The Versus studio crew of Patrick, Engblom and Jones are really good and actually insightful...why NBC puts these mis-fits together is beyond me.

The gimmicks of the putting someone between the benches and interviewing players/coaches DURING the period are terrible.

Say what you want about Gary Thorne, but NHL on TV hasn't been the same since he and Clement did Sunday Night Hockey.

>>>Say what you want about Gary Thorne, but NHL on TV hasn't been the same since he and Clement did Sunday Night Hockey.<<<

clement yes, thorne hell no.

it got tiresome to be screamed at for 20 straight minutes much less three hours.

You should watch hot stove on CBC sometime...

It's FOUR lunkheads arguing over hockey for the full intermission...with that putz Ron McLean trying to keep discussion about minor league prospects from Kamloops interesting.

You should put up the clip of Ovechkin on during one of the intermissions looking like Eurotrash (in a good way) and giving it to Mike Milbury

In other news... Hockeytown shows why it's called Hockeytown:
On Detroit TVs, hockey surpasses hoops handily

jeff, are Wings fans showing up to the games yet??? I've never heard of a reverse bandwagon outside of Atlanta Braves baseball.

Hollywood Wags,

CBC owns, I can't find anything wrong with HNIC outside of that senile guy named Bob Cole and his pun filled friend named Greg Millen.

@GMoney

You have the understand the current economy in this area. The "Cheap seats" that the majority of people in this area can afford have always sold out during the playoffs. And the empty seats that you usually saw on TV didn't have a thing to do with lack of interest in the team, I can promise you that.

Many people bring up the fact that the Lions, Tigers, and Pistons all do very well in ticket sales as proof that the Wings should still be selling out. While it's decent argument, the price of the tickets truly are night and day. Wings tickets aren't cheap, and the lower bowl seats that you see empty on TV cost a pretty penny ($200+ for the WCF), or are all given/owned by companies that use them for business reasons. Many of those folks don't really care about the wings since hockey is "Boring" or "Hoc-key?"

Simply put the assumption and claims that Red Wings fans are Fair Weather fans are almost always unfounded. The economy is just extremely rough right now, for the city and the suburbs, and folks in these parts just can't afford the tickets. The TV ratings seem to go hand and hand with that.

Mike Milbury destroyed the Islanders more than any GM could possibly due to a franchise, including Matt Millen. Pierre Maguire is a knuckle head and I would put the VS. studio on NBC definately.

@jeff's point on the ESPN link:

That would make the ratings battle on the head-to-head nights here Pistons 2, Red Wings 1

The decided victory in Detroit area ratings last night was due to Game 3 being on NBC & CBC locally, instead of being on Versus. NBC or Versus, I watch the CBC broadcast.

That guy in the middle is a supreme asshole. He's like Stephen A. Smith but without even the smallest idea of discretion. I watched him being a dick head and a bully a couple times randomly during the season and never watched the NHL on NBC's pre-game for the rest of the year. The people that like this douchebag must be the same folks that flame me every time i criticize a player like Donald Brashear in a Youtube video for making a dirty shot.

Hey at least Keith Overbite (I mean Olbermann) didn't ruin it.

The stupid comment meter is pegged by these announcers. And while we're at it, so is the Sidney Crosby Love Fest. Might as well let them wear their Penguins jerseys while they announce the game.

Looks like no love lost between Neumy and Milbury. Neumy is smooth and Milbury kind of reminds me of Keith Jones except less professional a broadcaster and with a temper that makes him look awkward and foolish. Not too much insight there Mike. McGuire needs a condom over his head.