TUNING IN…

BY: ARDITH STEPHANSON
FOR RODPEDERSEN.COM

Stating the obvious – there are a lot of sports on television these days. Also obvious – the rise in quantity has not always helped quality.

Non-events being treated as sports events are on the rise as well.

Case in point: the “NHL TRADE DEADLINE,” which was treated as the biggest televised sporting event this week. In this exciting televised event, one can watch for hours as guys in suits sit behind a desk and pontificate on what might happen. Unnamed sources are quoted, teams are analyzed for needs, gaps and opportunities, video clips are shown and tables are created of players who “MAY GET TRADED.”

And then nothing happens.

Or something little happens, and they talk about that for hours anyway.

Or this year, one big trade was made before DEADLINE DAY and one big trade was made on

DEADLINE DAY, and gee wasn’t it exciting to watch and follow for hours on end?

If you didn’t get enough, TSN’s That’s Hockey was expanded to an hour on DAY AFTER DEADLINE DAY to make time to review the non-event, DEADLINE DAY, in detail.

Anything I needed to know about this non-event arrived on my Twitter feed – but even on Twitter there were too many Tweets for this non-event.

This exciting annual non-event ranks up there with some others:

NFL Pro Bowl

Maybe I shouldn’t say too much about this one, because I can’t honestly say I have sat through an entire game. Guys who aren’t in the Super Bowl but who are chosen as the best at their position get to go to Hawaii and play in a non-event game where they try not to get hurt. Only advantage would be watching it in person, sitting in Hawaii in mid-winter. But if I were in Hawaii, I probably would not be at the Pro Bowl.

NHL, NBA (Insert almost any sport) All-Star Game

I have also quit watching NHL and NBA all-star games. Sure, there are often some exciting plays, the uniforms are usually cool, guys get to play with new linemates…but is the sport meant to be played with no hits (hockey) and/or no defence (or even less than usual – NBA)?

The exception for me has become the Major League Baseball all-star game. This is worth watching for the strategy and desire to win, because the winning team earns home field advantage for their division in the World Series. With the designated hitter rule and home-field advantage on the line, this game actually means something, and the teams play like it.

Any Draft Day

I realize people love to see who goes to their favourite team on draft day. But in true over-hype, non-event tradition, things like NHL draft day turn into a week-long pontification. The first round may be worth televising…but what about all those kids in the audience who don’t get chosen? Ask Don Cherry – it breaks their hearts!

And in the annals of events that have been hyped ad nauseam

I’m sure I will get a lot of flak for even thinking this, and I hope this statement doesn’t result in revocation of my Canadian citizenship….the World Junior Hockey Championship. Sure, this is a good event to watch, for the most part. The hockey is good, the players are excited to represent their country, and as a proud Canadian I want to see our team win. But seriously, TSN has built so much hype into this event to get people to watch, that the pressure on this team every year is unbelievable, and completely unnecessary.

But at least it is a sporting event.

Follow Ardith on Twitter @Ardith_S

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