Burkie’s Boardroom? A few post-Grapes ideas
Vancouver sports personalities take their shots at replacing Coach’s Corner
There’s a gap in Hockey Night in Canada’s schedule now. How should Sportsnet’s bosses fill it?
TSN’S FARHAN LALJI:
I don’t envy whoever it is that comes next. Just look at the reaction to what I said yesterday on SportsCentre. All I said was it came down to two words. (On TSN’s That’s Hockey, he called Cherry’s usage of “you people” an “attack.”)
Whoever comes into that spot, they’re going to hear it both ways, from supporters of Cherry and critics of Cherry. My point was that new Canadians want to learn. Accusing them of not caring because they’re not doing something is wrong. It takes time. I didn’t play minor hockey, my parents didn’t know what it was, but my kids do.
Coach’s Corner was always compelling, even if sometimes it was a train wreck.
FORMER HOCKEY NIGHT IN PUNJABI HOST BHUPINDER HUNDAL:
It’s a chance to look at the entire show, an opportunity to try some things and do some things differently. One of the things I appreciate about Hometown Hockey is it’s really good at tellings stories about people. They’re going to various communities, big cities, small cities, diverse cities.
They told a story about a Syrian refugee in Manitoba who’s started playing sledge hockey. Pretty powerful stuff.
That’s the kind of stuff that should be on Hockey Night in Canada. It’s for the greater population. It’s a place where people share stories.
Having that on HNIC, I think that would be far more interesting.
DAILY HIVE’S OMAR RAWJI:
HNIC needs someone who doesn’t mind being hated, someone who says things that make some people angry. This is one of the responses I received when asking what should replace the Coach’s Corner segment on HNIC.
To me, it won’t work. Social media being what it is — the immediate, instantaneous ability to produce short video clips, and the ability to pile on, that’s what got Cherry fired now, rather than 10 or 15 years ago. With that in mind, the paradigm needs to change.
HNIC needs someone who gets it. HNIC needs someone who understands hockey’s ins and outs, but understands and champions changes in the game.
They need someone who’s open minded, can hear different points of views and listen and learn. They need someone who not only appreciates diversity, but who encourages it, pushes for it, understands the power increasing diversity holds.
Plus they need someone who is funny, entertaining and someone who people enjoy listening to. Give them someone they don’t like, he or she will find (themselves) pushed off the air by that angry social media mob.
Who fits? Two names pop to mind: Kevin Bieksa and Ray Ferraro.
GLOBAL TV’S JAY JANOWER:
Bring back Peter Puck.
It’s something you can watch with your family. And it’s very friendly to modern distribution, like social media.
I’d like to see a long feature every week. We’ve seen them, but not enough of them. They don’t have to be E:60, but make them meaty.
CTV VANCOUVER’S JASON PIRES:
Call it Burkie’s Boardroom. Brian Burke is the belligerent, truculent, pugnacious host/moderator of a new survivor/apprentice-style panel. Let him take off the tie, drape it around his neck and be himself.
Three guests will join Burke in the virtual boardroom every Saturday night, like Sean Avery, Kevin Bieksa, Todd Bertuzzi.
Hot takes from everyone on weekly NHL topics.
After, viewers vote which guest gets kicked out of Burkie’s Boardroom and Burke gives them a ride to the airport.
Guests with the most appearances in Burkie’s Boardroom will win a trip to France to bathe in the holy waters of Lourdes.