the team and fan base at Kettler and Verizon Center with the addition of veteran forwards Troy Brouwer and Jeff Halpern as well as defenseman Roman Hamrlik.

Could this forward duo help take the “energy guy” burden off of Ovechkin and allow him to focus more on playmaking? Can Hamrlik do the same thing for Mike Green? Is there anyone that can create more space for Alexander Semin, or could that possibly happen as a byproduct of a culture change for the team?

I’m confident we won’t have to wait until next year’s playoffs to see if this new bloodstream encased in sandpaper has made an impact. It will show in the body language and success of both Ovechkin and hardworking forward Brooks Laich, who I also think played a big role in convincing the Capitals front office to shake things up, right from the beginning of the 2011-2012 season.

7:00 PM on Saturday, October 8th can’t get here fast enough.

Rangers Boogaard taken too early; impacts NHL and Capitals

15 Sunday May 2011

Posted by Ross Hollebon in NHL/Ice Hockey, Washington Capitals

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Alex Ovechkin, Concussions, DJ King, Jason Chimera, John Erskine, Madison Square Garden, Matt Bradley, Matt Carkner, Matt Hendricks, Mike Green, Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers, Ottawa Senators, Versus

Boogaard commemorative graphic from Versus

New York Rangers’ forward Derek Boogaard, 28, was found dead in his Minneapolis, MN apartment Friday evening and though autopsy results are not expected for multiple weeks, the “Boogeyman,” as he was lovingly known by fans of the Minnesota Wild and Rangers, should be haunting NHL executives and wearing on the minds of his peers.

Regardless of what the medical examiner determines to be the cause, this is another young man victimized by concussions, many of which could be avoided by a culture shift in the NHL to work away from accepting fighting as self-policing, who has lost all he had worked for.

The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native experienced a professional whirlwind in 2010 after 5 years and 255 games played for the Wild, who selected Boogaard in the 7th round (202nd overall) of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft.

After establishing himself as a top flight heavyweight enforcer amongst the ranks of NHL players, the Rangers swooped in and lured the free-agent from Minnesota with a 4 year contract worth $6.5 million, in order to toughen up the neighborhood on the ice at Madison Square Garden.

Unfortunately for the Rangers and Boogaard, because he did his job, he only suited up in his Rangers sweater 22 times in 2010, sustaining a concussion and an injured shoulder while fighting Matt Carkner of the Ottawa Senators during a December 9th game. It was his 70th and final NHL fight.

Boogaard will be missed by the hockey community he was a part of and gave back to. Opponents will not miss being on the receiving end of his policing rounds, but they can hopefully learn something from the man and his experience.

The Washington Capitals and fighting

I have sat in the stands at the Capital Center and Verizon Center pleading for Alan May, Keith Jones, Al Iafrate, Donald Brashear and numerous others to drop the gloves and spike the adrenaline and crowd investment at Capitals games.

Erskine vs. Rupp: December 31, 2010 - Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images North America

It is documented and celebrated by the site Hockeyfights.com.

But as I learn more and more about the impact of concussions in both the NHL and NFL, I find myself toning down the blood-thirst and hoping for an aggressive game showcasing the skills of the superstars.

Jarring hits will still occur and so will concussions, based on the nature of the sport, but I’d hate to lose Matt Hendricks, John Erskine, Matt Bradley or anyone else for a game – much less an abbreviated career – for a few moments of fists flying.

According to HockeyFights.com the 2010 season broke down like this for the Caps:

  • Matt Hendricks – 14 fights
  • Matt Bradley – 10
  • John Erskine/DJ King – 6
  • Jason Chimera – 4
  • Mike Green/David Steckel – 2
  • Alex Ovechkin – 1
I know a fight can set the tone of a game, energize a team and its fan base, but at some point the decision makers at the league office need to decide if stories of injuries, concussions, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (according to The New York Times: a degenerative disease of brain tissue associated with repeated concussions) are the topics they want discussed the weekend the puck is dropped for the 2010-2011 Stanley Cup Conference Finals.

Washington Capitals forward Matt Hendricks

I’ll close by referring to a post recapping the 2nd episode of HBO’s 24/7 Winter Classic series.
It is provided by Dan Steinberg’s D.C. Sports Bog and showcases the reality Hendricks’ has been forced into by the pugilistic culture of the NHL:

“It comes down to having a job and making a career,” Hendricks told HBO. “I think it all started last year when I went into training camp. The season before that, I had a really good camp, had some goals, and still got sent down to the minors. I got called up for four games throughout the year, but it wasn’t enough. I needed to figure out a way to make the opening night roster. And talking to a good friend of mine, he said ‘You’ve got to fight.’ He said, ‘If you don’t do it, someone else will,’ and I kind of stick by that motto now.”

Articles for both sides of the fighting argument in the NHL:

Professional Hockey: Days Lost Per Concussion in NHL Increasing

ScienceDaily (Apr. 24, 2011) — A major University of Calgary study of concussions, conducted over seven National Hockey League seasons and led by sports medicine researchers within the Faculty of Kinesiology, indicates that while the rate of injuries leveled out over the study period, the number of days lost per concussion has increased.

Many in N.H.L. View Fighting as Necessary

Efforts to outlaw fighting in hockey go back decades. But though the number of fights in the N.H.L. has dropped significantly in recent years, fighting persists, preserved by the idea that it is a deterrent against cheap shots, a safety valve against more serious mayhem and something that fans like to watch.

Ex-Enforcer Says Fights Aren’t Real Problem

Marty McSorley is no stranger to hockey violence. He fought 273 times in a 17-year N.H.L. career. In 2000, he was convicted of assault after swinging his stick at the head of Donald Brashear, another feared enforcer, and was suspended for a year, effectively ending his career. He had numerous concussions as a player and today, at 47, has memory loss and other symptoms often associated with brain injury.

← Older posts

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 14 other followers

The Pub on Twitter

  • @DamoSpin right with you. Please be a storied match regardless. 8 years ago
  • RT @barrysvrluga: I was at Wimbledon for tennis Tuesday. And Alex Ovechkin's girlfriend played. And Ovi talked about all sorts of things ... 9 years ago
  • Check out my post and many more - Today's #Caps Clips feature our Semin sendoff plus more. sbn.to/QkrXed via @JapersRink 9 years ago

Archives

  • July 2015 (1)
  • August 2011 (1)
  • July 2011 (2)
  • June 2011 (2)
  • May 2011 (7)
  • April 2011 (9)
  • March 2011 (5)
  • February 2011 (7)
  • January 2011 (13)
  • December 2010 (2)
  • November 2010 (2)
  • October 2010 (3)
  • September 2010 (13)
  • August 2010 (9)
  • July 2010 (3)
  • June 2010 (6)
  • April 2010 (7)
  • March 2010 (6)
  • February 2010 (18)
  • January 2010 (29)

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Ross Hollebon's Sports Pub
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Ross Hollebon's Sports Pub
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...