Hockey Buzz Ranks the Thirty NHL Broadcasting Teams

Travis Yost from Hockeybuzz has ranked the NHL broadcast teams… I am not sure how you can rank an NHL broadcast team that has never had an actual broadcast?

I am also not sure how you can rank Rick Jeanneret 16th? The guy is a gem and one of the more entertaining hockey broadcasters in the NHL.

(28) Boston Bruins -- Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley

Nothing I could say in this small paragraph on the abortion that is Jack Edwards' play-by-play work would be insightful or refreshing. He's the biggest homer in hockey -- he's the second-biggest homer in sports. It's actually pretty shameful that NESN continues to employ a guy who so willfully blurs the reality of the sport with such partisan analysis.

The sad part? Color guy Andy Brickley is awesome. So much so, it -- against all odds -- keeps the Boston Bruins from finishing thirtieth in this ranking. Brickley's understanding of the game is pretty unparalleled, and when Jack Edwards does give him the green light to talk to the viewers, it's almost always insightful and educational.

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(26) Minnesota -- Anthony LaPanta and Mike Greenlay

This ranking is a bit of an unknown, with LaPanta coming in to fill the vacancy left by the departed Dan Terhaar. If you're looking for a positive, it's that Terhaar was one of the worst PxP guys in the business, comically missing the play, mispronouncing names, and putting a pro-Wild spin on things at any passing chance. LaPanta's been prepped by Fox Sports North for this role for quite some time; he's loved by the company, and has made the rounds. Unfortunately, this is his first NHL-level call.

I literally have watched a “ton” of hockey over the last 15 years, the reason I know this is that my wife has complained about it and in my opinion, I don’t get why people hate Jack Edwards so much and wonder if the hate for Jack Edwards is justified.

In my opinion, I believe that Edwards, is very entertaining. Yep, I am a Boston Bruins fans. However, that being said, I do think that Edwards is one of the more knowledgeable hockey broadcasters in the game of hockey. I also believe that Edward’s color guy Andy Brickley brings a much need perspective from a player’s side to the announcer’s booth.

You would think from reading some of the comments from hockey fans around the league that Jack was Lucifer or killing baby cats and dogs.

Andy Brickley on Phil Kessel

Image via WikipediaCheck out what former Boston Bruins player and NESN Hockey Analyst Andy Brickley had to say about former Gopher and Boston Bruins forward Phil Kessel, some interesting things. [Click to listen]

Andy Brickley was asked by the WEEI host if he knew Kessel and why he wasn’t happy here [Boston]. Not real flattering.

Brickley said, "I think he was just an really immature kid, he had some baggage, personal baggage when the Bruins first drafted him and they [Bruins] were well aware of it, the immaturity factor. Expectations level not only by the Bruins organization but for Phil himself, I don't think he was prepared for that. Could not not handle criticism, could not handle that you have to earn your ice time,kind of Claude Julian system or whoever was coaching or just the Bruins organizational belief, I don't think he was ready for that.

And then when he had a break out year where season where he scored a bunch of goals he saw how much money everyone was else making across the league, based on those numbers and he wanted that money then and there and the Bruins weren't prepared to pay him."

Sounds like an entitlement player to me.

Related articles

• Monumental November for Bruins (insidehockey.com)
• Five Leafs questions: Does Kessel outperform Seguin? (thestar.com)
• Five Observations: Bruins vs. Maple Leafs (insidehockey.com)
• Five Leafs answers: Bruins still have Kessel's number (thestar.com)
• Leafs brewin' up a rivalry with Bruins (thestar.com)

Milan Lucic runs over Ryan Miller

Wow!!! Boston Bruins forward Milan Lucic absolutely mowed over the Sabres all-world goalie Ryan Miller. To quote Andy Brickley, "just because the goaltender is out of net doesn't make him fair game." Brick also said, "that's a penalty you don't mind killing as a player." What concerns me more is the reaction from Ryan Miller, if he had made contact with that big goalie stick he could have been looking at a suspension.