The NHL All-Star Weekend is just about upon us. This season in Toronto, it comes with some major changes that everyone involved hopes will be sustainable for future seasons.
That is especially true for the folks at ESPN. They are in their third season since their return to the NHL. Viewership has been good. But now they hope that these changes to the All-Star Format will bring more interest and eyeballs to the Draft, the Skills Competition and the game itself.
ESPN’s lead play-by-play voice Sean McDonough will be calling the All-Star Game on Saturday at 3 P.M. eastern. The game will be shown on ABC in the United States. He was gracious enough to spend some time with us this week to look ahead to the excitement of the All-Star Game and the festivities.
Among the topics, we discussed the excitement of the weekend and the changes to the format, why they’re hopeful about viewership and how they’ll balance storytelling with so many players from different teams involved. McDonough also opened up about the one idea he gave to decision makers that became a reality, his thoughts on the overall quality of talent and then we end with why he thinks the changes to the format will be sustainable in future years.
Overall Excitement of All-Star Weekend
While All-Star Games of year’s past had some interesting tweaks to it, such as having to shoot for 21 in Las Vegas, this year’s version is back to a more traditional feel. However, the star power involved in the competition might be among the best the game has seen in some time. Then consider the Draft and the money involved and you have a situation where players will have incentive to give more effort during the Skills Competition and Game.
McDonough says that’s just some of the things to be excited about for the weekend.
“There’s a lot. I think the changes have made it more interesting and exciting,” McDonough said. “The Player Draft on Thursday night on ESPN2. To me, that’s gonna be fascinating, right? Who gets picked? There’s always the drama of the last person picked. I feel bad for whoever that person ends up being.”
“I think it’ll be interesting to see did the guys try to pick the best team? Do they pick their buddies? Do they pick their teammates? It’ll be interesting to watch. And the (revamped) Skills Competition. They’ve gone back to sort of the more traditional skills from recent years. They’ve had skills that were a little offbeat and kind of fitting for the environment. Last year down in Florida, they had guys on a golf course with hockey sticks.”
“They’ve incentivized the players to participate with the $1 million for the player who accumulates the most points. I think they’ll be more into it than they have been in the past. I think with this format and with the prize at the end, I think you’ll see guys want to be involved and take it seriously.”
Will New Format Lead to More Viewers?
Viewership in the NHL especially since its return to ESPN has been trending in the right direction. The star power coupled with prime matchups and easier accessibility has led to positive results. McDonough is hopeful the new format will continue the momentum in the ratings.
“I’m hopeful that it will. I would hope that the momentum would carry into the All-Star Weekend and festivities,” McDonough said. “I think it’s great that the ratings are up. I’m not surprised. I keep saying it and encouraging people when I was reading hockey promos when I was doing college football, I would add and if you haven’t watched hockey or you’re not into hockey, give it a try because I firmly believe that the game has never been better. And I’ve been saying that since we got back in.”
“This is our third season now back in the NHL. The players are bigger, faster and stronger. The pace of play is faster. Goal scoring is up so it’s not surprising to me that’s there’s more interest. And I think the more people that give it a chance, the more new hockey fans we’re gonna have.”
One of the challenges that McDonough and ESPN will face especially presenting the All-Star Game to an American audience is the fact that the game is in Toronto and there will be a heavy Canadian presence with Maple Leafs and Canucks players well represented. There will be some fans tuning in that have yet to watch a Canucks’ game this season. There is always a balance in making sure they stay with the game while making sure they tell the stories of the players involved.
This is where teamwork gets involved with the ESPN crew. Let McDonough explain the importance of balancing while utilizing his partner Ray Ferraro in helping make sure the stories are told.
“I hope that doesn’t matter (heavy Canadian presence) to the American audience. I hope they want to watch the best players regardless of where they’re from. You raised a question (about balance.) That’s always the conversation we have in advance of the game. What is the right balance of covering the game and describing what’s going on in the game, but also explaining who these players are because some of these players aren’t household names to a lot of the audience.”
“I think it’s important to tell the back stories, the biographical stuff. And I think it’s important for Ray Ferraro to get into why is this guy an All-Star. What are his skill sets that make him stand out? You’re a great skater, a great shooter, passer, whatever the case may be.”
“There’s the balance there. You want to cover the game especially late. If it’s close, you’re paying more attention to the score of the game. But I think for a lot of it, you’re really talking about bigger picture stuff. You mentioned the Canucks. A lot of people watching this will not have seen a Vancouver Canucks’ game all year. So I think you need to get into the broader picture of why they’re having the season that they’re having seemingly out of nowhere. We are well versed in that because Ray lives in Vancouver. There’s nobody who’s better equipped to talk about the Canucks than Ray. So there’s a lot of stuff and it’s just finding the balance between covering the game, but also telling the stories of the players and their teams.”
McDonough’s One Piece of Feedback
The NHL and those involved are always looking for ways to make the game itself better and more presentable on TV. This includes the broadcast team providing feedback.
Although this hasn’t happened a lot, McDonough did recall one piece of feedback that he wanted to see implemented. That suggestion will play out in this All-Star Game. This goes back to something from when the game was in Florida. Let him explain.
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“The only thing I’ve talked to them about was, last year in Florida, the (four) teams were almost identical uniforms. It was almost impossible to differentiate between them, which became a problem not just for us trying to call the game and figure out who’s who. It was also a problem for the officiating. I remember one time, I think it was (Kirill) Kaprizov passed it to a guy on the other team and sent him in on a breakaway mistakenly. And then they were shot on the bench and everybody’s laughing about it.”
“That’s really the only time I offered any input was just hey, would it be possible to have uniforms that are a little more distinct? I know there’s a lot of planning that goes into the uniforms. In the instance of last year, there was a nod to South Florida with the pastel colors. They wanted to be souvenirs as well, something people would buy. So this year I’m greatly relieved. I’ve already seen the jerseys and their four very distinct colors. They’re all gonna wear their own. If they play in more than one game, they’re gonna remain in the same color. So that’s a win for us.”
Quality of High-End Talent
This All-Star Game will be the third that McDonough has called. This edition of the game has a collection of young high-end talent that is arguably among the best it’s been in many years. While McDonough has watched All-Star Games of the past, he believes this could be one of the best collections of talent at this event the game has seen.
“I do think the format is a better way to showcase what these guys can do than if you were playing with five skaters and a goalie. Every All-Star Game is full of talent, right? But it just feels like, Sidney Crosby clearly one of the best players of all time. I think McDavid is already, even though he is still a young guy. There are others who are out having a great year and having great careers. MacKinnon’s gonna be a Hall of Fame player. There will be a lot of other guys out there who will be as well. So it’s a treat when you see them all in one place. It’s fun to watch them interact.”
“I remember talking to Nathan MacKinnon last year in Florida and the day before the game, they brought some players into an interview room at the hotel and we just sat there and chatted. He talked about how McDavid is so much better than everybody else, that’s it’s ridiculous. There’s a lot of really great players here, but McDavid is really in his own category. There’s nobody close to him. To hear other players who are great players speak about him like that is remarkable.”
Will This Be Sustainable in the Future?
The big question coming out of every All-Star Game is how can it be improved on? How can the NHL bring more eyes to the game and generate more interest?
McDonough does believe that thanks to the changes, this new All-Star Game format is sustainable in the future.
“I think they might have this right for all the reasons we already talked about,” McDonough said. “I think the Player Draft is fun. It adds interest to the selection process. The Skills Competitions are back to traditional hockey activities instead of people out on the Vegas Strip trying to get a blackjack or standing in the fountain at the Bellagio. It was interesting and fun in its own way. But some of those outdoor activities are a little harder to do in Toronto in February.”
“I think Toronto itself is going to be a big part of it. I think given the passion for hockey there and the history of the All-Star Game in Toronto, I think it’s gonna add some juice to it. Not that it didn’t have juice in Vegas and Florida the last couple of years because it did. I think it’ll have an even bigger feel because it’s there. I think the league has done a great job of evaluating it every year and making tweaks to keep it moving forward and keeping the interest double high. I don’t think there’s a lot you have to do. When you have 40 players of this magnitude all in the same place, I think there’s always going to be interest.”
Here’s how and when you can watch the All-Star Game festivities starting on Thursday night for those in the United States.
- All-Star Draft: Thursday Feb 1 at 6 P.M. eastern on ESPN2 and ESPN+.
- All-Star Skills Competition: Friday Feb 2 at 7 P.M. eastern on ESPN and ESPN+.
- All-Star Game: Saturday Feb 3 at 3 P.M. eastern on ABC and ESPN+ (Sean McDonough with play-by-play).
