Last week, Jess from Ohio wrote about his struggle trying to get adequate sports television in Canada. I should preface this by saying I won’t criticize him in a senseless pro-Canadian rant; aside from his highly questionable March break destination choice of Windsor, with other locales like Florida, Vegas – or Toledo – beckoning, he seems like a normal guy.

In fact, more sympathetic to his plight I could not be. However, his frustration only lasted a couple of days. Try doing it for two-thirds of your life as I have, and you’ll either develop a deep-seeded anger at the world or try and find ways around it.

The show Jess mentioned that was on in the bar, “SportsCentral” is actually “Sportscentre,” spelled the Canadian way with an ‘re’ at the end instead of an ‘er’. This channel is TSN, a network partially owned by ESPN, and a place I once had the misfortune of working at. The self-admitted priorities of this network are as follows: Hockey, more hockey, CFL football, hockey, curling and then some more hockey. Their attempt to gussy up these sports with ESPN graphics works to a point, but  then you realize you are watching a six-minute piece on the backup goalie for the Florida Panthers.

It is without a doubt mediocre Canadian broadcasting at it’s zenith, yet sadly it is immensely popular with the nation’s puckheads. The sole reason for ESPN’s investment in it is because Canada’s version of the FCC has constantly decreed it stay out (apparently NCAA Basketball is a threat to the “unique culture of Canada”, whereas Fox News and Spike TV aren’t).

Having worked in the Canadian media for long enough now, I know the reasons for the overkill of hockey. Sure, it’s the national sport and No. 1 in the hearts of most sports fans. However, I’ve also noticed most sports producers and editors fit a specific demographic – white, 35 to 50 years of age and Toronto Maple Leaf fans. And no, contrary to popular belief, that’s not the dominant demo of Canada.

Thankfully, there are steps that can be taken to avoid drowning in a sea of hockey. Most hotels close to the border somehow offer ESPN. Last year while on a weekend binge of gambling in Niagara Falls, I was able to make out through a beer-fuelled haze, the face of Dan Patrick. You can get cable packages for the NFL, NBA, MLB and NCAA by calling your local television provider. The aforementioned TSN simulcasts NFL PrimeTime, among other ESPN shows. More cable sports channels – most notably The Score, prioritizes basketball and other non-ice-related sports. The only problem is, in a sports bar full of guys wearing Steve Yzerman jerseys, there’s a good chance you won’t talk them into putting on Big Monday basketball.

Before Rob Babcock’s “reign” (a loose term that evokes both comical and painful imagery for basketball fans in Toronto) as Raptors general manager came to a merciful end, the club arranged a meet and greet for him with local media in a last-ditch effort to try and salvage him some credibility. A friend of mine works on-air for a cable sports network up here and attended. Babcock actually managed to be surprisingly candid, and when questioned what the biggest obstruction Toronto has to signing NBA free agents, he singled out one lone problem.

“No ESPN.”

It’s something I had personally feared for a while, but those fears were allayed when he confirmed another suspicion I had – that most pro athletes up here get their hands on illegal feeds. In fact Babcock himself, sick of the daily bashing he was receiving from the Toronto media, enlisted someone in the organization to get him one too – although he likely avoided any programming involving Stephen A. Smith.

So maybe it’s time I called Charlie Villanueva and got him to hook me up.

Wearing a Maple Leafs jersey? Can't stand hockey? Send John an email at john.chick@atomicsportsmedia.com