Saturday, May 9, 2009

Live or Memorex

The RBC Royal Bank Cup championship game is set with the Vernon Vipers ready to faceoff against the defending National Champions. The Vipers have been on a roll since heading into the post season with a first round bye. The "Snakes" have only lost five games since the beginning in March. In those twenty-six games, they have also been on a roll having won ten straight games including a sweep of the Grande Prairie Storm to become the Pacific Representative at the RBC Royal Bank Cup.

Now they are one opponent away from winning it all; standing in their way of RBC gold is the Humboldt Broncos. Last year it was the Broncos that came away from a long season of battling to wear the National Championship crown. In the preliminary round, the Vipers defeated the Broncos 7-1, but something tells me it won't be that easy on Sunday.

The RBC Royal Bank Cup Championship game is reason to celebrate and cheer Junior A hockey players for a season of hard work and personal achievements. The game at the national level is still struggling to gain main stream approval as it goes up against NHL playoff games and other hockey games. If you have digital cable service, you will get to watch the Championship Game live on TSN2. If you have satellite or some other level of cable television, you will have to wait until after the game is finished before you will see it on the main TSN channel.

I admit that it must be a scheduling nightmare for those that plan out television programming and admit that at least everybody who wants to will be able to see the game. Unfortunately it feels like a slap in the face that the game won't be seen until after Sports Centre airs following the NHL game. The time shift of the game will deter well over fifty percent of those that would otherwise be interested in watching the game.

By the time it comes on the main TSN channel, those interested in the game will know who won and don't forget that although 8:30pm isn't a bad time for us, it will be 10:30pm in Saskatchewan and of course later in Eastern Canada. That stated, if you want to see it live, the game will be shown on TSN2 (channel 213) at 4:30pm and then tape delayed for 8:30pm (depending on the Carolina Boston game) on the main TSN channel.

No matter what, all I hope for is a memorable game and if you are asking me, I'm biased for the Vernon Vipers for reasons I have mentioned in the past. A win by the Vernon Vipers speaks volumes for the BCHL, especially the Interior Division and the teams that play here.

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