CBC? Sportsnet? Which way will Hughson go?

by WILLIAM HOUSTON
From Friday's Globe and Mail

February 14, 2008 at 8:17 PM EST
                                              
It's nice to be wanted, and right now Jim Hughson is the most pursued sports broadcaster in Canadian television.

Both the CBC and Rogers Sportsnet are bidding for the services of Hughson, the play-by-play veteran who will be a free agent in the summer.

Hughson, based in Vancouver, has for several years been employed by both the CBC's Hockey Night in Canada and Sportsnet, but that will change in his next deal.

“I've pretty much determined it will be Sportsnet or Hockey Night in Canada,” Hughson said this week. “But I can honestly tell you I don't know which way it's going.”

Hughson wants to end his heavy schedule of travelling. It involves calling Vancouver Canucks regional games during the week for Sportsnet and also a national telecast each Saturday for Hockey Night.

He declined to discuss his negotiations with the two networks, but there appears to be more on the line for the CBC than Sportsnet.

With Bob Cole retiring at the end of this season, except for a few appearances in 2008-09, Hockey Night will need a new lead play-by-play announcer.

In addition to replacing Cole on Hockey Night, Hughson would call most, if not all, of the CBC's Toronto Blue Jays telecasts, the schedule for which will increase to between 20 and 30 games in 2008.

Scott Moore, the head of CBC Sports, declined to comment on negotiations, but sources believe a final offer is shaping up to be six years in length, the term of the CBC's deal with the NHL, and worth at least $500,000 a year.

If this were happening in the States, Hughie could easily add a 0 to that figure.

Good to see he's going the way of Mansbridge and will stay up north.

Tough choice.  HNIC is a cherished gig, and he's got the class and the chops to be one of the best all-time.   Then again, he would have to deal with the Leafs every week, which could be VERY depressing.  

The other option would be to stay at home where his family is, and follow the Canucks on Sportsnet, which means fewer goals to call, and more "GREAT SAVE LUONGO'S!"

Right now, he has to sort out all his own travel arrangements to suit the two networks.

Couldn't happen to a nicer guy or a better talent. Good for Hughie...I'll enjoy listening to him regardless of where he lands.

My vote can inevitably only be Sportsnet, because it'd be the only chance I'd get of seeing the guy three times a week. As much as I understand the nation's need for another Bob Cole, I can't help but think BC needs another Jim Robson. No. Wait. There will never be another Robson.

In Hughson's absence, I'd move Shorty to TV ... or ADD him to TV. Canucks hockey should have a unified voice.

If Jim does chose CBC maybe Sportsnet can give us more Don Taylor doing PBP...actually I think I'd rather have Cole

Losing Jim to the leafs would be a real drag for us Canucks fans but you gotta go for the prestige of the HNIC deal.
I hope he would still call Vancouver home.

Quoted from Dudley Do Not So Right

Losing Jim to the leafs would be a real drag for us Canucks fans but you gotta go for the prestige of the HNIC deal.

A real drag indeed, but they've apparently offered him a good deal of pre$tige. I'm really not so sure "dilemma" is exactly the word for JH's situation, though ("delicious" I'll 2nd heartily   ). Imho, it can't really be that tough a choice; the money's great, its only one game a week and he's shown by his past work for the Blow Jays he can deal with the idiots in toronto and keep his sanity.
More power to him, he's a hell of a pbp guy and by all accounts the sort of fellow who deserves the good stuff.

Or he could do what all top-flight sports broadcasters in Canada eventually do... defect to TSN.

I don't recall any front line HNIC talent going to TSN.  Except Chris Cuthbert after CBC turfed him.

Good for Jim getting the job offer that all aspiring hockey pbp guys want to get...it's a real feather in his cap.

If he does go to HNIC, which i imagine he will, it will be a loss for Canuck fans undoubtedbly.

So let the speculation begin...................IF Jim goes to HNIC and drops the Sportsnet Canucks broadcasts...who takes over?

Shorthouse?
Don Taylor?
Kevin Quinn?

I think you would have to put Shorty as the front-runner and then things get really interesting on the Team 1040 side.  Replacing Shorty and Larscheid in the same season would really hurt the Canucks.  It seems they are grooming Tomlinson to replace Larscheid, but I don't see anyone in the works to replace Shorthouse.  I guess you could argue Joey Kenward from the Giants but I just hate his call.

We will know that Russell is interested if he reduces hit bitter factor in the coming weeks.

Kenward is not up to it.  

I'm not a big fan of Russells play by play but I think the Team would do it just for the addition by subtraction purposes.  People aren't going to get the play-by-play on radio anywhere else so they don't have to worry about that, and they can strengthen their night schedule by not having to worry about Russell.

If only we all had the dilema of which $500,000 contract to sign.   Personally, I'd want to be with a network that's a winner like Hockey Night or TSN.  Having said that, I hope TSN doesn't make a pitch because then poor Chris Cuthbert would be pushed even further down depth chart.

Money is money, but which network has the future?  TSN (Bell Globe Media) appears to be king right now in the run up to the Olympics that's for sure.  HNIC's days are numbered but then again, strike while the iron's hot I guess.

Well I don't see HNIC ever dying completely.  The thing is somebody is finally making a push to broadcast Canada's most popular sport.  It seems like a no-brainer to get in on the hockey rights in Canada doesn't it?  It's just like football in the states, all 4 major networks airs games on Sundays.  They even rotate who gets to air the Superbowl on a yearly basis.

Something like that could be extremely profitable for both CTV/TSN & CBC.    So I wouldn't say that HNIC is in trouble they're just not going to have the stranglehold on hockey that they did for the last million years...  Which is good, because as much as I love Ron MacLean, his preachiness would turn back into likability with a little less exposure.