Hockey Night in Canada

Hockey Night in Canada
File:HNIC-currentlogo.jpg The present Hockey Night in Canada logo used since 1998.
Presented by	Ron MacLean Don Cherry Bob Cole Harry Neale Jim Hughson Craig Simpson Greg Millen Kelly Hrudey Scott Oake Along With Mark Lee John Garrett Cassie Campbell P.J. Stock
Country of origin	Canada
Production
Running time	360 minutes+
Original release
Network	CBC
Release	Radio 1931–1976 TV 1952-Current

Hockey Night in Canada (often abbreviated Hockey Night or HNIC) is a television broadcast of National Hockey League games in Canada, produced by CBC Sports. Hockey Night consistently remains one of the highest-rated programs on Canadian television. It is also the world's oldest sports-related television program still on the air. The intermission highlight on HNIC is Coach's Corner, a segment featuring Don Cherry and Ron MacLean.

History

Radio

Hockey Night in Canada has its origins in the General Motors Hockey Broadcast which transmitted Saturday night hockey games of the Toronto Maple Leafs beginning in November 1931 over the Canadian National Railway radio network. In 1933, the CNR's successor, the Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission, commenced broadcasts of Montreal Canadiens and Montreal Maroons games on its Quebec stations. In 1934, Imperial Oil of Canada took over the sponsorship from General Motors Products of Canada and the broadcast became known as the Imperial Esso Hockey Broadcast. Transmission began at 9 p.m. Eastern Time (the beginning of the second period of play). Starting in 1936, the games were broadcast on CRBC's successor, the CBC. In much of Ontario and points west the show featured the Maple Leafs and were hosted by Gordon Calder with play-by-play announcer Foster Hewitt and colour man was Percy Lesueur. Montreal broadcasts were hosted by Doug Smith and Elmer Ferguson broadcast for Montreal Maroons games in English and René Lecavalier broadcast Montreal Canadiens games in French. After the Maroons folded in 1938, Smith and Ferguson provided English broadcasts of Canadiens games. The great popularity of the radio show (and its announcer Foster Hewitt) across Canada made it an obvious choice for early Canadian network television programming.

CBC Radio aired Saturday night HNIC broadcasts through 1965, switching to Sunday nights from 1965–76, after which the games moved exclusively to television coverage. In Toronto, CFRB (originally a CNR Radio affiliate) continued to simulcast Maple Leaf games for many years alongside CBC Radio's Toronto station CBL.

Television

Hockey Night in Canada began airing on Saturday nights on CBC Television in 1952, retaining Imperial Oil as sponsor. It continued to feature regular season NHL games on the English network every Saturday evening during the NHL season, and retained many of the features such as the Hot Stove Lounge and the three stars selection, which originated as an Imperial Oil gasoline promotion and survived even as sponsorship eventually passed from Imperial to Molson and, later, Labatt.

Until the 1990s, there was only one game televised each Saturday night in any particular locality and up to 1968, regular season games were still not broadcast in their entirety. In the early 1960s, the broadcast time was moved to 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time, which allowed the game to be joined in progress during the first period. Starting in the fall of 1968, regular-season games were shown in their entirety. In 1970–71, the Vancouver Canucks joined the NHL, meaning that there were now three possible venues for an HNIC telecast. Four more Canadian-based teams joined the fold in 1979–80 and 1980–81, further increasing coverage. It should be noted, however, that the Quebec Nordiques were initially never shown at home on HNIC, as their owners, Carling O'Keefe Breweries, forbade Molson from televising games in their building. This was partly in response to efforts by the Montreal Canadiens, who were owned by Molson, to keep Quebec out of the league. After the 1989 merger between Molson and Carling O'Keefe, and the subsequent sale of the Nordiques, HNIC was now free to show games from Quebec City. Still, they rarely did, as the Nordiques English-speaking fan base was very small. They appeared more frequently on La Soiree du Hockey.

After Wayne Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings in 1988, the network began showing occasional double-headers when Canadian teams visited Los Angeles, in order to give the game's greatest star network exposure in Canada. These games were often joined in progress, as the regular start time for HNIC was still 8:00 Eastern Time and the Kings home games began at 7:30 Pacific Time (10:30 Eastern). Beginning in the 1995 season, weekly double-headers became the norm, with games starting at 7:30 Eastern and 7:30 Pacific. In 1998, the start times were moved thirty minutes earlier.

Instant replay made its debut on a 1955 HNIC broadcast. CBC director George Retzlaff made a kinescope recording of a goal, and replayed it to the television audience seconds later.

Beginning with the 1966-67 NHL season, all games broadcast on HNIC were in colour.

Present day

CBC has extended its broadcast contract with the NHL through the 2013–2014 season.

The possible movement of Hockey Night in Canada to another broadcaster caused some controversy and discussion during the 2006–2007 hockey season. Canadian private network CTV had outbid the CBC for Canadian television rights to the 2010 and 2012 Olympics as well as the major television package for curling. The broadcast requirements would have focused on CTV-owned TSN (The Sports Network), a cable channel which already carries Canadian NHL hockey during the week as well as other NHL games throughout the season.

Despite the rumours, it always seemed that CTV was unlikely to be interested in the nightly playoff coverage currently provided by the CBC, since weeknight games in April and May would conflict with new episodes of CTV's slate of American programming. As well, Hockey Night in Canada could not be used as the name, as it is owned by CBC, unless CTVglobemedia pays royalties to CBC for use of the name.

The new deal allows TSN to expand its coverage, while maintaining the more-than-50-year tradition of Hockey Night in Canada. CBC will be limited in the number of games it can show per team so that the six Canadian-based teams, particularly the Toronto Maple Leafs, can distribute more games to regional carriers, thereby increasing the value of their local packages.

In early September 2007, CBC announced a new Hockey Night in Canada Radio show to air on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 122 (Sports Play-by-Play 1) beginning October 1. While the broadcaster trumpeted the launch as the return "back to the radio airwaves" for HNIC, Sirius no longer has the right to broadcast NHL games, much less an HNIC simulcast. The new HNIC Radio will be a separate entity on which only a few HNIC commentators will regularly appear. The radio broadcast will be hosted by Canadian sports broadcaster Jeff Marek.

As of October 2007, Scotiabank has branded itself with the pregame, Scotiabank Hockey Night.

Regular season

Pregame show

Hockey Night in Canada coverage typically begins 30 minutes prior to the opening faceoff of the first game with the pregame show called Scotiabank Hockey Tonight. Ron MacLean hosts the program. Elliotte Friedman features a segment called The Headliner that examines a range of issues in the NHL. It was previously known as Labatt Saturday Night (later just called Saturday Night, after Labatt dropped its title sponsorship), and was best known for the theme song "The Place'll Be Rockin' 'Cause It's Saturday Night" performed by The Carpet Frogs member Michael Zweig. This song was replaced by Kid Rock and Nickelback's version of "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" (which was previously used to introduce the night's first game).

Game 1

The first game of the Saturday night doubleheader typically originates in Eastern Canada, beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern Time (4 p.m. Pacific Time). Sometimes the network is split so that multiple teams can be seen in their home markets. Ron MacLean hosts the entire evening broadcast, usually from the arena of the featured game. Play-by-play is usually provided by veteran Bob Cole, who started broadcasting NHL games on radio in 1969, or Jim Hughson. The game analyst is Harry Neale, Greg Millen, or Craig Simpson. Elliotte Friedman is the reporter.

File:Hockeynew.JPG

The Hockey Night in Canada logo, used until 1998 on CBC, and 2004 on Radio-Canada.

At the end of the first period, MacLean hosts Coach's Corner, featuring the show's star and former NHL Coach of the Year, Don Cherry. On Coach's Corner, Don Cherry, also known as "Grapes", analyzes the game's first period, as well as gives tips on various points of hockey, with Ron MacLean being Cherry's foil. There are times in which Cherry tends to be controversial; for example in 2003, Cherry stated that the majority of players wearing facial protection in the NHL are Frenchmen and Europeans (though, a study done by a lawyer confirmed Cherry's assertion). In any case, this controversy led to Coach's Corner being put on a seven-second delay for the rest of the season by the CBC. The seven-second delay has been subsequently removed from the broadcast.

CBC also opted not to place on its website a segment where Cherry and MacLean debated the Iraq War shortly after it began in 2003.

This segment, the highest-rated spot on Canadian television, is followed by a second feature that changes from season-to-season, currently being called Up to the Minute, showing scores of other games. There are also interviews with players in between periods, during which the players often brandish towels with the HNIC logo on it. During the second intermission, MacLean and reporter Scott Morrison host the Satellite Hotstove, a segment that features hockey journalists from across North America, who debate and speculate on issues facing hockey. Eric Duhatschek and Pierre LeBrun make regular appearances on this segment, as have Al Strachan of the Toronto Sun and John Davidson in past years. During non-Saturday playoff games, After 40 Minutes, which normally features MacLean interviewing league or team officials, along with scores and highlights of other games, airs instead.

Following the "three stars" selection of the first game, and before the faceoff of Game 2, MacLean and Cherry return to give updates on scores and highlights from around the league. Friedman conducts interviews with players and the commentators for Game 2 preview the upcoming contest.

Game 2

The second game airs at 10 p.m. ET (7 p.m. PT) featuring one of the three teams from Western Canada (the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, or Vancouver Canucks). Since hurry-up faceoffs were introduced, it is extremely rare that a regular season game runs longer than three hours, and every double-header game is seen in its entirety. Various announcers are used for this game, either the featured team of Hughson and Millen or Simpson, or the likes of Mark Lee, Dean Brown, John Garrett, Garry Galley, and Cassie Campbell.

After the first period of the second game, a regular feature entitled Behind the Mask is featured with former NHL goaltender Kelly Hrudey where he is joined by Scott Oake going over certain plays he noticed in the night's games. Hrudey frequently uses a Telestrator to illustrate his points. This segment is generally followed by a CBC News brief, which substitutes for the regular late-night bulletin and is not part of HNIC itself. The second intermission generally consists of scores and highlights.

The broadcast will also occasionally originate from a U.S. city playing host to a Canadian team. This is more common with the second, Western game, because between the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators, and Montreal Canadiens (Canada's three Eastern teams), at least one is traditionally at home on any given Saturday night.

Only on rare occasions has HNIC broadcast regular season games involving two U.S.-based teams, and this has usually been due to labour issues or an extremely special occasion (such as Wayne Gretzky's final game in 1999 and the league's AMP Energy NHL Winter Classic in 2008 and 2009.

After Hours

Beginning with the 2000–01 season, CBC launched After Hours, a program that follows the Saturday night HNIC broadcast. It recaps the night's NHL coverage with hosts Scott Oake and Kelly Hrudey from the city of the late game. The wrap-up usually includes a guest appearance by an NHL player or coach. Fans are typically allowed to submit questions online or by phone.

Hockey Night in Canada Replay

Following After Hours, CBC shows Hockey Night in Canada Replay, which recaps the highlights of the games. In Western Canada, this show airs later in the evening, after a local newscast.

Playoffs

CBC also provides extensive Stanley Cup playoff coverage every spring with a focus on Canadian teams. They also have exclusive English-language rights to the Stanley Cup Finals. Many of the playoff games, regardless of the day of the week, are aired, giving the CBC an unusual program schedule from early April through early June. This means CBC generally ends its regularly scheduled broadcast season earlier than other Canadian and American broadcasters. For years, all playoff games involving Canadian teams have been aired by the CBC, though not always on a national basis. However, under the terms of a new broadcast deal to take effect with the 2008–2009 season, TSN will have the third, fifth and seventh selections among opening round series, while CBC would choose first, second, fourth, sixth and eighth. As a result of the new arrangement, if more than two Canadian teams qualify for the playoffs, it is likely that at least one series involving a Canadian team will be broadcast by TSN. In subsequent rounds, TSN could again show a Canadian team if at least three of them get that far.

During the first intermission of Hockey Night in Canada playoff broadcasts, the feature alternates between Don Cherry's Coach's Corner and Kelly Hrudey's Behind the Mask. Hrudey, a former NHL goaltender, joined the CBC for the 1998–99 season. As a former player, Hrudey provides unique perspectives on today's NHL and gives the viewer an inside look at the game from another angle. Cherry provides features during Toronto Maple Leaf games or other Canadian teams still in the playoffs.

On some occasions, three announcers are provided for the game instead of the usual two for the regular season, especially during the Stanley Cup Finals.

The most-watched game in HNIC history was a playoff game: Game 7 the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. The most memorable quote from that game was Bob Cole announcing that the New York Rangers had won the Stanley Cup, ending their 54-year Stanley Cup drought:

The New York Rangers have done it here ON A HOT JUNE NIGHT IN NEW YORK! THE RANGERS ARE STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS!

Hockey Day in Canada

Hockey Day in Canada is an annual special broadcast to celebrate the game in Canada that includes features all afternoon, leading up to a tripleheader of NHL action featuring the six Canadian teams (Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Vancouver Canucks). Lead commentators, Don Cherry and Ron MacLean broadcast from a remote area. The broadcast includes live broadcast segments from smaller communities right across the country and features panel discussions on issues facing "Canada's game" at both the minor and pro levels. The day is usually in mid-February, but was broadcast in early January in 2002 and 2006 due to the 2002 Winter Olympics and 2006 Winter Olympics, respectively; the 2007 event was also held in January (January 13), though no sporting events key to Canada were scheduled.

Hockey Day in Canada has also featured special events, such as world-record all-night pick-up hockey games from Red Deer, Alberta (in 2001) and Windsor, Nova Scotia (2002). Viewers got to see the games after the CBC ended regular programming for the night, without commentary.

Hockey Day in Canada also reached out to other ethnic groups as well – the 2007 event on January 13, 2007 featured Italian language commentary of the Vancouver Canucks / Toronto Maple Leafs matchup, which was seen on the Telelatino (TLN) cable channel, with special features and commentary by Alf De Blasis, who hosts soccer games for TLN. This was the first time Hockey Night in Canada was presented in Italian. The following year, three of the four matches were presented in Hindi, Mandarin and Cantonese.

Hockey Day in Canada has fast become a tradition among Canadian hockey fans, taking on the role of an unofficial holiday. In some communities, such as the case with 2006's location, Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador, it is said that Hockey Day is "bigger than Santa."

The 2009 version of Hockey Day in Canada will take place on February 21st, 2009. Ottawa will faceoff with Montreal at the Bell Centre, Vancouver visits Toronto at the Air Canada Centre and in the night-cap, Calgary and Edmonton renew the Battle of Alberta at Rexall Place. CBC will broadcast mainly from Campbellton, New Brunswick.

Broadcast locations

• 2000: Toronto, Ontario
• 2001: Red Deer, Alberta
• 2002: Windsor, Nova Scotia
• 2003: Iqaluit, Nunavut
• 2004: Shaunavon, Saskatchewan
• 2005: No Hockey Day in Canada due to the 2004-05 NHL lockout
• 2006: Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador (January 7)
• 2007: Nelson, British Columbia (January 13)
• 2008: Winkler, Manitoba (February 9)
• 2009: Campbellton, New Brunswick (February 21)

In January 2005, due to the NHL labour dispute, the CBC canceled that year's broadcast. Rival TSN aired a similar broadcast instead, Hockey Lives Here: Canada's Game, based from the World Pond Hockey Championships in Plaster Rock, New Brunswick. It also featured NHL players competing in an exhibition game to raise money for various charities in Hamilton, Ontario. TSN did not revive its version after the lockout ended.

Movie Night in Canada

During the 2004-2005 NHL lockout, CBC replaced Hockey Night in Canada with a triple-feature of movies, mostly of the Hollywood variety. (The pregame was replaced with repeats of The Red Green Show.) However, as a reminder to viewers that Saturday night was supposed to be Hockey Night, Ron MacLean hosted the movies from various hockey venues throughout Canada, under the title Movie Night in Canada. Ron would mention some facts about the film and talk hockey during the commercial breaks. The venues were usually those of CHL teams.

A labour deal was reached in time to contest the 2005-06 NHL season. CBC's own on-air talent was also locked out during the summer of 2005, nearly missing the start of the hockey season. Some journalists have suggested that this helped cause TSN and the CFL to end their sublicense deal with CBC after the 2007 season, as games from that league aired without commentary during the lockout.

Availability outside of Canada

During the era that HNIC was on radio, it was broadcast over several powerful CBC clear channel stations whose nighttime signals reached much of the northern United States. As a result, the games had a following throughout the northern U.S., and especially so in Boston, Chicago, Detroit, and New York, the four U.S. cities that had NHL teams at the time. These listeners were always acknowledged by Foster Hewitt on his opening greeting, "Hello Canada, and hockey fans in the United States and Newfoundland . . ." This has waned thanks to the expansion of local team TV coverage on regional sports networks, although some C-band satellite dishes can still receive CBC's over-the-air feeds. Still, U.S. cable television outlets near the international border (notably including markets such as Detroit, Buffalo, and Seattle) typically carry a nearby CBC affiliate on their systems (though some cable systems carry a non-regional station). As a general rule, CBC stations are carried within about 150 miles of the border, and are not blacked-out of sporting events.

NHL Center Ice offers Hockey Night in Canada at the same time as the CBC broadcast, airing the entire program from the Saturday Night pregame show through the HNIC After Hours postgame show.

Beginning with the 2006 playoffs, the cable television channel OLN, now called Versus, simulcast CBC's coverage of some games, generally first and second round matchups from Western Canada, instead of using their own crews and announcers. In the early 1990s, SportsChannel America covered the Stanley Cup Playoffs in a similar fashion. Versus continues to use CBC and TSN feeds to augment its own playoff coverage, sometimes even picking up a Canadian broadcast of a game involving two American teams.

See also: The NHL on Versus

Hockey Night in Canada is also broadcast live and as-live in the UK and Ireland and some other European markets, on the North American Sports Network (NASN), distributed on multiple cable and satellite platforms. The pre- and post-game segments are not included, but the entirety of the two games are shown, as well as the segments between periods.

Announcers

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Dave Hodge and Howie Meeker in the classic Hockey Night in Canada jackets.

The legendary Foster Hewitt, who had developed a style that welcomed Canadians to the radio broadcast each week, had to prove his radio style could also work in the new medium of television in 1952. His move from radio to television was successful and Hewitt continued to work in television for many years, including the famed 1972 "Summit Series" between a team representing Canada (an NHL all-star team) and the Soviet National Team. This style of play-by-play announcers in hockey broadcasting really hasn't changed between radio and TV, as broadcasters still describe the action as if viewers cannot see what is on the screen they're watching. He was followed (in no particular order) by Danny Gallivan, Dan Kelly, Dick Irvin, Jr., Jim Robson, Bob Cole, and Hewitt's son, Bill Hewitt. Previous show hosts included Wes McKnight, Ward Cornell, Jack Dennett, Ted Darling, and Dave Hodge. The show's current host is Ron MacLean.

Current

• Steve Armitage: Rinkside Reporter, Studio Host (1977–present)
• Dean Brown: Play-by-Play (2000–present)
• Cassie Campbell: Rinkside Reporter (2006–present)
• Don Cherry: Studio Analyst (1981–present)
• Bob Cole: Play-by-Play (1973–present)
• Elliotte Friedman: Studio Host / Rinkside Reporter (2003–present)
• John Garrett: Colour Commentator (1986–1998, 2006–present)
• Garry Galley: Colour Commentator (2007–present)
• Kelly Hrudey: Studio Analyst/Colour Commentator (1998–present)
• Jim Hughson: Play-by-Play (1985–1986, 2005–present)
• Mark Lee: Play-by-Play (1997–present)
• Ron MacLean: Studio Host (1986–present)
• Jeff Marek: Rinkside Reporter (2007–present)
• Greg Millen: Colour Commentator (1995–1998, 1999–present)
• Scott Morrison: Contributor
• Harry Neale: Colour Commentator (1986–present)
• Scott Oake: Studio Host / Rinkside Reporter (1988–present)
• Bruce Rainnie: Rinkside Reporter (2003–present)
• Scott Russell: Rinkside Reporter (1989–2003, 2005–present)
• Craig Simpson: Colour Commentator (2007–present)

Former

• Scotty Bowman: Colour Commentator (1987–1990)
• Rick Bowness: Studio Analyst (playoffs 1993–1996)
• Ward Cornell: Studio Host (1958–1971)
• Marc Crawford: Colour Commentator (1998–1999)
• Chris Cuthbert: Play-by-Play / Rinkside Reporter (1984–2004)
• Keith Dancy: Colour Commentator (1952–1966)
• Ken Daniels: Play-by-Play (1992–1997)
• Ted Darling: Studio Host (1955–1970)
• John Davidson: Colour Commentator (1983–1986, 1995–2006)
• Jack Dennett: Studio Host
• Gary Dornhoefer: Colour Commentator (1978–1986)
• Elmer Ferguson: Colour Commentator
• John Ferguson: Colour Commentator (1973–1975)
• Patrick Flatley: Colour Commentator (1998–1999)
• Martine Gaillard: Rinkside Reporter (1998–2004)
• Danny Gallivan: Play-by-Play (1952–1984)
• Bob Goldham: Colour Commentator (1960–1964)
• Bill Good, Jr.: Studio Host (1970–1977)
• Bill Hewitt: Play-by-Play (1958–1982)
• Foster Hewitt: Play-by-Play, Colour Commentator (1952–1960)
• Dave Hodge: Studio Host (1971–1987)
• Bobby Hull: Colour Commentator (1980–1983)
• Dick Irvin, Jr.: Play-by-Play / Colour Commentator / Studio Host (1966–1999)
• Brenda Irving: Rinkside Reporter (2001–2006)
• Dan Kelly: Play-by-Play (1977–1980)
• Doug MacLean: Colour Commentator
• Brian McFarlane: Colour Commentator, Studio Host (1964–1989)
• Wes McKnight: Studio Host (1952–1958)
• Howie Meeker: Colour Commentator, Studio Analyst (1969–1987)
• Lou Nanne: Colour Commentator (1979)
• Jim Peplinski: Colour Commentator (1990–1995, 1997)
• Gerry Pinder: Colour Commentator (1979–1981)
• Walter Pratt: Colour Commentator / Studio Analyst (1970–1978)
• Mickey Redmond: Colour Commentator (1980–1987)
• Drew Remenda: Colour Commentator (2006–2007)
• Glenn Resch: Colour Commentator (playoffs 1978, 1988)
• Dave Reynolds: Studio Host (1970–1976)
• Jim Robson: Play-by-Play (1970–1985)
• Steve Shutt: Colour Commentator (1990–1994)
• Doug Smith: Play-by-Play
• P.J. Stock: Studio Analyst (2007–2008)
• Red Storey: Studio Analyst
• Ron Tugnutt: Colour-Commentator (2005–2007)
• John Wells: Rinkside Reporter (1979–1984)
• Don Wittman: Play-by-Play (1979–2008)

Theme music

See also: The Hockey Theme

The television show's original theme song was Saturday's Game, a march composed by Howard Cable. The CBC and the advertising agency responsible for the broadcasts at the time, MacLaren Advertising, later replaced the tune with the "Esso Happy Motoring Song". The companies later commissioned the composition of a yet another theme, The Hockey Theme, composed in 1968 by Dolores Claman and arranged by Cable. The CBC's most recent licence to use The Hockey Theme expired at the conclusion of the 2007-08 NHL season. Claman's publisher issued a statement on June 4, 2008 claiming that the CBC had informed them it would not be renewing its rights to the composition. CBC Sports head Scott Moore denied the reports, saying that the CBC wanted to keep the song and that negotiations on a new licence agreement for the song were still ongoing.

In the early evening of June 6 the CBC announced it could not reach an acceptable agreement to renew its license, and would proceed with a contest for a new theme in collaboration with music label Nettwerk. The contest commenced 10 June, 2008, and at the end of the submissions period 31 August, 2008, CBC had received over 14,000 entries. These are to be reduced to up to 20 semi-finalists, which will be re-arranged by producer Bob Rock and presented for public voting. Voting is scheduled to commence 04 October, 2008, with 2 finalists being picked for a final 1-day vote. The winner will receive $100,000, plus 50% of the royalties, the other half of which will be donated to minor hockey. CBC will receive exclusive rights on the theme for 3 years, with the ability to renew at that time. In addition, the famous Canadian country singer, Stompin' Tom Connors, has let be known that he would be open to an appropriate licensing agreement for his famous "The Hockey Song" as HNIC's new theme song.

The CBC said it had offered nearly $1 million for perpetual rights to the piece, but that Copyright Music was asking for $2.5 to $3 million for those rights. Copyright Music turned it down because it was, "...a settlement that barely covered our legal bills, let alone losses."One of the other proposed payment methods which would have kept the song on the Hockey Night in Canada show, however CBC would not have had full ownership, was for $500 per play; Which, in total, was $65,000 a year. Despite being contacted by 5 parties interested in buying the song, "[Copyright Music] had no desire to start a bidding war"

Moore has been quoted as saying, "We have no real idea why the deal fell apart. We're not sure why because the other side hasn't communicated with us." Yet, Copyright Music states that Moore gave them an unrealistic deadline of 24 hours to meet him when his client was 5 timezones away.

Moore has also been quoted as saying that he didn't think the Hockey Night in Canada show would lose viewers if he lost the theme song. "Hockey's a game, not a song," he said. Mike Myers disagrees with this ambivalence towards the song calling it, "...the second anthem [of Canada]" Which is somewhat true due to tour guides tricking Europeans into thinking it's Canada's national anthem. In an informal poll on CBC's website which puts forth the question, "Can Canada go on as we know it without the Hockey Night in Canada theme?", (3361) 84% respond no.

On June 9, 2008, CTV announced that it had purchased the perpetual rights to the song and would use them for hockey broadcasts on its TSN and RDS sports channels.

Awards

Hockey Night in Canada has received 4 Gemini Awards out of 6 nominations most notably for Ron MacLean.

• 1992: Best Sports Broadcaster: Ron MacLean
• 1994: Best Sports Broadcaster: Ron MacLean
• 2004: Best Host or Interviewer in a Sports Program or Sportscast: Ron MacLean

Best Sports Program or Series: Joel Darling, Chris Irwin, Sherali Najak

• 2006: Best Host or Interviewer in a Sports Program or Sportscast: Ron MacLean

Criticism

Programming choices

Critics of what the show chooses to program allege that the Eastern broadcast in particular favours teams from Ontario, especially the Toronto Maple Leafs. Some feel that Toronto games are aired too often across the network, usually to the detriment of the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens, whose fans sometimes do not see a Saturday night game of their teams, even when those teams are playing at home (CBC has English-language exclusivity on Saturday nights, although all Canadiens games air in French on RDS without restriction). The situation is similar to that faced by fans in the United States (see NHL on NBC for more information). Beginning in 2008, CBC is limited in the number of times it can show each team during the regular-season, so there are likely to be fewer complaints. Additionally, CBC sometimes splits its feed to make Canadiens or Senators games available in those teams' regional markets. Windsor viewers on CBET will sometimes receive Detroit Red Wings games during the playoffs.

Another incident was when CBC refused to air the jersey retirement ceremony for Canadiens legend and credited slapshot inventor Boom Boom Geoffrion in English, despite months of notice.

In the early years of HDTV coverage, CBC took criticism from Western-based hockey fans for not broadcasting the second game of the doubleheader in high-definition. As such, usually only the 7 p.m. game involving the Toronto Maple Leafs was shown in HDTV during the 2005–06 season, and sometimes CBC would not show either game in HDTV. Starting with the 2006 Playoffs, CBC now televises at least two games in HDTV per week as it has acquired a second HD-capable production truck.

Also, viewers wishing to watch the second game of the double-header once complained that they were sometimes forced to view the first game's feed until its conclusion, as CBC would rarely split its feed for Western viewers. This is rarely a concern anymore as regular-season games almost never go past 10:08 p.m. ET (7:08 p.m. PT), even including possible overtime and shootouts, because of the introduction of hurry-up faceoffs. During the playoffs, CBC announces how Western viewers can see the start of their games should early games run deep into overtime, whether this is by splitting the feed or going to the CBC website (all games are streamed online for Canadian-based IP addresses).

Content

Criticism of the show's content often focuses around Don Cherry, who has made several controversial statements during his live on-air segments. He has been accused of racism towards European-born players, problematic because the broadcasts air live in Europe, and French-Canadians, and is often seen as an advocate of the old-school rough style of hockey frowned upon both by some hockey fans (including NHL administrators) and many of their TV partners. Despite these controversies, Cherry's popularity among English Canadians endures.

Further information: Don Cherry (ice hockey) § Political views and controversy

Programs with similar titles

The American television network NBC announced in 2006 that its new Sunday night NFL pregame show, beginning in 2006, would be called Football Night in America, which according to NBC sources, was borrowed from the CBC program.

NBC had previously, along with ABC, televised Major League Baseball games under the name Baseball Night in America. SportsNet New York refers to their New York Mets telecasts as Baseball Night in New York.

During the 2005–06 and 2006-07 NHL seasons, Cablevision-owned New York regional sport networks MSG Network and FSN New York branded their Thursday night coverage of the New York Rangers, New York Islanders, and New Jersey Devils as Hockey Night New York Live! Starting in the 2007–08 season, they now use the title Hockey Night Live for all hockey games. There was also a short-lived Saturday night TV program produced by WKBW-TV and the Buffalo Sabres during this time known as Hockey Night in Buffalo.

There is also a Boston-based company called Hockey Night in Boston, which covers high school hockey and conducts a summer tournament for players who will be eligible to play high-school hockey the following season. Hockey Night in Boston began in the early 1970s as a series of radio broadcasts of local high-school hockey games in the Boston area.

Prior to their move to North Carolina, Hartford Whalers games often aired under the banner Hockey Night in Hartford.

In Michigan, FSN Detroit has a program usually run on a Saturday in February called Hockey Day in Michigan. This program usually show local state college hockey teams competing in the CCHA.

In Minnesota, FSN North has a program run in early February called Hockey Day Minnesota, featuring two or three high school games, the University of Minnesota, and Minnesota Wild all broadcast in the same day.

Other uses

Hockey Night in Canada is a slang term sometimes used by journalists to denote that they have two major assignments very close together on their schedule, especially if they are in two separate locations, similar to the HNIC doubleheaders.

La Soirée du hockey

Main article: La Soirée du hockey

In parallel with CBC, Radio-Canada aired La Soirée du hockey, featuring Montreal Canadiens games on Saturday evenings in French. In the past the SRC had aired Quebec Nordiques and Ottawa Senators games occasionally during the regular season if the Canadiens were not playing that night, as well as the Stanley Cup Finals regardless of participating teams.

Beginning with the 2002–03 season, RDS secured exclusive French language rights to the NHL. The deal, negotiated with the Canadiens and not with the league itself, was meant to ensure a consistent home for all Canadiens games. Radio-Canada did not bid for these rights, saying that, as a general-interest network, it could not give up so much airtime to hockey. The announcement drew the ire of, among others, then–Heritage Minister Sheila Copps, who suggested that the network would somehow be violating its conditions of licence by not airing LSDH. In reality there is no specific regulatory requirement that the CBC's networks carry the NHL, nor that the two networks have the same level of NHL coverage.

During the years that SRC carried La Soiree du Hockey, play-by-play men included René Lecavalier (as beloved in French-speaking Canada as Foster Hewitt was in English-speaking Canada), Richard Garneau, and Claude Quenneville.

Radio-Canada soon reached an agreement to produce the Saturday night games, to remain branded La Soirée du Hockey, to be simulcast on both SRC and RDS. However, for reasons that are unclear, that agreement was terminated after the 2004 playoffs. Nonetheless, the RDS-produced replacement, Le Hockey du samedi soir, was simulcast on Radio-Canada outside Quebec, where RDS has limited distribution, through the end of the 2005–2006 season. Radio-Canada no longer simulcasts RDS broadcasts as of 2006–2007.

Previous logos

• First television intro, 1952 (Foster Hewitt in the background.)
  First television intro, 1952 (Foster Hewitt in the background.)
• Early 1960s logo
  Early 1960s logo
• Late 1960s logo, later reused in the late-1990s intro.
  Late 1960s logo, later reused in the late-1990s intro.
• 1970s early electronic animation intro.
  1970s early electronic animation intro.
• A Hockey Night in Canada logo used around 1985.
  A Hockey Night in Canada logo used around 1985.
• 1980s 3D intro.
  1980s 3D intro.
• 1980s logo
  1980s logo
• Early 1990s logo.
  Early 1990s logo.
• Logo used from 1995 to 1997.
  Logo used from 1995 to 1997.

External links

• Official Website
• Broadcast schedule
• Hockey Night in Canada at IMDb
• Museum of Broadcast Communications
• Hockey Night in Canada theme's official website
• Original version of The Hockey Theme

Further reading

• Cole, Stephen. (2004). The Best of Hockey Night in Canada. Toronto: McArthur & Company Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 1-55278-408-8.
• Gruneau, Richard, and David Whitson. (1994). Hockey Night in Canada: Sport, Identities and Cultural Politics. Toronto: Garamond Press. ISBN 0-920059-05-8.