My contribution to the thread re: coverage: I listen to a bit of
sports talk radio (on my 40-minute commute). I listen to FM 107.9 from
Skowhegan, Maine; AM 850, WEEI, from Boston; and WFAN, AM 660, from New
York. The FM comes in for the 2/3 of the ride closer to home; the AM
stations come in when I'm closer to the coast, but not as well inland.
I've heard only extremely limited commentary on college hockey.
There's never been anything on the FAN. FM 107.9 broadcasts nationally
syndicated programming from Prime Sports. The topic this morning was
"If you could have a tape of one sporting event so you could watch it
over & over, what would it be?" The standard responses came in, Super
Bowls and World Serieses past, etc. Then a caller said, "From college
hockkey, UMaine/Michigan's triple-OT in the 1995 semifinal." The
announcer said, "You mean when the guy picked up the puck with his
stick and threw it in the net?" Well, no, but thanks for asking.
Point: most national sports personalities know very little about our
game.
WEEI is in Boston, arguably the Hub of College Hockey (geographically,
anyway). Glenn Ordway has a show from 3-6. When lamenting the lack of
things to talk about after the Super Bowl (both local pro teams are
pretty horrible right now), he made a comment, "Wanna talk Beanpot?"
The problem was, he was joking, like anyone in their right mind would
be foolish to want to discuss one of the best sports events in the
region on his program. This from the same guy who calls his listeners
"bloodthirsty shut-ins". This afternoon, however, the announcer said,
"In tournament action last night, Boston College was victorious. They
beat Merrimack, 7-6..." and Glenn piped up, in an annoyed tone of
voice, "Oh, hockey. I thought you meant the basketball team." I guess
he tries to be a Rush Limbaugh-type antagonist; well, he's good at it.
Point: In one of the richest college hockey regions, the sport gets no
respect on the talk radio airwaves.
Has this incoherent babble struck a chord in anyone out there?
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