Fox Sports Ohio gets the 2nd highest ratings of all regional sports networks for Cavs games.
It is 60th for Blue Jackets games.
Skraut,
You don't have historical data for this at all, do you?
This seems astonishing to me, and makes the idea of public financing of the arena even more problematic. For a given Jackets game, there are only about 30,000 or so people interested enough to watch it either at the arena or on TV? And 11,000,000 people around the state are going to be asked to subsidize it?
The Columbus Blue Jackets created a lot of excitement and fan support last season in making their Stanley Cup Playoff debut and setting various team and television ratings records. That enthusiasm has continued into this season as the local ratings for their live game telecasts on FOX Sports Ohio are up 38 percent.
• The average rating through 28 televised games is 1.82 HH.
• Last season, the average rating was 1.32 at same number of games.
What is interesting is that means tin order to get back to a 1.39 average for the season, they actually had to average 1.17 over the last 54 games
lol, that's the best place to do it. I'll probably post over there as we get get closer to the UFA period and see if anyone notices.
I can imagine some low-end web employee saying "OMG we got a post. We got a POST! What do we DO?"
__________________
"Every game, every point is a necessity." -- Ty Conklin, January 2007
"I'll have a chance to compete for the post of first issue. This is the most important thing." -- Sergei Bobrovsky, June 2012
For what it's worth, I've had the opportunity to listen to several of the other teams' radio broadcasts in recent weeks, and other than a few exceptions, Detroit - St. Louis - Washington, George M. really had a more enjoyable broadcast. Many of the play-by-play folks were really tough to listen to - poor description with particularly bad knowledge of the opposing teams. Even though I found the STL and DET casts very good radio, they really weren't better than George, just different in style.
I know that some of the casts were TV simulcasts which makes me wonder how successfully that would be in Columbus and whether George's style is too much for TV if he replaced Rimer.
From a thread on the Pens board discussing Paul Steigerwald, their FSN PBP guy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jag68Sid87
Whether Lange could ever be an option again is irrelevant. Steigerwald is simply a terrible play-by-play broadcaster. If you watch some old footage, he wasn't THIS bad as the color analyst to Lange back in the day. This is why I didn't go crazy when they first announced the changes to the broadcast team. I remembered Steigerwald as Lange's sidekick and I really didn't think it was horrible at all. But now? It's just a nightly horrow show.
When you are on a list with the likes of Columbus PBP man Jeff Rimer, Devils color guy Chico Resch and Habs color analyst Benoit Brunet as the very worst NHL TV broadcasters, you know you suck. And to me, that foursome is the standard by which all crappy broadcasters should be measured.
EDIT: I forgot about CBC's Mark Lee. Another brutal PBP man.
Hitch has done a pretty good job for NHL Network lately three days a week. The Jackets should put him up in the booth.
Play by play: John Michael
Color: Ken Hitchcock
That's improvement right there, and the best talent in the booth since Engblom.
Ken Hitchcock is the last thing CBJ fans want to hear, they heard enough babbling over the last 3 seasons to last a life time... JHC, the dude never played hockey and you want him for the color?
... JHC, the dude never played hockey and you want him for the color?
Yes, not that he would do it - he's "colorful" and, despite never having played, knows the game inside and out and can communicate that knowledge. Which, of course, you know but are choosing to disregard so you can make another one of your sweepingly inane comments.
Yes, not that he would do it - he's "colorful" and, despite never having played, knows the game inside and out and can communicate that knowledge. Which, of course, you know but are choosing to disregard so you can make another one of your sweepingly inane comments.
We could make a game of it, like with Gare. Pull out your Hitchcockian Dictionary and everytime he uses a word in it, drink.
I still want Gare back. Then you move Bill Davidge back to the radio & all's right in the world again (and I won't errantly say "George & Bill" when talking about the radio anymore like I was used to).
Bring Gare back, throw Hitch in. Epic drinking game.
Last edited by CBJSprague24: 05-22-2010 at 10:07 AM.
We could make a game of it, like with Gare. Pull out your Hitchcockian Dictionary and everytime he uses a word in it, drink.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CBJSprague24
I still want Gare back. Then you move Bill Davidge back to the radio & all's right in the world again (and I won't errantly say "George & Bill" when talking about the radio anymore like I was used to).
Bring Gare back, throw Hitch in. Epic drinking game.
I'm in (but, again, I think Hitch has other plans).
I still want Gare back. Then you move Bill Davidge back to the radio & all's right in the world again (and I won't errantly say "George & Bill" when talking about the radio anymore like I was used to).
Bring Gare back, throw Hitch in. Epic drinking game.
I miss Gare as well. Was he one of the better color guys in the league? Clearly not but at least he could be entertaining from time to time. I kind of liked the odd 'Ka-boom!' and 'Toot Toot Tyutin!'. I also didn't mind his one-on-one segments with the players.
I'm sure Davidge is a great guy and he seemed to do well with George, but I didn't feel he ever brought anything either entertaining or insightful to his role last year. It was the same lines over and over:
1: That's as good as it gets...
2: A goal-scorer's goal...
3: You're exactly right...
4: He took away his time and space...
5: Something about Rimmer being cheap
If I thought for another 5 minutes I'm sure I could come up with another 5 and variations of those 10 lines make up 80% of his commentary. I dread another year of listening to this.
I'm in (but, again, I think Hitch has other plans).
Personally, I think Hitch would do a great job during intermissions - sort of a 'Coach's Corner' but also let him dissect some of the previous period's plays on the telestrator. I envision him as kind of a cross between Don Cherry and Howie Meeker - loud and opinionated, but analytical and detailed.
Alas, it would never work in Columbus. One comment about how Filatov or Brassard or (insert young player here) didn't defend properly on a shift and everyone would be up in arms on how he is using the position to justify his coaching style while he was here and how he is again destroying these players' confidence. Plus, the Jackets' organization doesn't want anyone on TV who might actually say something insightful that could be construed as a negative against the team. So we'll get vanilla commentary instead.
Personally, I think Hitch would do a great job during intermissions - sort of a 'Coach's Corner' but also let him dissect some of the previous period's plays on the telestrator. I envision him as kind of a cross between Don Cherry and Howie Meeker - loud and opinionated, but analytical and detailed.
Alas, it would never work in Columbus. One comment about how Filatov or Brassard or (insert young player here) didn't defend properly on a shift and everyone would be up in arms on how he is using the position to justify his coaching style while he was here and how he is again destroying these players' confidence. Plus, the Jackets' organization doesn't want anyone on TV who might actually say something insightful that could be construed as a negative against the team. So we'll get vanilla commentary instead.
I just can't wait until Rimer is gone. I really don't see how he's kept his job because he's terrible at it. The only possible explanation I can come up with is that he is known and liked around the league. To bad for him that us Columbus folks don't share the same sentiments. As for Davidge..well he sucks on T.V. and he was good with Matthews. He should go back to radio. Regardless those two are the worst at actually talking about what is going on with the game. They tend to talk about non-hockey stuff far to often compared to other teams broadcasters. I want them both gone soon! I mean come on Jared Boll really has one of the best wrist shots in the game???
Davidge was good on the radio because George did most of the talking.
There's two possible reasons I can see that Rimer still has a job:
1. The CBJ want puppets to tell viewers that the sun is always shining inside Nationwide Arena and Rimer is happy to play the part for a paycheck.
2. The CBJ are trying to drive up season ticket sales by making the TV broadcast so bad that people will pay a few grand a year just so they don't have to listen to Rimer.
Did Matthews' contract with the CBJ expire when this season ended, or does he have another year left on it? I vaguely remember reading that his contract was extended for just one year after last season, but I could be wrong.
