The NHL will be in Ottawa this weekend for the All-Star festivities, and the television coverage will be handled by the NBC Sports Network. Saturday’s skills competition starts at 7 p.m., and the All-Star Game will begin at 4 p.m. on Sunday. The whole crew will be on hand. Mike “Doc” Emrick (play-by-play) and Eddie Olczyk (analyst) will anchor NBC Sports Network’s All-Star Game coverage, with Pierre McGuire and Jeremy Roenick rounding out the crew.
Olczyk spoke Tuesday about this year’s game.
Overall, how would you rate the NHL All-Star experience?
Olczyk » “I think that the NHL has done it right. We are still finding our way with the whole fantasy draft idea, where this year we had Daniel Alfredsson of the host Ottawa Senators and Zdeno Chara of the Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins picking the teams. The fans love the unique way of choosing the two All-Star teams. There is no doubt that [this sets] the league apart from the other sports.”
Is there anything you would change about the All-Star weekend?
Olczyk » “I think that … the league has done a great job of making the weekend fun for the players, their families and the fans. That said, I do think that it is a bit too long. The draft comes on Thursday night, then we don’t have anything till Saturday night with the skills competition, and then of course Sunday afternoon we have the All-Star Game. Most players will be away from their teams for at least five days, so it could affect how quickly some teams get going after the break.”
What are your thoughts on the Caps after the break?
Olczyk » “Well, they are starting to embrace Dale Hunter’s style, and the real change in my mind is Jimmy Johnson, who came on as assistant coach working on the team’s defense, which has greatly improved. I also feel like general manager George McPhee, who I think is one of the best in the business, will make a move to get another player or two for the playoff run. Make no mistake about it: Washington has the talent to win a Stanley Cup, but they must first win home playoff games, and that is something that has killed them the past two years.”
Examiner columnist Jim Williams is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning TV producer, director and writer. Check out his blog, Watch this!, on washingtonexaminer.com.
