Joe Bowen off TV only radio?

[GhostofPotvin29]

If it's just so that another neutral Hughson-esque robot can call games it'd be terrible.

When Hughson calls games, it sounds like a video game.

Way to smeagol that one into the conversation.

Wait wasn't he the voice for one of the last NHL games?

He did the EA Sports NHL games for 12 years, also did some baseball video games too.

 

[ZBBM]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

I do agree with CF, though, that Cole (in his prime) and Cuthbert are better than Hughson.  I never understood why HNIC got rid of Cuthbert.  (Maybe they just didn't like the timbre of his high-pitched voice?)

 

[Corn Flake]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

I do agree with CF, though, that Cole (in his prime) and Cuthbert are better than Hughson.  I never understood why HNIC got rid of Cuthbert.  (Maybe they just didn't like the timbre of his high-pitched voice?)

I think TSN just lured Cuthbert away, no?

He puts the excitement into it like Cole does.  One thing about Bowen is I feel like his TV play by play was as if he was calling it on radio.  Just waay more detail than we need when we are watching the game. 

Also, Paul Romanuk coming back is great... I really hope we get to hear/see him a lot (instead of Jim the Vancouver homer Hughson)

 

[Kin]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

I'm guessing that's a phrase that doesn't get thrown around too much at HOF ceremonies.

 

[Deebo]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

He's boring.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

He's boring.

To me it doesn't matter if they're entertaining or boring, the game is what I'm there to watch.  I'll notice if they're annoying, like laughing to the extent that it's distracting me, but otherwise as long as they help tell me the names of any players I might not know they've pretty much served their purpose.

But this is a very subjective thing.

 

[bustaheims]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

It's really just the 'smeagol' thing that bugs me - and, I guess, the often obvious Canucks' bias. Other than that, he's perfectly acceptable. He's not the most memorable of guys, but he does a good job and doesn't distract from the game on the ice.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

It's really just the 'smeagol' thing that bugs me - and, I guess, the often obvious Canucks' bias. Other than that, he's perfectly acceptable. He's not the most memorable of guys, but he does a good job and doesn't distract from the game on the ice.

And if he has a Canucks bias, the Leafs play them, what, twice a year?

 

[Kin]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

He's boring.

Yeah and while I'm sure people tend to form their associations with most announcers at big moments("I don't need an exciting announcer to enjoy Game 7 of the Leafs-Bruins") the reality is that regional broadcasts tend to be about games vs. the Stars or Hurricanes in February. If you don't bring anything to the table in down moments a broadcast can get pretty hard to watch in a hurry, especially if the game itself isn't a nail-biter.

 

[Corn Flake]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

It's really just the 'smeagol' thing that bugs me - and, I guess, the often obvious Canucks' bias. Other than that, he's perfectly acceptable. He's not the most memorable of guys, but he does a good job and doesn't distract from the game on the ice.

Canucks bias and the Crosby/Ovechkin obsession. 

 

[freer]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

I do agree with CF, though, that Cole (in his prime) and Cuthbert are better than Hughson.  I never understood why HNIC got rid of Cuthbert.  (Maybe they just didn't like the timbre of his high-pitched voice?)

I was stuck with him in BC, for the last decade. He is sooo pro Vancouver and anti anything else it is not funny.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

It's really just the 'smeagol' thing that bugs me - and, I guess, the often obvious Canucks' bias. Other than that, he's perfectly acceptable. He's not the most memorable of guys, but he does a good job and doesn't distract from the game on the ice.

Canucks bias and the Crosby/Ovechkin obsession.

What's wrong with focusing a lot on the best player in the world and another of the top players in the world?  I would imagine almost every broadcaster would do the same for them and for similar players in other sports.

 

[freer]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

It's really just the 'smeagol' thing that bugs me - and, I guess, the often obvious Canucks' bias. Other than that, he's perfectly acceptable. He's not the most memorable of guys, but he does a good job and doesn't distract from the game on the ice.

Canucks bias and the Crosby/Ovechkin obsession.

What's wrong with focusing a lot on the best player in the world and another of the top players in the world?  I would imagine almost every broadcaster would do the same for them and for similar players in other sports.

I have never heard him praise Kessel, as one of the top ten players in the league. Just saying.

 

[Corn Flake]

What's wrong with focusing a lot on the best player in the world and another of the top players in the world?  I would imagine almost every broadcaster would do the same for them and for similar players in other sports.

"a lot" is an understatement. And no, i really haven't heard other hockey broadcasters gush about two specific players for such a large part of their talk time than Hugson/Simpson do with those two guys.  Even when Ovie was really struggling last year they wouldn't shut up about him. 

 

[Kin]

I have never heard him praise Kessel, as one of the top ten players in the league. Just saying.

Probably because Kessel isn't one of the top ten players in the league.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

What's wrong with focusing a lot on the best player in the world and another of the top players in the world?  I would imagine almost every broadcaster would do the same for them and for similar players in other sports.

"a lot" is an understatement. And no, i really haven't heard other hockey broadcasters gush about two specific players for such a large part of their talk time than Hugson/Simpson do with those two guys.  Even when Ovie was really struggling last year they wouldn't shut up about him.

Ovie led the league in goal scoring last season, I don't think he was ever really struggling.  The team was, but individually he was not (Olympics aside).

 

[ZBBM]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

I'm guessing that's a phrase that doesn't get thrown around too much at HOF ceremonies.

Agreed.  He's no Cole, who's unmatched in conveying building excitement.  But he's not robotic either.

 

[ZBBM]

I'm with Potvin.  I don't get the hate for Hughson.  He's perfectly competent and knows the game.

It's really just the 'smeagol' thing that bugs me - and, I guess, the often obvious Canucks' bias. Other than that, he's perfectly acceptable. He's not the most memorable of guys, but he does a good job and doesn't distract from the game on the ice.

And if he has a Canucks bias, the Leafs play them, what, twice a year?

See, I don't hold that against an announcer.  They shouldn't be blatant about it on a national telecast, but neither should they try to deny it or pretend it's not there (like Cole does with respect to the Habs ... they're obviously his favorites).  These guys aren't journalists, after all; they are entertainers.

 

[AvroArrow]

What's wrong with focusing a lot on the best player in the world and another of the top players in the world?  I would imagine almost every broadcaster would do the same for them and for similar players in other sports.

It gets excruciatingly annoying when they talk up every single little play they do, even when the play is so basic everyone can do it.  See Healy RErice.

*Note: I don't know if Hughson is Healy-bad, but I'm throwing out a reason I have for hating Healy that could apply to Hughson here.

 

[Kin]

Agreed.  He's no Cole, who's unmatched in conveying building excitement.  But he's not robotic either.

But he is the lead announcer of what has, for about 80 years, been the biggest broadcasting job in the sport. So saying he's ok, while probably true, does highlight a bit of why people don't like him if the lead HNIC announcer probably ranks #6 or #7 in most people's opinions. Personally, I'd rate him behind Emrick, Cole, Romanuk, Cuthbert and Randorf at least.