I guess this is one more reason to not watch the NHL on NBC, good God! I have to ask NBC, what the hell were they thinking? Why would you want this buffoon to be one of the faces of your organization? McGuire has already alienated a fair share of your viewing audience. I think this is just another reason to watch the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs on CBC. I guess in this situation, Canada's loss isn't our gain. I wonder if the means we won't have to listen to him during the World Junior Championship anymore? That would be a great trade off that I could accept.
Pat Hickey, The Gazette - Canadian hockey fans will be seeing a lot less of Pierre McGuire in the future.I found this paragraph to be puzzling. If this is the case why does Pierre McQuire come off on TSN as being so anti-Division One College Hockey and so pro Major Junior Hockey, it’s almost as if he is a mouth piece for the CHL? I am not anti Major Junior by any stretch of the imagination and college hockey has a fair share of their top players playing in the NHL and I get it that good share of the best players in the NHL are from the CHL, that being said the Major Junior hockey isn't for everyone but I don't get this guy and his abrasiveness and lack of respect towards Division One College Hockey. Is it because McGuire never played Division One hockey?
The ubiquitous analyst, who has been dividing his time between Canada and the United States since NBC regained the U.S. rights for National Hockey League games in 2006, has decided to concentrate on his duties south of the border.
“It’s a chance to spend more time with my family,” said the 50-year-old McGuire, who has an 11-year-old daughter and a 9-year-old. “I’ll be doing two games a week for Versus or NBC and spend one night in the Versus studio.”
McGuire, his wife Melanie and the kids will move in August from Westmount to New Canaan, Conn., which is a hop, step and a jump from the Versus studios in Stamford, Conn.
McGuire said he will continue to appear on TSN’s network of radio stations across Canada, and that includes his daily hit with Mitch Melnick on the Team 990. There have also been suggestions that McGuire may be involved in some special projects for TSN such as contributing to its draft coverage.
“I’ve enjoyed my time with both networks and I’m grateful for the opportunities TSN and NBC have provided for me,” McGuire said. “Concentrating my efforts on the NBC and Versus gives me more family time and there are some interesting professional opportunities.”
McGuire is referring to the fact that NBC recently renewed its contract to cover the Olympic Games.
“I’ll get a chance to work on the next three summer Games and two winter Games,” McGuire said.
NBC and McGuire have been working on a deal for several months and the final negotiations were delayed by the sudden departure of NBC Sports boss Dick Ebersol.
McGuire was born in New Jersey and grew up there and in Montreal. He played hockey at a Division III school in the U.S. and later played in Europe. He has his name on the Stanley Cup as an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1992, had a brief head coaching stint with a very bad Hartford Whalers team and was in the Ottawa Senators’ head office before he began his broadcasting career.
