Yesterday marked the return of Todd Bertuzzi to Vancouver since he was moved to the Florida Panthers as part of the Luongo trade. Of course Bertuzzi is no longer with the Panthers, and has been battling injuries, finding himself out of the line up more often than not. Still, there was much anticipation surrounding his return, particularly how the Vancouver faithful would receive Bertuzzi during the Canucks/Ducks tilt later that day.
Did I mention the press conference? It was televised on TSN. For his part, Bert took questions about his new look (he’s lost 20lbs), his career in and out of Vancouver, and avoided any mention of his legal woes. Brian Burke was there too, and from all reports, was the star of this dog and pony show. TSN viewers would miss nuggets of wisdom espoused by the Anaheim GM as the broadcast cut to the far more relevant and riveting Women’s 5 pin bowling.
Still, I was excited about the match and held out hope that the game would be prefaced with clips of Bertuzzi moments from his time as a Vancouver Canuck. Like him or not, Bertuzzi has been a one man highlight reel for most of his career. Sadly this would not be the case as the Toronto/Montreal game went to a shootout. This always happens, but last nights Upper Canada centrism hit a new high/low (depending on your area code).
In case you have never experienced the farce that is TSN, here’s how they handle games that run over-time. When the following game is about to start, they quickly go to a split screen to show everyone that the game is underway, but then promptly switch back to the game that has gone to extra frames.
This is far worse than it sounds. Coaches prepare their shoot out lists, the crowd is panned for sleeping kids (awww… cute), and the zamboni does laps – pure entertainment. This is what we are forced to watch while a highly anticipated game gets underway on the Wet Coast.
Tonight it’s worse than ever. Leafs coach, Paul Maurice, is complaining about the ice condition after the initial zamboni pass, and the driver is called out THREE MORE TIMES. This isn’t the first time Maurice has complained about ice cleaning procedure, and there may even be some truth in the matter, (note: I actually like him as a coach) but why doesn’t TSN cut to the Canucks game? It’s infuriating.
Finally the shootout can begin, and thankfully, the Habs win. But wait, we still have to check-in at the TSN studio so James Duthie et al. can make zamboni driver jokes, when the real joke is their shit broadcast policy. They even clown about exasperated Vancouver fans. You see, THEY KNOW this stuff pisses us off, but they keep doing it. Assholes.
- Coach Mitch Mitchel
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Now playing: Big Star – Thank You Friends
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