Elliotte Friedman gone from FAN960?

[PeteMoss]

Originally Posted by Street Pharmacist

Nobody wants to hear Friedman do the soundbites that Dreger and McKenzie do. The great thing about Friedman's spots was the unscripted nature and juicy off the cuff stuff. Dreger and McKenzie go on and say the same stuff they say on TV almost word for word. Friedman doesn't want to do it and doesn't have to do it. So I'm not sure why people feel they're entitled to it

People like to hear him and he's coming off as a whiner. If he just stops doing them, people would be disappointed but they'd get over it. Complaining about people getting your comments out in the world is a ridiculous take for a guy in his position. People talking about his appearances gets more people to actually listen and helps the radio station.

[EVERLAST]

Love Friedman and the fan 960 does as well.

I don't think he gives a damn what public opinion is and he has his sources and his opinions.

Thought he was a dork at first but he has really grown on me.

If I had to choose between him and the god awful Kay Whitmore, Kevin Weekes, Ray Ferraro, Glen Healy, Pj Stock and lastly creepy mcguire....Elliot would win every time.

I enjoy Warrener as well and when they get Razor on as well. They respect Elliot.

Kirsch has bosses but is a little uptight anyway so if the segment is done thats sad.

All we have left then is Brunt and thank god he walked away from the situation he was in with what's his nuts.....McGowan ...sunglasses freak....what ever his name is was never a fan.

[FanIn80]

Friedman "I doubt very much that Edmonton would even trade McDavid at all, but if they did, I would think they'd want a bluechip D and a couple first-round picks at the very least."

Random blogger "As per Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, expect Edmonton to trade Conner McDavid within days for a package containing a roster player and two picks."

Edmonton PR "We are absolutely not trading Connor anywhere. We have never talked about trading him anywhere. We have not even thought about trading him anywhere. I have no idea where Mr. Friedman got his information from."

Random fan "Wow, this Friedman guy is a clown!"

Friedman "WTF? I'm not a clown. I didn't even say McDavid was being traded. Someone asked me to imagine that he was and then comment on what I think he'd be worth. The worst part is that I don't even get paid for this. I just happened to be at the station that day and they asked if I'd join the guys in the booth for 20 mins.

Other random fan "Friedman's such a whiner. I'm the one that decides where I park the needle on my radio dial, and if they want me to listen to their station, then he needs to suck it up. People are free to do whatever they want with whatever he says. Maybe he just needs to stop saying the wrong stuff all the time."

[The Yen Man]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

I respect Friedman, but this is partially his fault.

If he actually prepared for these radio segments instead of doing them as an after thought while he was running errands, he probably wouldn't say things that could be misconstrued as actual rumors instead of conjecture. Or how about just not go there.

The TSN insider guys do radio segments every weekday and the same content aggregators transcribe their sessions, but none of them have gotten into the trouble Friedman has.

I actually love the fact that they're off the cuff and unscripted, it fits well with Boomer, Pinder, and Rhettro's show in the morning. I always laugh when I hear his kids screaming in the background, or Freidge telling some random fan screaming at him while he's walking the street to pipedown.

[Kjesse]

I don't think its even remotely fair to suggest Friedman was not prepared for his interviews or appearances.

He handles himself very much as a professional and should he happen to give listeners a little more, so be it. Random bloggers restating his words is not his own fault.

[Sainters7]

Originally Posted by The Yen Man

I actually love the fact that they're off the cuff and unscripted, it fits well with Boomer, Pinder, and Rhettro's show in the morning. I always laugh when I hear his kids screaming in the background, or Freidge telling some random fan screaming at him while he's walking the street to pipedown.

The best is LaCanfora during NFL season, openly coughing and hacking all the time. Sounds like he's just coming off a bender and crushing darts. I love how as soon as it's over the morning guys start making fun of it.

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by Delgar

I don't think its even remotely fair to suggest Friedman was not prepared for his interviews or appearances.

He handles himself very much as a professional and should he happen to give listeners a little more, so be it. Random bloggers restating his words is not his own fault.

If you think having your kids screaming in the background or random dudes yelling at you walking down the street while you are giving thousands of people knowledge and insight in your field of expertise is "professional", your boss must be pretty laid back or you have no clue what professional is.


He is not prepared as in he goes unscripted/unstructured. Unscripted leads to trouble for an insider such as himself. Unscripted leads to him saying conjecture like "i wonder if Malkin wants out of Pittsburgh" or "I wonder if the Blues would like to move on from Tarasenko." (yes those are 2 things he has received massive backlash for)

Content aggregators or not, saying controversial things like that on public radio and with the credibility that Friedman has lends to the plausibility and some measure of truth.

In this day and age of social media, controversial conjecture such as that coming from a credible source such as Friedman will go viral.

If McKenzie said similar things, there would be some people who would believe that conjecture was based on information that he had.

Maybe he was naive to think they wouldn't blow up, but he is partially at fault for saying those things in the first place.

[Kjesse]

The guy puts himself out there continually, giving advice and opinions with his knowledge all the time, works insane hours, and suddenly someone defending him has "no clue what professional is"? Gotcha.

[powderjunkie]

Sureloss, you're basically asking him to stop being interesting. Sure, there's an absolutely perfect line you can hit of interesting without any controversy, but he'd more likely push himself into boring if he became too 'careful'


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by Delgar

The guy puts himself out there continually, giving advice and opinions with his knowledge all the time, works insane hours, and suddenly someone defending him has "no clue what professional is"? Gotcha.

Did you not read what sureloss wrote? Are you able to deal with clients while your children scream in the background? He was referring to a specific situation. Not his overall level of professionalism. It's like you're intentionally missing the point.

Everything else sureloss said is correct. Friedman liked to say things off the cuff, and while enjoyable, weren't necessarily controversy proof. He spoke as if he was at the bar with his buddies when he should have been speaking like he was writing a column or on HNIC. The fact that he did them voluntarily maybe shows that he didn't take them as seriously.

And frankly, I want to hear insider info. Not bar talk.

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Sureloss, you're basically asking him to stop being interesting. Sure, there's an absolutely perfect line you can hit of interesting without any controversy, but he'd more likely push himself into boring if he became too 'careful'


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His HNIC and 30thoughts segments were always interesting and he rarely spoke as off the cuff as he did on the fan.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by FanIn80

Friedman "I doubt very much that Edmonton would even trade McDavid at all, but if they did, I would think they'd want a bluechip D and a couple first-round picks at the very least."

Random blogger "As per Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, expect Edmonton to trade Conner McDavid within days for a package containing a roster player and two picks."

Edmonton PR "We are absolutely not trading Connor anywhere. We have never talked about trading him anywhere. We have not even thought about trading him anywhere. I have no idea where Mr. Friedman got his information from."

Random fan "Wow, this Friedman guy is a clown!"

Friedman "WTF? I'm not a clown. I didn't even say McDavid was being traded. Someone asked me to imagine that he was and then comment on what I think he'd be worth. The worst part is that I don't even get paid for this. I just happened to be at the station that day and they asked if I'd join the guys in the booth for 20 mins.

Other random fan "Friedman's such a whiner. I'm the one that decides where I park the needle on my radio dial, and if they want me to listen to their station, then he needs to suck it up. People are free to do whatever they want with whatever he says. Maybe he just needs to stop saying the wrong stuff all the time."

Lol. Does anyone actually think this is even remotely close to what is happening?

Oh nvm I get it, this is a shot at the oilers right? Because only they are stupid enough to actually believe "random internet blogger"?

[PepsiFree]

If I hear a segment with an insider (Friedman) is coming up, I'm expecting some information or some educated opinion about last night's games.

I'm not listening to hear him go "Well I dunno, who knows! Maybe this player wants out?"

That's "interesting"? That's "professional"? No. When I want someone theorising on some idea pulled from their imagination, I come here, not tune in to a professional insider. Friedman doesn't take 960 segments seriously, which is fine, but if he doesn't plan on taking them seriously then why should anyone care if he's not going to do them?

Plenty of people on hockey radio theorise and guess. But 99% of those people didn't build their reputation on having connections and inside information.

I love Friedman, but he's a boob on 960.

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by Delgar

The guy puts himself out there continually, giving advice and opinions with his knowledge all the time, works insane hours, and suddenly someone defending him has "no clue what professional is"? Gotcha.

You were the one who said "He handles himself very much as a professional..."

How can you regularly listen to his radio interviews and come away with that impression? It constantly sounds like he is busy doing something else when he is doing an interview, not to mention the numerous times he was supposed to be on a regularly scheduled radio program and he doesn't show up or they can't reach him. Tell me how that fits into your definition of professional... I will wait for your response.

Friedman is widely considered one of the best hockey insiders for the NHL, and I agree. Yeah I am sure he is a hard worker and he does comes off as a professional on HNIC, but his radio segments do not.

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Sureloss, you're basically asking him to stop being interesting. Sure, there's an absolutely perfect line you can hit of interesting without any controversy, but he'd more likely push himself into boring if he became too 'careful'

Hey, he is the one complaining that his comments are getting twisted out of context and he is receiving the scorn of players, GMs, and agents. I am just pointing out that he is the one providing fuel for that fire by saying those controversial things in the first place.

If that is how he wants to do radio, then that is his prerogative, but he can't just absolve himself completely if one of the things he says on radio on a whim blows back on his relationship with players and GMs.

[Inglewood Jack]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

How can you regularly listen to his radio interviews and come away with that impression? It constantly sounds like he is busy doing something else when he is doing an interview, not to mention the numerous times he was supposed to be on a regularly scheduled radio program and he doesn't show up or they can't reach him.

haha this is so true. at least a few times his voice had this weird echo like he was phoning from inside a bathroom. it's like uh, am I about to hear some water splooshing sounds in a minute here?

the kids screaming or traffic noises stick out to me now too, cause I don't ever remember that happening during a Duha segment or other regulars.

[mikeecho]

You know why Friedman's segements sound like he's always doing something else... Because he is. These segments are the equivalent of someone calling me about work at 7 pm when I'm at my kids hockey game or taking care of other parental responsibilities.

He has no contractual obligation to do the radio hits. They're extra work added on top of a schedule that sucks up his afternoons/nights 7 days a week for the entire hockey season. He's got young kids and if Fan960 wants him on (and they really do), then they do it on his terms which they have absolutely no issue with. If Friedman doesn't like how it's going, he's well within his right to stop doing it.

In fairness to him, I've heard Lebrun's kids in the background of plenty of interviews and the same would apply to Dreger or McKenzie if they still had little kids.

[PeteMoss]

There's about 20-25 insiders who manage to do radio interviews without issue, Friedman is the exception to the rule. I wonder who's causing the problem?

[Street Pharmacist]

Originally Posted by PeteMoss

There's about 20-25 insiders who manage to do radio interviews without issue, Friedman is the exception to the rule. I wonder who's causing the problem?

Friedman has risen to the point he doesn't have to anymore. So he doesn't. Deal with it

[Da_Chief]

Sorry for the bump. Everyone has their opinion, but Elliotte really is a good guy. Just wanted to share a quick recent story.

After Elliotte's Olympics mishap call on Lochte/Phelps race, my co-worker's 14 year old nephew, Daniel, tweeted Elliotte and told him "it's ok, everyone makes a mistake". Elliotte had saved that tweet. Unfortunately, Daniel suddenly passed away late August. Elliotte was told that it was a 14 year old kid who tweeted that to him and he recently passed away. Elliotte recorded a 10 minute video for the family, which was played at Daniel's funeral. A nice gesture. RIP Daniel!

[BigFlameDog]

Originally Posted by Da_Chief

Sorry for the bump. Everyone has their opinion, but Elliotte really is a good guy. Just wanted to share a quick recent story.

After Elliotte's Olympics mishap call on Lochte/Phelps race, my co-worker's 14 year old nephew, Daniel, tweeted Elliotte and told him "it's ok, everyone makes a mistake". Elliotte had saved that tweet. Unfortunately, Daniel suddenly passed away late August. Elliotte was told that it was a 14 year old kid who tweeted that to him and he recently passed away. Elliotte recorded a 10 minute video for the family, which was played at Daniel's funeral. A nice gesture. RIP Daniel!

Awesome....my opinion has always been that he is a great guy.