> Parting shot:  is the WCHA ever going to get a real TV contract?  Knowing
> the fanaticism and sheer numbers of Wisconsin fans, I have to believe the
> demand is there for more than local-only tape delay of home badger hockey
> games....   And will the dearly-missed Howie ever do color commentary
> again?  *sigh*
 
According to an interview with Bruce McLeod (broadcast last weekend
during one of the the icebreaker intermissions), a WCHA TV contract is
not a high priority. He did say that he and the HE commissioner are
talking with FOX about a national game of the week.
 
This wasn't in the interview, but from past inquiries I think that the
problems for a WCHA TV contract are that most of the teams are already
on TV in their local area, and the geographic dispersion of the WCHA
means that it would require negotiating with a huge number of different
sports networks to get a package together. Plus, the traditional
Friday-Saturday series is not a good time slot for getting on TV (which,
if they had a contract, could be dealt with by moving some games to
Saturday afternoon or Sunday afternoon or evening, I suppose).
 
        --david
 
HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey;  send information to
[log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.