Since we are all whining about who we dont like, I think Wills and Loubardias are horribad, with Wills being the most horrible.
If you watch the game synced with the radio you really see how bad he actually is.
Ball is easily one of the best. I remember watching him do some games in the playoffs for a Carolina series a couple of years ago. You would have thought he called Carolina games for years. Rick Ball is a pro, we are lucky to have him.
Agreed I absolutely can’t stand Wills. I never listen to the radio broadcast but I do listen to the Fan and am not a fan of his takes and the sound of his voice. He is brutal and it sucks he is sticking around.
Also agree on Ball who I think is a National level broadcaster who we are lucky to have in Calgary
Agreed I absolutely can’t stand Wills. I never listen to the radio broadcast but I do listen to the Fan and am not a fan of his takes and the sound of his voice. He is brutal and it sucks he is sticking around.
Also agree on Ball who I think is a National level broadcaster who we are lucky to have in Calgary
Going from Peter Maher all these years, it's hard to replace someone as legendary as him. But put me in the camp that's not a fan of Wills calls either. But I don't listen to the radio for games, so it doesn't effect my enjoyment of the Flames at all.
I actually wonder how many people listen to the radio for sports these days with every game being available on TV now? I wonder if we're getting close to the point that radio specific commenting teams will be eliminated from sport broadcasting deals, and it's just TV broadcast audio only for radio streams?
Going from Peter Maher all these years, it's hard to replace someone as legendary as him. But put me in the camp that's not a fan of Wills calls either. But I don't listen to the radio for games, so it doesn't effect my enjoyment of the Flames at all.
I actually wonder how many people listen to the radio for sports these days with every game being available on TV now? I wonder if we're getting close to the point that radio specific commenting teams will be eliminated from sport broadcasting deals, and it's just TV broadcast audio only for radio streams?
people working and driving will have the radio on...I'm sure they get good ratings for games.
Hrudey might be a homer, but he's our homer. I also like his flashbacks to his playing days and the stories he tells. And nothing more to say about Bell; he's the best IMO.
They are both a great tandem and we are lucky to have them.
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Hrudey might be a homer, but he's our homer. I also like his flashbacks to his playing days and the stories he tells. And nothing more to say about Bell; he's the best IMO.
They are both a great tandem and we are lucky to have them.
One my my favorite things about Hrudey is when he is on the panel for HNIC he often discusses the flames and compares them to other teams because he watches so much of them. I like how he can sneak a flames reference in when discussing a completely different game.
He triggers Oilers fans a lot to which I like
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Why not 4k? TSN broadcasts ALL of the Leaf home games they have rights to in 4k.
Toronto gets 4k for all their teams because Rogers and Bell are willing to invest the money for the equipment for that market. Let's also not forget the Toronto market TV providers actually offer 4k. Out west the largest cable provider is trying it's hardest to pretend 4k doesn't exist so I can kind of understand why Rogers wouldn't invest in the equipment when only one of the TV providers could take advantage of it.
I love Hrudey because sometimes you feel like you are just sitting there having a beer with him. Between him and Ball, they genuinely sound like buddies.
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Toronto gets 4k for all their teams because Rogers and Bell are willing to invest the money for the equipment for that market. Let's also not forget the Toronto market TV providers actually offer 4k. Out west the largest cable provider is trying it's hardest to pretend 4k doesn't exist so I can kind of understand why Rogers wouldn't invest in the equipment when only one of the TV providers could take advantage of it.
Rumor is there could be localized broadcasters for each city (at least for those with sportsnet as their local broadcaster). National broadcasts will be the 'local' city crew..
I don't think we will see much in the way of travel for this year for play by play teams.
With only a few exceptions, the team's regular play by play guys will call ALL their regional games. So if Calgary is in Vancouver, Ball and co. will call the game from the booth in Calgary. The exception might be Flames-Oilers games. Not sure why that would be any different.
The Athletic released the results from their 2021 NHL broadcast poll today. The Flames' broadcast rose from 25th to 24th and the reasoning was pretty much the same as last year:
- Ball is a star.
- Leslie is great.
- Francis is horrible.
- Hrudey and Campbell-Pascall are loved by some and hated by others with their detractors pointing out neither adds useful insight.
- Both Flames fans and neutral fans ranked the Flames 25th. Consistency!
Pretty much bang-on, in my opinion. Get Ball a competent colour commentator and turf Francis and the Flames would have a top tier broadcast - aside from production quality. Protect Ball at all costs though.
24. Calgary Flames The broadcast: Sportsnet carries Flames games, with Rick Ball on play-by-play and Kelly Hrudey and Cassie Campbell-Pascall rotating on color.
Local ranking: 25 National: 25 Last season: 25
The result: Calgary’s broadcast received equally underwhelming marks both in and outside of the market for a variety of reasons.
The strongest criticism was directed at Eric Francis, who was mentioned in nearly every comment that came attached with a below-average grade.
“I like Ryan Leslie and many of the talking heads employed by Sportsnet, but I cannot stand Eric Francis,” said one Flames fan.
A common theme in the feedback outside of the local market was that the broadcast is prone to a lack of enthusiasm which can lead to a dry product.
“Their PBP isn’t too bad, but the other broadcasters vary from being too boring to too homer,” read one out of market ballot.
“Calgary’s broadcast needs 100 times more energy,” added another.
The intermission panel guests are typically ex-players like Cory Sarich, Brendan Morrison, Troy Brouwer and Matt Stajan, all of whom fans seemed to respect but felt lacked polish and experience with their on-air delivery.
Elsewhere, the color commentary was polarizing with most having a love or hate relationship with the rotating duo of Hrudey and Campbell-Pascall. The common complaint among those who weren’t as fond of them was that they describe what already happened in front of viewers’ eyes rather than explaining why the play unfolded the way it did or how a breakdown happened — that the analysis wasn’t insightful enough.
The one silver lining in all of this is how many fans supported the professionalism of Ball’s play-by-play and Leslie’s work as an in-game host.
The bottom line: A broadcast lacking energy with polarizing figures outside of the play-by-play and host.
__________________ "I think the eye test is still good, but analytics can sure give you confirmation: what you see...is that what you really believe?" Scotty Bowman, 0 NHL games played
"You ain't gotta like me. You're just mad 'cause I tell it how it is and you tell it how it might be."
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