Ever since he was a young hockey fan growing up near Detroit, Ashwin Umamaheswaran has stuck to the same ritual on Saturday nights: Turning the TV to channel 9, the CBC station just across the river in Windsor, Ont.
“Many of my best friends, how we initially met was a mutual love for the sport of hockey,” he said Wednesday. “Not only did we all like hockey, but we all sat down every single Saturday night growing up and watched Hockey Night in Canada, and we would trade notes come Monday morning.”
For Umamaheswaran and many other hockey lovers across the border in Michigan, this week’s news that Canada’s public broadcaster will no longer air NHL games come next season — including the iconic Hockey Night in Canada program — has come as a deep disappointment.
“Truth be told, I think it’s nothing short of outstanding that CBC’s been able to publicly broadcast it for as long as they have,” Umamaheswaran said. “I can tell you that my friends that maybe are not so in tune towards the industry dynamics, they were not just disappointed, they were angry.
“It was a sense of anger because this is part of our lives.”
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The news that NHL rights holder Rogers, owner of Sportsnet, and the CBC couldn’t come to a broadcasting deal marks the end of free access to Hockey Night in Canada — but also the conclusion of a unique bond in two border towns that have long shared traditions and history.
“Everybody who’s ever played hockey in the state of Michigan, they could tell you when you start a game, one of the things that would be played before the game would be the Hockey Night in Canada intro because it was just that good,” said independent Detroit sports journalist Joe Chapp. “It’s a shame that it’s going away.”
It also means American hockey fans will likely have to watch U.S. networks, such as ESPN, since Sportsnet isn’t available outside Canada.
Chapp and Umamaheswaran said what drew them to the Canadian broadcasts were the on-air personalities — Bob Cole, Ron MacLean, Don Cherry, Elliotte Friedman — and their expertise.
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“For the young kids that are growing up in Michigan now, they’re not going to get that learning” Chapp said. “I mean, we have good people in the United States, but I feel like some of the Canadian sports media, they have a way better grasp of hockey.”
Umamaheswaran said despite Detroit being labelled Hockeytown — and Michigan being a “hockey hotbed” — the sport has to compete with huge football, baseball and basketball scenes, too.
“Now ESPN has the broadcast rights for the playoffs, and every single broadcast is always treated as, ‘Look, we have hockey now! We have Mark Messier.'” he said. “With CBC, you tune in and it’s Ron MacLean talking about childhood stories from Ontario, 40, 50, 60 years ago.”
“One thing that hockey does extremely well is it’s got a great appreciation and admiration for its history,” he continued. “And you only get that from the Canadian networks.”
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Umamaheswaran said he believes American hockey fans along other parts of the border are also disappointed with the change.
“It’s not just us,” he said. “I think Buffalo feels very much the same, if not stronger. When I went to Niagara Falls, I can’t tell you how many Hockey Night in Canada t-shirts there were. I bought one as a kid because I loved Hockey Night in Canada.”
“This is tough news, but I guess given the the greater scheme of things, not entirely surprising news,” he added.
