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'''NHL on SportsChannel America''' was the presentation of [[National Hockey League]] broadcasts on the now defunct [[SportsChannel America]] cable television network.
+
'''''NHL on SportsChannel America''''' was the presentation of [[National Hockey League]] broadcasts on the now defunct [[SportsChannel America]] cable television network.
   
 
==Terms of the deal==
 
==Terms of the deal==
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Unfortunately, [[SportsChannel America]] was only available in a few major markets,<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=A+nation+wept+as+its+hero%2C+NHL+star+Wayne+Gretzky%2C+was+-+08.22.88+-+SI+Vault&expire=&urlID=431512307&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fvault%2Farticle%2Fmagazine%2FMAG1067639%2F4%2Findex.htm&partnerID=289881|title=Woe, Canada|date=August 22, 1988|first=E.M.|last=Swift|journal=Sports Illustrated}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=NHL broadcast boss pleased with cable move|date=May 2, 1989|first=Rudy|last=Martzke|newspaper=USA Today|page=3C}}</ref> and reached only a 1/3 of the households that [[ESPN]] did at the time.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=ABC+improved+at+Brookline%2C+but+Brent+Musburger%27s+ego+-+06.27.88+-+SI+Vault&expire=&urlID=431512522&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fvault%2Farticle%2Fmagazine%2FMAG1067469%2Findex.htm&partnerID=289881|title=A Better Open; Too Much Brent|date=June 27, 1988|journal=Sports Illustrated|first=William|last=Taaffe}}</ref> SportsChannel America was seen in fewer than 10 million households<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Scorecard+-+01.16.89+-+SI+Vault&expire=&urlID=431512642&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fvault%2Farticle%2Fmagazine%2FMAG1126461%2F2%2Findex.htm&partnerID=289881|date=January 16, 1989|journal=Sports Illustrated|title=Scorecard}}</ref>. In comparison, by the [[1991–92 NHL season|1991–92 season]], ESPN was available in 60.5 million homes whereas SportsChannel America was available in only 25 million. As a matter of fact, in the first year of the deal ({{nhly|1988}}), SportsChannel America was available in only 7 million homes when compared to ESPN's reach of 50 million. When the SportsChannel deal ended in [[1991–92 NHL season|1992]], the league returned to ESPN for another contract that would pay [[United States dollar|$]]80 million over 5 years.
 
Unfortunately, [[SportsChannel America]] was only available in a few major markets,<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=A+nation+wept+as+its+hero%2C+NHL+star+Wayne+Gretzky%2C+was+-+08.22.88+-+SI+Vault&expire=&urlID=431512307&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fvault%2Farticle%2Fmagazine%2FMAG1067639%2F4%2Findex.htm&partnerID=289881|title=Woe, Canada|date=August 22, 1988|first=E.M.|last=Swift|journal=Sports Illustrated}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=NHL broadcast boss pleased with cable move|date=May 2, 1989|first=Rudy|last=Martzke|newspaper=USA Today|page=3C}}</ref> and reached only a 1/3 of the households that [[ESPN]] did at the time.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=ABC+improved+at+Brookline%2C+but+Brent+Musburger%27s+ego+-+06.27.88+-+SI+Vault&expire=&urlID=431512522&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fvault%2Farticle%2Fmagazine%2FMAG1067469%2Findex.htm&partnerID=289881|title=A Better Open; Too Much Brent|date=June 27, 1988|journal=Sports Illustrated|first=William|last=Taaffe}}</ref> SportsChannel America was seen in fewer than 10 million households<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Scorecard+-+01.16.89+-+SI+Vault&expire=&urlID=431512642&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fvault%2Farticle%2Fmagazine%2FMAG1126461%2F2%2Findex.htm&partnerID=289881|date=January 16, 1989|journal=Sports Illustrated|title=Scorecard}}</ref>. In comparison, by the [[1991–92 NHL season|1991–92 season]], ESPN was available in 60.5 million homes whereas SportsChannel America was available in only 25 million. As a matter of fact, in the first year of the deal ({{nhly|1988}}), SportsChannel America was available in only 7 million homes when compared to ESPN's reach of 50 million. When the SportsChannel deal ended in [[1991–92 NHL season|1992]], the league returned to ESPN for another contract that would pay [[United States dollar|$]]80 million over 5 years.
   
SportsChannel America took advantage of using their regional sports networks' feed of a game, graphics and all, instead of producing a show from the ground up, most of the time. Distribution of SportsChannel America across the country was limited to cities that had a SportsChannel regional sports network or affiliate. Very few cable systems in non-NHL territories picked it up as a stand alone service. Regional affiliates of the [[Prime Network]] would sometimes pick up SportsChannel broadcasts, but this was often only during the playoffs. SportsChannel America also did not broadcast 24 hours a day at first, usually on by 6 p.m., off by 1 or 2 a.m., then a sportsticker for the next 16 hours.
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SportsChannel America took advantage of using their regional sports networks' feed of a game, graphics and all, instead of producing a show from the ground up, most of the time. Distribution of SportsChannel America across the country was limited to cities that had a SportsChannel regional sports network or affiliate. Very few cable systems in non-NHL territories picked it up as a stand alone service. Regional affiliates of the [[Prime Network]] would sometimes pick up SportsChannel broadcasts, but this was often only during the playoffs. SportsChannel America also did not broadcast 24 hours a day at first, usually on by 6 p.m., off by 1 or 2 a.m., then a sports-ticker for the next 16 hours.
   
 
===Philadelphia===
 
===Philadelphia===
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|-
 
|-
 
|1989
 
|1989
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]'''
+
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Scotty Bowman]]'''
+
|[[Scotty Bowman]]
| colspan="2" |'''[[Gary Thorne]]'''
+
| colspan="2" |[[Gary Thorne]]
|'''[[Denis Potvin]]''' and '''[[Herb Brooks]]'''
+
|[[Denis Potvin]] and [[Herb Brooks]]
 
|}
 
|}
   
==== Stanley Cup playoffs ====
+
====Stanley Cup playoffs====
 
=====Divisional finals=====
 
===== Divisional finals =====
 
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
!Year
 
!Year
 
!Teams
 
!Teams
!Play-by-play
+
![[Play-by-play]]
!Color commentator(s)
+
![[Color commentator]]
 
|-
 
|-
| rowspan="4" |1989
+
| rowspan="4" |[[1989 Stanley Cup playoffs|1989]]
|[[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Montreal-Boston]]
+
|[[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Montréal-Boston]]
|'''[[Rick Peckham]]'''<br>Mike Emrick<br>Pat Foley<br>Jiggs McDonald
+
|[[Rick Peckham]]
  +
|[[Gerry Cheevers]]
|'''[[Gerry Cheevers]]''' and '''[[Dave Maloney]]'''<br>Bill Clement<br>Dale Tallon<br>Herb Brooks
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Flyers–Penguins rivalry|Pittsburgh-Philadelphia]] (Games 1–5 aired on tape delay)
+
|[[Flyers–Penguins rivalry|Pittsburgh-Philadelphia]] (Games 1–5 aired on [[Broadcast delay|tape delay]])
 
|[[Mike Emrick]]
|Rick Peckham<br>'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''<br>Pat Foley<br>Jiggs McDonald
 
  +
|[[Bill Clement]]
|Gerry Cheevers<br>'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''<br>Dale Tallon<br>Herb Brooks
 
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Blackhawks–Blues rivalry|St. Louis-Chicago]]
 
|[[Blackhawks–Blues rivalry|St. Louis-Chicago]]
 
|[[Pat Foley]]
|Rick Peckham<br>Mike Emrick<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]'''<br>Jiggs McDonald
 
  +
|[[Dale Tallon]]
|Gerry Cheevers<br>Bill Clement<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]'''<br>Herb Brooks
 
 
|-
 
|-
|Calgary-Los Angeles
+
|[[1988–89 Calgary Flames season|Calgary]]-[[1988–89 Los Angeles Kings season|Los Angeles]]
  +
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|Rick Peckham<br>Mike Emrick<br>Pat Foley<br>'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''', '''[[Bill Clement]]''', '''[[John Davidson]]''', and '''[[Herb Brooks]]'''
 
  +
|[[Herb Brooks]]
|Gerry Cheevers<br>Bill Clement<br>Dale Tallon<br>'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''', '''[[Bill Clement]]''', '''[[John Davidson]]''', and '''[[Herb Brooks]]'''
 
 
|-
 
|-
| rowspan="4" |1990
+
| rowspan="4" |[[1990 Stanley Cup playoffs|1990]]
|[[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Boston-Montreal]] (Games 1–2 aired on tape delay)
+
|[[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Boston-Montréal]] (Games 1–2 aired on tape delay)
 
|[[Mike Emrick]]
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''<br>Rick Peckham<br>Pat Foley<br>Jiggs McDonald
 
  +
|[[Bill Clement]]
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''<br>Gerry Cheevers and Dave Maloney<br />
 
Dale Tallon<br>Ed Westfall
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Rangers-Capitals rivalry|New York Rangers-Washington]] (Games 3–5 aired on tape delay)
+
|[[Capitals–Rangers rivalry|New York Rangers-Washington]] (Games 3–5 aired on tape delay)
|Mike Emrick<br>'''[[Rick Peckham]]'''<br>Pat Foley<br>Jiggs McDonald
+
|[[Rick Peckham]]
  +
|[[Dave Maloney]]
|Bill Clement<br>'''[[Gerry Cheevers]]''' and '''[[Dave Maloney]]'''<br>Dale Tallon<br>Ed Westfall
 
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Blackhawks–Blues rivalry|Chicago-St. Louis]]
 
|[[Blackhawks–Blues rivalry|Chicago-St. Louis]]
  +
|[[Pat Foley]]
|Mike Emrick<br>Rick Peckham<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]'''<br>Jiggs McDonald
 
  +
|[[Dale Tallon]]
|Bill Clement<br>Gerry Cheevers and Dave Maloney<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]'''<br>Ed Westfall
 
 
|-
 
|-
|Edmonton-Los Angeles (all games were joined-in-progress)
+
|[[1989–90 Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton]]-[[1989–90 Los Angeles Kings season|Los Angeles]] (joined-in-progress)
  +
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|Mike Emrick<br>Rick Peckham<br>Pat Foley<br>'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''' and '''[[Ed Westfall]]'''
 
  +
|[[Herb Brooks]]
|Bill Clement<br>Gerry Cheevers and Dave Maloney<br>Dale Tallon<br>'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''' and '''[[Ed Westfall]]'''
 
 
|-
 
|-
| rowspan="4" |1991
+
| rowspan="4" |[[1991 Stanley Cup playoffs|1991]]
|[[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Boston-Montreal]]
+
|[[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Boston-Montréal]]
  +
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''', '''[[Bill Clement]]''', '''[[John Davidson]]''', and '''[[Herb Brooks]]'''<br>Rick Peckham<br>Mike Emrick<br>Pat Foley
 
  +
|[[John Davidson]]
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''', '''[[Bill Clement]]''', '''[[John Davidson]]''', and '''[[Herb Brooks]]'''<br>Gerry Cheevers and Dave Maloney<br>Bill Clement<br>Dale Tallon
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Capitals–Penguins rivalry|Pittsburgh-Washington]] (all games aired on tape delay)
+
|[[Capitals–Penguins rivalry|Pittsburgh-Washington]] (taped delay)
|Jiggs McDonald<br>'''[[Rick Peckham]]'''<br>Mike Emrick<br>Pat Foley
+
|[[Rick Peckham]]
  +
|[[Gerry Cheevers]]
|John Davidson<br>'''[[Gerry Cheevers]]''' and '''[[Dave Maloney]]'''<br>Bill Clement<br>Dale Tallon
 
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1990–91 St. Louis Blues season|St. Louis]]-[[1990–91 Minnesota North Stars season|Minnesota]]
|St. Louis-Minnesota
 
 
|[[Mike Emrick]]
|Jiggs McDonald<br>Rick Peckham<br>'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''<br />
 
  +
|[[Bill Clement]]
Pat Foley
 
|John Davidson<br>Gerry Cheevers and Dave Maloney<br>'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''<br>Dale Tallon
 
 
|-
 
|-
|Los Angeles-Edmonton (all games were joined-in-progress)
+
|[[1990–91 Los Angeles Kings season|Los Angeles]]-[[1990–91 Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton]] (joined-in-progress)
  +
|[[Pat Foley]]
|Jiggs McDonald<br>Rick Peckham<br>Mike Emrick<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]'''
 
  +
|[[Dale Tallon]]
|John Davidson<br>Gerry Cheevers and Dave Maloney<br>Bill Clement<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]'''
 
 
|-
 
|-
| rowspan="4" |1992
+
| rowspan="4" |[[1992 Stanley Cup playoffs|1992]]
|[[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Montreal-Boston]]
+
|[[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Montréal-Boston]] ([[Hockey Night in Canada|CBC's]] feed; Game 1 was joined-in-progress; all other games on taped delay)
|'''[[Bob Cole (announcer)|Bob Cole]]'''
+
|[[Bob Cole (announcer)|Bob Cole]]
|'''[[John Garrett (ice hockey)|John Garrett]]''' and '''[[Dick Irvin, Jr.]]'''
+
|[[John Garrett]] and [[Dick Irvin, Jr.]]
 
|-
 
|-
|New York Rangers-Pittsburgh (Game 1 was joined-in-progress)
+
|[[1991–92 New York Rangers season|New York Rangers]]-[[1991–92 Pittsburgh Penguins season|Pittsburgh]] (Game 1 was joined-in-progress)
  +
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|Bob Cole<br>'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''' and '''[[Ed Westfall]]'''<br>Pat Foley<br>Chris Cuthbert (Games 1–4)<br>Pat Foley (Games 5–6)
 
  +
|[[Ed Westfall]]
|John Garrett and Dick Irvin Jr.<br>'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''' and '''[[Ed Westfall]]'''<br>Dale Tallon<br>Harry Neale (Games 1–4)<br>Dale Tallon (Games 5–6)
 
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Blackhawks–Red Wings rivalry|Detroit-Chicago]]
 
|[[Blackhawks–Red Wings rivalry|Detroit-Chicago]]
  +
|[[Pat Foley]]
|Bob Cole<br>Jiggs McDonald<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]'''<br>Chris Cuthbert (Games 1–4)<br>Pat Foley (Games 5–6)
 
  +
|[[Dale Tallon]]
|John Garrett and Dick Irvin Jr.<br>Ed Westfall<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]'''<br>Harry Neale (Games 1–4)<br>Dale Tallon (Games 5–6)
 
 
|-
 
|-
|Vancouver-Edmonton (Games 1–4 used CBC's feed; Games 3–4 were joined-in-progress)
+
|[[1991–92 Vancouver Canucks season|Vancouver]]-[[1991–92 Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton]] (Games 1–4 used [[Hockey Night in Canada|CBC's]] feed; Games 3–4 were joined-in-progress)
|'''[[Chris Cuthbert]]''' (Games 1–4)<br>'''[[Pat Foley]]''' (Games 5–6)
+
|[[Chris Cuthbert]] (Games 1–4)<br>[[Pat Foley]] (Games 5–6)
|'''[[Harry Neale]]''' (Games 1–4)<br>'''[[Dale Tallon]]''' (Games 5–6)
+
|[[Harry Neale]] (Games 1–4)<br>[[Dale Tallon]] (Games 5–6)
 
|}
 
|}
   
===== Conference finals =====
+
=====Conference finals=====
See alsoNHL Conference Finals
+
{{see also|NHL Conference Finals}}
  +
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
!Year
 
!Year
 
!Teams
 
!Teams
!Play-by-play
+
![[Play-by-play]]
!Color commentator
+
![[Color commentator]]
!Ice level reporters
 
 
|-
 
|-
| rowspan="2" |1989
+
| rowspan="2" |[[1989 Stanley Cup playoffs|1989]]
|Montreal-Philadelphia
+
|[[1988–89 Montreal Canadiens season|Montreal]]-[[1988–89 Philadelphia Flyers season|Philadelphia]]
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
|[[Mike Emrick]]
  +
|[[Bill Clement]]
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]''', and '''[[John Davidson]]''', and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''
 
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1988–89 Calgary Flames season|Calgary]]-[[1988–89 Chicago Blackhawks season|Chicago]]
|Calgary-Chicago
 
  +
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''', '''[[Bill Clement]]''', '''[[John Davidson]]''', and '''[[Herb Brooks]]'''
 
  +
|[[Herb Brooks]]
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''', '''[[Bill Clement]]''', '''[[John Davidson]]''', and '''[[Herb Brooks]]'''
 
 
|-
 
|-
| rowspan="2" |1990
+
| rowspan="2" |[[1990 Stanley Cup playoffs|1990]]
  +
|[[1989–90 Boston Bruins season|Boston]]-[[1989–90 Washington Capitals season|Washington]]
|Boston-Washington
 
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]'''
+
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
|[[Bill Clement]]
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1989–90 Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton]]-[[1989-90 Chicago Blackhawks season|Chicago]]
|Edmonton-Chicago
 
|'''[[Pat Foley]]'''
+
|[[Pat Foley]]
|'''[[Dale Tallon]]'''
+
|[[Dale Tallon]]
 
|-
 
|-
| rowspan="2" |1991
+
| rowspan="2" |[[1991 Stanley Cup playoffs|1991]]
  +
|[[1990–91 Boston Bruins season|Boston]]-[[1990–91 Pittsburgh Penguins season|Pittsburgh]]
|Boston-Pittsburgh
 
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''', '''[[Bill Clement]]''', and '''[[John Davidson]]'''
+
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''', '''[[Bill Clement]]''', and '''[[John Davidson]]'''
+
|[[John Davidson]]
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1990–91 Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton]]-[[1990–91 Minnesota North Stars season|Minnesota]]
|Edmonton-Minnesota
 
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
|[[Mike Emrick]]
  +
|[[Bill Clement]]
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]''', and '''[[John Davidson]]''', and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''
 
 
|-
 
|-
| rowspan="2" |1992
+
| rowspan="2" |[[1992 Stanley Cup playoffs|1992]]
  +
|[[1991–92 Pittsburgh Penguins season|Pittsburgh]]-[[1991–92 Boston Bruins season|Boston]]
|Pittsburgh-Boston
 
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]'''
+
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
|[[Bill Clement]]
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1991–92 Chicago Blackhawks season|Chicago]]-[[1991–92 Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton]]
|Chicago-Edmonton
 
|'''[[Pat Foley]]'''
+
|[[Pat Foley]]
|'''[[Dale Tallon]]'''
+
|[[Dale Tallon]]
 
|}
 
|}
   
===== Stanley Cup Finals =====
+
=====Stanley Cup Finals=====
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
!Year
 
!Year
 
!Teams
 
!Teams
!Play-by-play
+
![[Play-by-play]]
!Color commentator
+
![[Color commentator]]
 
!Studio host
 
!Studio host
 
!Studio analyst
 
!Studio analyst
 
!Ice-level reporter
 
!Ice-level reporter
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1989 Stanley Cup Finals|1989]]<ref>{{YouTube|title=SportsChannel America 1989 Stanley Cup Finals Game 6 Intro Theme|id=8Z_xZdtKh3E}}</ref>
|1989
 
  +
|[[1988–89 Calgary Flames season|Calgary]]-[[1988–89 Montreal Canadiens season|Montreal]]
|Calgary-Montreal
 
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]'''
+
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
|[[Bill Clement]]
  +
|[[Mike Emrick]]<ref>{{YouTube|title=Flames win Stanley Cup SC America 1989|id=lg9n8iO5SEA}}</ref>
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]'''
 
| colspan="2" |'''[[Herb Brooks]]'''
+
| colspan="2" |[[Herb Brooks]]
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1990 Stanley Cup Finals|1990]]
|1990
 
  +
|[[1989–90 Boston Bruins season|Boston]]-[[1989–90 Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton]]
|Boston-Edmonton
 
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]'''
+
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
|[[Bill Clement]]
  +
|[[Mike Emrick]]<ref>{{YouTube|title=1990 Stanley Cup Finals - Game 5 - Opening (Sportschannel)|id=_tdIvJKy6YQ}}</ref>
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]'''
 
| colspan="2" |'''[[John Davidson]]'''
+
| colspan="2" |[[John Davidson]]<ref>{{YouTube|title=Mark Messier Interview - 1990 Stanley Cup|id=OEJA0-LMqt8}}</ref>
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1991 Stanley Cup Finals|1991]]
|1991
 
  +
|[[1990–91 Pittsburgh Penguins season|Pittsburgh]]-[[1990–91 Minnesota North Stars season|Minnesota]]
|Pittsburgh-Minnesota
 
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]'''
+
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
|[[Bill Clement]]
  +
|[[Mike Emrick]]<ref>{{YouTube|title=5/25/91 - Penguins Win First Stanley Cup (3 - SportsChannel)|id=xeNDuG1qLSU}}</ref>
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]'''
 
| colspan="2" |'''[[John Davidson]]'''
+
| colspan="2" |[[John Davidson]]
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[1992 Stanley Cup Finals|1992]]
|1992
 
  +
|[[1991–92 Pittsburgh Penguins season|Pittsburgh]]-[[1991–92 Chicago Blackhawks season|Chicago]]
|Pittsburgh-Chicago
 
|'''[[Jiggs McDonald]]'''
+
|[[Jiggs McDonald]]
|'''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
|[[Bill Clement]]
|'''[[Mike Emrick]]'''
+
|[[Mike Emrick]]
| colspan="2" |'''[[John Davidson]]'''
+
| colspan="2" |[[John Davidson]]
 
|}
 
|}
 
== Production ==
 
== Production ==
A fair amount of times in their first season, they would use their own production services for games. But very rarely would this sort of practice occur in the last three seasons. Since programming was so sparse otherwise SportsChannel America, usually the games were replayed immediately following the live telecast.
+
A fair number of times in their first season, they would use their own production services for games. But very rarely would this sort of practice occur in the last three seasons. Since programming was so sparse otherwise on SportsChannel America, usually the games were replayed immediately following the live telecast.
   
For playoff coverage, if any of the aforementioned teams made the playoffs, SportsChannel America would focus on those teams, using their facilities. For the [[Stanley Cup Finals]], SportsChannel America would use their own facilities. They would also use their own facilities for any Conference Final series that did not involve one of SportsChannel's regional teams.
+
For playoff coverage,<ref>{{Cite news|title=Schmidt tries to ease into broadcasting job|newspaper=USA Today|date=April 5, 1990|first=Michael|last=Hiestand|page=3C}}</ref> if any of the aforementioned teams made the playoffs, SportsChannel America would focus on those teams, using their facilities. For example, [[SportsChannel Chicago]] produced the SportsChannel America coverage for the [[1989–90 Chicago Blackhawks season|Blackhawks]]' 1990 playoff run. Because of Hawks owner [[Bill Wirtz]]'s disdain for free and basic cable home telecasts of his games, the road games were shown in Chicago, with the home games only given short live look-ins as "bonus coverage". The same occurrence happened in 1992 only this time, [[1991–92 Chicago Blackhawks season|Blackhawks]]' home games were broadcast on a pay-per-view basis via "[[Hawkvision]]"<ref>{{cite news |last=Wilbon|first=Michael|date=June 1, 1992|title=FOR NHL TO GROW, ZIEGLER'S GOT TO GO|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1992/06/01/for-nhl-to-grow-zieglers-got-to-go/4cca3fce-dabf-4e86-83be-0bc08773d992/|work=Washington Post|location= |access-date= }}</ref>. Sometimes, they would use the [[Hockey Night in Canada|CBC]] feed for other series (the [[Bruins–Canadiens rivalry|Boston Bruins–Montreal Canadiens]] series, for example). For the [[Stanley Cup Finals]], SportsChannel America uses their own facilities. They would also use their own facilities for any Conference Final series that did not involve one of SportsChannel's regional teams. SportsChannel America's [[Master control|master control]] was at a [[Cablevision]] studio in [[Oak Park, Illinois]] with its NHL studios located at [[Adelphi University]] on [[Long Island]].
   
 
John Shannon was the senior producer of ''The NHL on SportsChannel America''.
 
John Shannon was the senior producer of ''The NHL on SportsChannel America''.
   
 
== Announcers ==
 
== Announcers ==
[[Bob Papa]] and Leandra Reilly were the studio hosts during the regular season coverage. For the Stanley Cup Finals, '''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''' served as the play-by-play man while '''[[Bill Clement]]''' was the color commentator. Also in the Stanley Cup Finals, '''[[Mike Emrick]]''' served as the studio host while '''[[John Davidson]]''' served as the rinkside reporter and studio analyst ('''[[Herb Brooks]]''' filled that role in 1989).
+
[[Bob Papa]] and Leandra Reilly were the studio hosts during the regular season coverage. For the [[Stanley Cup Finals]], [[Jiggs McDonald]] served as the play-by-play announcer and [[Bill Clement]] was the color commentator. Also in the Stanley Cup Finals, [[Mike Emrick]] served as the studio host while [[John Davidson]] served as the rinkside reporter and studio analyst ([[Herb Brooks]] filled that role in 1989).
   
 
==== Play-by-play ====
 
==== Play-by-play ====
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== Commentating crews ==
 
== Commentating crews ==
*[[Chicago Blackhawks]]: '''[[Pat Foley]]''' and '''[[Dale Tallon]]''' (in {{nhly|1991}}, SportsChannel America rode them all the way through the Stanley Cup Finals)
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*[[Chicago Blackhawks]]: [[Pat Foley]] and [[Dale Tallon]] (in {{nhly|1991}}, SportsChannel America rode them all the way through the [[1992 Stanley Cup Finals|Stanley Cup Finals]])
**[[SportsChannel Chicago]]
+
**[[NBC Sports Chicago|SportsChannel Chicago]]
*[[Hartford Whalers]]: '''[[Rick Peckham]]''' and '''[[Gerry Cheevers]]'''
+
*[[Hartford Whalers]]: [[Rick Peckham]] and [[Gerry Cheevers]]
**[[SportsChannel New England]]
+
**[[New England Sports Network|SportsChannel New England]]
*[[New York Islanders]]: '''[[Jiggs McDonald]]''' and '''[[Ed Westfall]]'''
+
*[[New York Islanders]]: [[Jiggs McDonald]] and [[Ed Westfall]]
**[[SportsChannel New York]]
+
**[[MSG Plus|SportsChannel New York]]
*[[New Jersey Devils]]: '''[[Gary Thorne]]''' and '''[[Peter McNab]]'''
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*[[New Jersey Devils]]: [[Gary Thorne]] and [[Peter McNab]]
**[[SportsChannel New York]]
+
**[[MSG Plus|SportsChannel New York]]
*[[Philadelphia Flyers]]: '''[[Mike Emrick]]''' and '''[[Bill Clement]]'''
+
*[[Philadelphia Flyers]]: [[Mike Emrick]] and [[Bill Clement]]
 
**[[SportsChannel Philadelphia]]
 
**[[SportsChannel Philadelphia]]
*[[San Jose Sharks]]: '''[[Joe Starkey]]''' and '''[[Pete Stemkowski]]'''
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*[[San Jose Sharks]]: [[Joe Starkey]] and [[Pete Stemkowski]]
**[[SportsChannel Pacific]]
+
**[[NBC Sports California|SportsChannel Pacific]]
   
 
===See also===
 
===See also===
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*[[List of NHL All-Star Game broadcasters]]
 
*[[List of NHL All-Star Game broadcasters]]
   
{{DEFAULTSORT:NHL on SportsChannel America, The}}[[Category:Broadcasters]]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:NHL on SportsChannel America, The}}
  +
[[Category:Broadcasters]]

Revision as of 14:21, 17 February 2020

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

Terms of the deal

Taking over for ESPN, SportsChannel's contract paid $51 million ($17 million per year) over three years, more than double what ESPN had paid ($24 million) for the previous three years SportsChannel America managed to get a fourth NHL season for just $5 million.

SportsChannel's availability

Unfortunately, SportsChannel America was only available in a few major markets,[1][2] and reached only a 1/3 of the households that ESPN did at the time.[3] SportsChannel America was seen in fewer than 10 million households[4]. In comparison, by the 1991–92 season, ESPN was available in 60.5 million homes whereas SportsChannel America was available in only 25 million. As a matter of fact, in the first year of the deal (1988–89), SportsChannel America was available in only 7 million homes when compared to ESPN's reach of 50 million. When the SportsChannel deal ended in 1992, the league returned to ESPN for another contract that would pay $80 million over 5 years.

SportsChannel America took advantage of using their regional sports networks' feed of a game, graphics and all, instead of producing a show from the ground up, most of the time. Distribution of SportsChannel America across the country was limited to cities that had a SportsChannel regional sports network or affiliate. Very few cable systems in non-NHL territories picked it up as a stand alone service. Regional affiliates of the Prime Network would sometimes pick up SportsChannel broadcasts, but this was often only during the playoffs. SportsChannel America also did not broadcast 24 hours a day at first, usually on by 6 p.m., off by 1 or 2 a.m., then a sports-ticker for the next 16 hours.

Philadelphia

Since SportsChannel Philadelphia did not air until January 1990, PRISM (owned by Rainbow Media, the owners of SportsChannel, at the time) picked up the 1989 Stanley Cup Finals. Other than that, there was no NHL television coverage in Philadelphia except for the Flyers for the first half of the original deal.

See also: 1988–89 Philadelphia Flyers season and 1989–90 Philadelphia Flyers season

Lawsuit

Shortly after the ESPN deal was signed, SportsChannel America would contend that its contract with the NHL gave them the right to match third-party offers for television rights for the 1992–93 season. SportsChannel America accused the NHL of violating a nonbinding clause. SportsChannel America argued that it had been deprived of its contractual right of first refusal for the 1992–93 season. Appellate Division of New York State Supreme Court justice Shirley Fingerwood would deny SportsChannel America's request for an injunction against the NHL. Upholding that opinion, the appellate court found the agreement on which SportsChannel based its argument to be "too imprecise and ambiguous" and ruled that SportsChannel failed to show irreparable harm.

Coverage overview

Regular season coverage

SportsChannel America would televise about 80–100 games a season (whereas ESPN aired about 33 in from 1985–88). Whereas the previous deal with ESPN called for only one nationally televised game per week, SportsChannel America televised hockey two nights/week in NHL cities and three nights a week elsewhere.

It was very rare to have a regular-season game on SportsChannel America that wasn't a regional SportsChannel production from the Chicago Blackhawks, Hartford Whalers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, or Philadelphia Flyers. The San Jose Sharks were added in 1991–92. As previously suggested, SportsChannel America for the most part, used the local telecasts. The dedicated SportsChannel America station was little more than an overflow channel in the New York area for SportsChannel New York.

Special programming

In 1989, SportsChannel America provided the first ever American coverage of the NHL Draft.

In September 1989, SportsChannel America covered the Washington Capitals training camp in Sweden and pre-season tour of the Soviet Union. The Capitals were joined by the Stanley Cup champion Calgary Flames, who held training camp in Prague, Czechoslovakia and then ventured to the Soviet Union. Each team played four games against Soviet League clubs. Games were played in Moscow, Leningrad, Kiev, and Riga. The NHL clubs finished with a combined 6–2 record against the top Soviet teams, including the Red Army club and Dynamo Moscow. 5 of 8 contests were televised by SportsChannel America.

All-Star Game coverage

SportsChannel America was the exclusive broadcaster of the 1989 All-Star Game. The following year, they covered the first ever NHL Skills Competition and Heroes of Hockey game. SportsChannel America continued their coverage of these particular events through 1992. In 1991, SportsChannel America replayed the third period of the All-Star Game on the same day that it was played. That was because NBC broke away from the live telecast during the 3rd period in favor of Gulf War coverage.

Year Play-by-play Color commentator Ice level reporter Studio host Studio analysts
1989 Jiggs McDonald Scotty Bowman Gary Thorne Denis Potvin and Herb Brooks

Stanley Cup playoffs

Divisional finals
Year Teams Play-by-play Color commentator
1989 Montréal-Boston Rick Peckham Gerry Cheevers
Pittsburgh-Philadelphia (Games 1–5 aired on tape delay) Mike Emrick Bill Clement
St. Louis-Chicago Pat Foley Dale Tallon
Calgary-Los Angeles Jiggs McDonald Herb Brooks
1990 Boston-Montréal (Games 1–2 aired on tape delay) Mike Emrick Bill Clement
New York Rangers-Washington (Games 3–5 aired on tape delay) Rick Peckham Dave Maloney
Chicago-St. Louis Pat Foley Dale Tallon
Edmonton-Los Angeles (joined-in-progress) Jiggs McDonald Herb Brooks
1991 Boston-Montréal Jiggs McDonald John Davidson
Pittsburgh-Washington (taped delay) Rick Peckham Gerry Cheevers
St. Louis-Minnesota Mike Emrick Bill Clement
Los Angeles-Edmonton (joined-in-progress) Pat Foley Dale Tallon
1992 Montréal-Boston (CBC's feed; Game 1 was joined-in-progress; all other games on taped delay) Bob Cole John Garrett and Dick Irvin, Jr.
New York Rangers-Pittsburgh (Game 1 was joined-in-progress) Jiggs McDonald Ed Westfall
Detroit-Chicago Pat Foley Dale Tallon
Vancouver-Edmonton (Games 1–4 used CBC's feed; Games 3–4 were joined-in-progress) Chris Cuthbert (Games 1–4)
Pat Foley (Games 5–6)
Harry Neale (Games 1–4)
Dale Tallon (Games 5–6)
Conference finals
See also: NHL Conference Finals
Year Teams Play-by-play Color commentator
1989 Montreal-Philadelphia Mike Emrick Bill Clement
Calgary-Chicago Jiggs McDonald Herb Brooks
1990 Boston-Washington Jiggs McDonald Bill Clement
Edmonton-Chicago Pat Foley Dale Tallon
1991 Boston-Pittsburgh Jiggs McDonald John Davidson
Edmonton-Minnesota Mike Emrick Bill Clement
1992 Pittsburgh-Boston Jiggs McDonald Bill Clement
Chicago-Edmonton Pat Foley Dale Tallon
Stanley Cup Finals
Year Teams Play-by-play Color commentator Studio host Studio analyst Ice-level reporter
1989[5] Calgary-Montreal Jiggs McDonald Bill Clement Mike Emrick[6] Herb Brooks
1990 Boston-Edmonton Jiggs McDonald Bill Clement Mike Emrick[7] John Davidson[8]
1991 Pittsburgh-Minnesota Jiggs McDonald Bill Clement Mike Emrick[9] John Davidson
1992 Pittsburgh-Chicago Jiggs McDonald Bill Clement Mike Emrick John Davidson

Production

A fair number of times in their first season, they would use their own production services for games. But very rarely would this sort of practice occur in the last three seasons. Since programming was so sparse otherwise on SportsChannel America, usually the games were replayed immediately following the live telecast.

For playoff coverage,[10] if any of the aforementioned teams made the playoffs, SportsChannel America would focus on those teams, using their facilities. For example, SportsChannel Chicago produced the SportsChannel America coverage for the Blackhawks' 1990 playoff run. Because of Hawks owner Bill Wirtz's disdain for free and basic cable home telecasts of his games, the road games were shown in Chicago, with the home games only given short live look-ins as "bonus coverage". The same occurrence happened in 1992 only this time, Blackhawks' home games were broadcast on a pay-per-view basis via "Hawkvision"[11]. Sometimes, they would use the CBC feed for other series (the Boston Bruins–Montreal Canadiens series, for example). For the Stanley Cup Finals, SportsChannel America uses their own facilities. They would also use their own facilities for any Conference Final series that did not involve one of SportsChannel's regional teams. SportsChannel America's master control was at a Cablevision studio in Oak Park, Illinois with its NHL studios located at Adelphi University on Long Island.

John Shannon was the senior producer of The NHL on SportsChannel America.

Announcers

Bob Papa and Leandra Reilly were the studio hosts during the regular season coverage. For the Stanley Cup FinalsJiggs McDonald served as the play-by-play announcer and Bill Clement was the color commentator. Also in the Stanley Cup Finals, Mike Emrick served as the studio host while John Davidson served as the rinkside reporter and studio analyst (Herb Brooks filled that role in 1989).

Play-by-play

Color commentators

Ice level personalities

Studio personalities

Commentating crews

See also

Chicago Blackhawks seasons

Hartford Whalers seasons

New York Islanders seasons

New Jersey Devils seasons

San Jose Sharks seasons

See also

  1. Swift, E.M. (August 22, 1988). "Woe, Canada". Sports Illustrated. 
  2. Martzke, Rudy. "NHL broadcast boss pleased with cable move", May 2, 1989, p. 3C. 
  3. Taaffe, William (June 27, 1988). "A Better Open; Too Much Brent". Sports Illustrated. 
  4. (January 16, 1989) "Scorecard". Sports Illustrated. 
  5. SportsChannel America 1989 Stanley Cup Finals Game 6 Intro Theme at YouTube
  6. Flames win Stanley Cup SC America 1989 at YouTube
  7. 1990 Stanley Cup Finals - Game 5 - Opening (Sportschannel) at YouTube
  8. Mark Messier Interview - 1990 Stanley Cup at YouTube
  9. 5/25/91 - Penguins Win First Stanley Cup (3 - SportsChannel) at YouTube
  10. Hiestand, Michael. "Schmidt tries to ease into broadcasting job", April 5, 1990, p. 3C. 
  11. Wilbon, Michael. "FOR NHL TO GROW, ZIEGLER'S GOT TO GO", Washington Post, June 1, 1992.