NHL on Global

Last updated
NHL on Global
Also known asStanley Cup '87
Stanley Cup '88
GenreSports
Created by Global Television Network
Carling O'Keefe
Directed byHenry Pasila
Starring Dave Hodge
John Davidson
Dan Kelly
Jim Robson
Jim Tatti
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
Production
Executive producerDoug Bonar
ProducerJohn Shannon [1]
Running time150 minutes or until the game ends
Original release
Network Global
ReleaseApril 24, 1987 (1987-04-24) –
May 20, 1988 (1988-05-20)
Related
NHL on CTV

NHL on Global was the de facto name of a television program that broadcast National Hockey League games on the Global Television Network. The program aired during the 1987 and 1988 Stanley Cup playoffs under the titles Stanley Cup '87 and Stanley Cup '88 respectively.

Contents

Background

About CTV's NHL coverage

For the 1984–85 and 1985–86 seasons, CTV aired regular season games on Friday nights (and some Sunday afternoons) as well as partial coverage of the playoffs and Stanley Cup Finals. While Molson continued to present Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday nights on CBC, rival brewery Carling O'Keefe began airing Friday Night Hockey on CTV. This marked the first time since 1974–75 that CBC was not the lone over-the-air network broadcaster of the National Hockey League in Canada. CTV's 1965-75 NHL package consisted of Wednesday night games produced by the McLaren advertising agency, which also produced CBC's Saturday night Hockey Night in Canada telecasts.

The deal with CTV was arranged by the Quebec Nordiques (who were owned by Carling O'Keefe [2] ) and all 14 U.S.-based NHL clubs, [3] [4] [5] [6] who sought to break Molson's monopoly [7] [8] on NHL broadcasting in Canada. All of the CTV's regular-season telecasts originated from Quebec City or the United States, as Molson shut them out of the other six Canadian buildings (as Carling did to them in Québec City).

The deal ended following the 1985-86 season. CTV's limited access to Canadian-based teams (other than Québec, whose English-speaking fan base was quite small) translated into poor ratings. [9] [10] [11] [12] on the venture. [13]

Stanley Cup '87 and Stanley Cup '88

Despite CTV pulling the plug on their two-year-long venture with the NHL, Carling O'Keefe retained their rights (two years were remaining on the contract with or without CTV). [14]

Things became problematic when the 1987 Stanley Cup playoffs opened with Carling O'Keefe still without a network of some sort. The problems arguably peaked when the Montréal-Québec second-round playoff series opened without Molson being allowed to broadcast from Quebec City, leaving Games 3 and 4 off of English-language television altogether. This led to a hastily-arranged syndicated package on a chain of stations [15] [16] that would one day form the basis of the Global Television Network. The deal between Carling O'Keefe and the Canwest/Global consortium (with a few CBC and CTV affiliates sprinkled in for good measure) came just in time for Game 6 of this series on April 30. [17] [18]

It must be stressed that Global, technically, didn't become a national network until 1997. During the 1980s, Global consisted of a single station in Toronto with numerous rebroadcast transmitters throughout Ontario, CanWest was a chain of independent stations in Western Canada (and at the time a part-owner of Global), and the two often combined to carry syndicated programming, such as this NHL package and the Canadian Football Network, which would also begin in 1987. These NHL broadcasts were aired under the names Stanley Cup '87 and Stanley Cup '88, before a merger between Carling O'Keefe and Molson (the presenters of Hockey Night in Canada on CBC as previously mentioned) put an end to the competition.

In 1987, coverage also included all five games of the Campbell Conference Final [19] between the Edmonton Oilers and Detroit Red Wings, [20] and Games 3–5 [21] [22] [23] of the 1987 Stanley Cup Finals between the Oilers and Philadelphia Flyers.

In 1988, [24] coverage included select regular season games on Friday nights and Sunday afternoons from January 31 to the end of the regular season, the Smythe Division Final between the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames (which Global carried nationally, except for the Edmonton and Calgary markets, where the CBC retained exclusive rights), [25] Game 5 of the Norris Division Final between the Detroit Red Wings and St. Louis Blues, [26] [27] [28] the Campbell Conference Final between the Oilers and Red Wings, and the first two [29] games of the Finals between the Oilers and Boston Bruins. [30] They also had the rights to Games 6 and 7 of the Finals, which were not necessary.

Unlike the split CTV/CBC coverage of 1984–85 and 1985–86, the Canwest-Global telecasts were network exclusive, except for Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals if it was necessary. When CBC and Global televised Game 7 of the 1987 Stanley Cup Finals, [31] [32] they used separate production facilities and separate on-air talent.

Commentators

Regular season schedule

1987–88

DateTeams
January 31 Philadelphia-Washington
February 7 Chicago-Québec
February 14 Calgary-Washington
February 21 Detroit-Philadelphia
February 28 Pittsburgh-Chicago
March 6 Philadelphia-New Jersey
March 18 New York Islanders-Washington
March 25 Montréal-Pittsburgh

Stanley Cup playoffs coverage

YearRoundSeriesGames covered Play-by-play Color commentator(s)
1987 Divisional finals Montréal-Québec Game 6 [35] [36] [37] Dan Kelly John Davidson
Conference finals Edmonton-Detroit Games 1–5 [38] [39] Dan Kelly John Davidson
Stanley Cup Finals Edmonton-Philadelphia Games 3–5, 7 [40] [41] [42] Dan Kelly John Davidson
1988 Divisional finals Detroit-St. Louis Game 5 Dan Kelly John Davidson
Calgary-Edmonton Games 1–4 [43] [44] [45] [46] [47] Jim Robson John Davidson
Conference finals Edmonton-DetroitGames 1–5 Dan Kelly John Davidson
Stanley Cup Finals Edmonton-Boston Games 1–2 [48] Dan Kelly John Davidson

See also

Related Research Articles

The 1995–96 NHL season was the 79th regular season of the National Hockey League. The Quebec Nordiques relocated to Denver, Colorado, becoming the Colorado Avalanche. The Stanley Cup winners were the Avalanche, who swept the Florida Panthers in the finals, in four games.

The 1987–88 NHL season was the 71st season of the National Hockey League. It was an 80-game season with the top four teams in each division advancing to the Stanley Cup playoffs. This season would see the Edmonton Oilers win their fourth Stanley Cup in five years by sweeping the Boston Bruins 4–0 in the Stanley Cup Finals. In the process of their Cup win, Edmonton lost only two games, a record for the "16 wins" playoff format.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1991–92 NHL season</span> National Hockey League season

The 1991–92 NHL season was the 75th regular season of the National Hockey League. The league expanded to 22 teams with the addition of the expansion San Jose Sharks. For the first time, the Stanley Cup Finals extended into June, with the Pittsburgh Penguins repeating as Stanley Cup champions, winning the best of seven series four games to none against the Chicago Blackhawks.

The 1986–87 NHL season was the 70th season of the National Hockey League. The Edmonton Oilers won the Stanley Cup by beating the Philadelphia Flyers four games to three in the Cup finals.

The 1985–86 NHL season was the 69th season of the National Hockey League. This season saw the league's Board of Governors introduce the Presidents' Trophy, which would go to the team with the best overall record in the NHL regular season. The Edmonton Oilers would be the first winners of this award.

The 1984–85 NHL season was the 68th season of the National Hockey League. The Edmonton Oilers won their second straight Stanley Cup by beating the Philadelphia Flyers four games to one in the final series.

The 1983–84 NHL season was the 67th season of the National Hockey League. The Edmonton Oilers de-throned the four-time defending Stanley Cup champion New York Islanders four games to one in the Cup finals.

The 1981–82 NHL season was the 65th season of the National Hockey League. The teams were realigned into divisions that better reflected their geographic locations. The William M. Jennings Trophy made its debut this year as the trophy for the goaltenders from the team with the fewest goals against, thus replacing the Vezina Trophy in that qualifying criteria. The Vezina Trophy would thereafter be awarded to the goaltender adjudged to be the best at his position. The New York Islanders won their third straight Stanley Cup by sweeping the Vancouver Canucks in four games.

The 1980–81 NHL season was the 64th season of the National Hockey League. The Flames relocated from Atlanta to Calgary. The New York Islanders were the top regular season team and the top playoff team, winning their second consecutive Stanley Cup by defeating the Minnesota North Stars in five games.

<i>NHL on SportsChannel America</i> US television program

The NHL on SportsChannel America was the presentation of National Hockey League broadcasts on the now defunct SportsChannel America cable television network.

"The Hockey Theme" is a Canadian piece of instrumental theme music composed in 1968 by Dolores Claman and orchestrated by Jerry Toth. It was widely recognized as Canada's unofficial second national anthem.

NHL on CTV is the name of a former television program that broadcast National Hockey League games on the CTV Television Network.

The National Hockey League (NHL), a professional ice hockey league active in the United States and Canada, is broadcast over the radio mainly in its participating countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Quebec (ice hockey)</span> Sports rivalry between Montreal Canadiens and Quebec Nordiques

The Battle of Quebec is a former National Hockey League (NHL) rivalry between the Montreal Canadiens and Quebec Nordiques. The rivalry lasted from 1979–80 to 1994–95. The teams played against each other five times in the NHL playoffs, and the Canadiens won three of the series. One meeting in 1984 resulted in the Good Friday Massacre, a game in which multiple brawls happened. The Battle of Quebec extended to politics, in which the Canadiens and Nordiques became symbols for rival parties, and beer distribution, as the teams were both owned by competing breweries.

During the 1979–80 and 1980–81 seasons, four more Canadian teams, the Edmonton Oilers, Quebec Nordiques, Winnipeg Jets, and Calgary Flames, joined the NHL. The Oilers and Flames were featured frequently as the two teams were contenders the 1980s; in contrast, as the Nordiques were owned by Carling-O'Keefe, a rival to the show's sponsor Molson and whose English-speaking fanbase was very small, the Nords were rarely broadcast, and never from Quebec City during the regular-season.

Donald MacPherson was a Canadian broadcast executive who served as head of First Choice from 1981 to 1984 and CBC Sports from 1984 to 1988.

References

  1. ↑ McKee, Ken (May 1, 1987). "If Canada has chance for gold Sunday match may be telecast". Toronto Star. p. F8.
  2. ↑ "SPORTS PEOPLE; Hockey-TV Suit". New York Times . July 25, 1984. p. B8. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
  3. ↑ Eskenazi, Gerald (1984-08-17). "SUITS OVER TV SPLIT N.H.L." New York Times . p. A17. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-12-31.
  4. ↑ Warren, Kelly (September 25, 1984). "Great hockey/beer war takes to the ice in Chicago". Newspapers.com. Chicago Tribune. p. B1. Retrieved 2023-09-04.
  5. ↑ Jr, Robert Mcg Thomas (1984-12-07). "N.H.L. TEAMS SIGN TV DEAL". The New York Times . p. D26. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-12-31.
  6. ↑ "The National Hockey League and Molson Breweries announced Tuesday... - UPI Archives". UPI. December 18, 1984. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  7. ↑ Hadekel, Peter (1984-12-18). "NHL, Molson Sign Contract to Settle TV Rights Battle". Montreal Gazette . p. 53. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
  8. ↑ McKee, Ken (Oct 2, 1985). "Ziegler, Molson's meet over TV rights". Toronto Star . p. F2.
  9. ↑ McKee, Ken (April 16, 1986). "CTV's hockey games on thin ice Network reportedly unhappy with NHL's Friday night schedule". Toronto Star. p. E5.
  10. ↑ McKee, Ken (April 19, 1986). "CTV won't renew NHL contract". Toronto Star. p. D8.
  11. ↑ Boone, Mike (1986-04-19). "CTV will halt NHL season broadcasts". The Montreal Gazette . The Canadian Press. p. 88. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
  12. ↑ "SCOUTING; Hockey TV War Is Brewing Again". The New York Times . May 15, 1986. p. D30. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved February 9, 2016.
  13. ↑ McKee, Ken (September 12, 1986). "Marketing mystery: Argos off the TV 38 days". Toronto Star. p. F8.
  14. ↑ Matsumoto, Rick (August 5, 1987). "Brian Propp determined to make Team Canada". Toronto Star. p. F1.
  15. ↑ McKee, Ken (May 6, 1987). "No game for fans in north". Toronto Star. p. C4.
  16. ↑ "Not many fans will see Montreal-Quebec series". The StarPhoenix . The Canadian Press. April 22, 1987. p. 53. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
  17. ↑ "West to see Leafs-Wings". The StarPhoenix . The Canadian Press. April 29, 1987. p. 53. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
  18. ↑ "Sask Fans Blacked Out Tonight". The StarPhoenix . The Canadian Press. April 30, 1987. p. 54. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
  19. ↑ McKee, Ken (April 29, 1987). "Habs-Nordiques are on Global". Toronto Star. p. C5.
  20. ↑ "Oilers, Wings on tube". Toronto Star. May 13, 1987. p. E3.
  21. ↑ "Let's put an end to goon hockey". Toronto Star. June 14, 1987. p. G6.
  22. ↑ McKee, Ken (May 15, 1987). "Where were commentators when NHL was on fence?". Toronto Star. p. F10.
  23. ↑ McKee, Ken (February 7, 1987). "Global network to share coverage for NHL playoffs". Toronto Star. p. D5.
  24. ↑ Gross, Jonathan (April 2, 1988). "Former goalie knows how to put it in the net before the cameras". Toronto Star. p. S6.
  25. ↑ McKee, Ken (April 28, 1988). "Global has the Oilers". Toronto Star. p. C8.
  26. ↑ McKee, Ken (April 8, 1987). "Leaf fans have case of blues". Toronto Star. p. B5.
  27. ↑ "Red Wings Yzerman Goes Through Workout". Toronto Star . May 1, 1988. p. 18. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
  28. ↑ "Yzerman works out with Wings". Toronto Star . May 1, 1988. p. G3.
  29. ↑ Intro to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final (May 18, 1988) on YouTube
  30. ↑ "Most of Canada able to tune in on Stanley Cup". Toronto Star. May 17, 1988. p. H1.
  31. ↑ 1987 Stanley Cup Final post-game (part 1) from Global on YouTube
  32. ↑ 1987 Stanley Cup Final post-game (part 2) from Global on YouTube
  33. ↑ McGourty, John (November 7, 2008). "The Doc is in". NHL.com.
  34. ↑ Issacs, Stan (April 26, 1988). "TV SPORTS Fischler's Simply the Best". Newsday. p. 114.
  35. ↑ Canadiens vs Nordiques 1987 GM.6 on YouTube
  36. ↑ 1987 playoffs - Habs vs Nordiques Game 6 Highlights on YouTube
  37. ↑ Canadiens vs Nordiques 1987 GM.6 on YouTube
  38. ↑ NHL CLARENCE CAMPBELL CONFERENCE FINALS 1987 - Game 3 - Edmonton Oilers @ Detroit Red Wings on YouTube
  39. ↑ NHL Clarence Campbell Conference Finals 1987 - Game 4 - Edmonton Oilers @ Detroit Red Wings on YouTube
  40. ↑ 1987 Philadelphia Flyers vs Edmonton Oilers Stanley Cup Final Game 5 on YouTube
  41. ↑ 31/05/1987 - Philadelphia Flyers vs Edmonton Oilers - Game 7 Stanley Cup Finals on YouTube
  42. ↑ Game 7 of 1987 Stanley Cup Finals-Philadelphia Flyers at Edmonton Oilers, Global TV Broadcast on YouTube
  43. ↑ 1988 Second Round - Detroit vs. St. Louis & Edmonton vs. Calgary, Game 2, PART 3 on YouTube
  44. ↑ 1988 Second Round - Detroit vs. St. Louis & Edmonton vs. Calgary, Game 2, PART 4 on YouTube
  45. ↑ 1988 Second Round - Detroit vs. St. Louis & Edmonton vs. Calgary, Game 2, PART 5 on YouTube
  46. ↑ *Flames - Oilers brawl 4/25/88 on YouTube
  47. ↑ Otto and Messier talk 87-88 playoffs on YouTube
  48. ↑ Classic: Bruins @ Oilers 05/18/88 - Game 1 Stanley Cup Finals 1988 on YouTube
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.