The Future of Stanley Cup Overtime
Commited to both the Stanley Cup Playoffs and Kentucky Derby, NBC was faced with a potentially embarrassing conflict on Saturday afternoon. Mlive.com reported that hockey fans might be sacrificed if the Red Wings and Sharks went into overtime:
NBC Sports President Kent Schanzer says that NBC Sports will cut away from Wings-Sharks coverage at the end of regulation time, or approximately 4:30 PM EDT. He states that their contract with the NHL states specifically that they must cut away from hockey to cover the Kentucky Derby. The situation's obviously still up in the air for Wings and Sharks fans.Thanks to the Detroit power play and a San Jose team that only shows up for about 20 minutes per game, overtime was never an issue in Game Five. But the scheduling headache highlights a point made by Jim Kelly at Sportsnet.ca: Regardless of what fans and players want, the future of overtime in the Stanley Cup Playoffs could be determined by the networks.
The way the NHL does overtime in the playoffs today, there are no commercials, a huge loss to TV in that it doesn't make a lot of money on hockey to begin with and when games go to lengthy overtime, TV not only has to absorb the costs of paying a great many union-rate techies and production people, but it also sees the games cutting - sometimes cutting deeply - into regularly scheduled programming.
That's a triple double hit for television in that not only does it not earn any additional revenue from the extra sessions and has to pay extra production costs, but it loses revenue already committed because it has to dump regularly scheduled programming and it's already sold advertising.
With veteran players like Brendan Shanahan and Martin Brodeur already on board with the idea, a switch to some version of four-on-four overtime in the playoffs is starting to look inevitable.
Comments
I think they have changed hockey enough. As far as cutting off a Hockey Game if it goes into overtime for the Kentucky Derby, I think that stinks, NBC is well aware that in Hockey playoffs there is a good chance that the game may go into overtime, Why do we Hockey fans need to be put out . Why did NBC take the hockey coverage anyway if they knew they had the Kentucky Derby. DOWN WITH NBC The hell with them. Who want to see Bret Hull anyway, Or Don Cherry. I’ll take Versus any day.
NBC: Hockey is hockey, and a horse race is a horse race. If NBC cannot figure it out, NBC please do not make an attempt to show it. 50% of all playoff games are statistically guaranteed to go into overtime. I record the games to watch when I have time, and NBC you totally hosed hockey fans with your corporate obtuseness. NBC please grow up….if Stanley Cup semifinals overtime loses you money, DONT TAKE THE GIG. Lousy hockey coverage, shouting and distorted commentary, poor video shots, terrible sound mix, and suddenly I am watching horses instead of overtime hockey.
NBC should I use smaller words and try again later?
Yeah, what a bunch of horse crap. I’m watching Game 5 of conference finals, buffalo on the edge of elimination, game tied at 2-2 end of regulation, only to watch 15 minutes of horse racing previews and then some NBC announcer tells me the game is over and shows me a 5 second highlight clip???
Give me a break NBC. Pick a sport and stick to it.
Who watches horse racing anyways?
I was so pissed off when I realized that the game wasn’t showing. I don’t have Vs where I live and to find out they just arbitralily cut to horse racing (without saying anything about it… at least nothing I heard) is complete bunk. Either commit to showing hockey or don’t do it at all. Hockey fans should be pissed.