Hockey fans were hot under the collar last night about CBC TV airing provincial election coverage instead of an NHL playoff game.
With Anaheim and Detroit squaring off in Game 6 of the Western Conference final, many shinny fans in Manitoba were shocked to learn they were unable to watch the game on the boob tube.
Manitobans could see the game through live streaming video on CBC's website but anyone without a computer was out of luck without access to satellite TV or CBC digital channels from other regions.
The game was not available on CBC Radio, either. After finishing its election coverage, CBC TV switched to the hockey game in the third period.
With Winkler product Dustin Penner and former Winnipeg Jets star Teemu Selanne playing for the Ducks and former Jets player and Manitoba Moose coach Randy Carlyle behind Anaheim's bench, there was plenty of local interest in last night's game.
'IT'S A RELIGION'
Many fans were forced to head to sports lounges to catch the game last night.
"It's Hockey Night in Canada. It's a religion, and to pre-empt it for an election is sacrilegious," said Rick Watson.
"The results are going to be the same after the game as they will be during the game. There's lots of ways to find these things out rather than CBC."
Several fans who contacted Sun Media said CBC could have aired the game on its regular channel and its election coverage on CBC Newsworld. The public broadcaster aired the same election coverage on both channels for an hour last night.
"It's not like there aren't a dozen other channels covering the damn politics," said Ducks fan Debbie Schmidt.
Roddy Blochlinger said he was very upset about not being able to watch the game at home.
"I'm probably not going to go vote because of this now, just as my own little stand towards this," he said. "I'm not even a huge hockey fan, but the playoffs are the playoffs."
Jeff Keay, a spokesman for CBC, said the decision was a national one.
He said CBC explored a number of options to provide election coverage and still allow fans to see the hockey game, including allowing other parties to air it, but regulatory issues prevented that from happening. Some earlier games in the Anaheim-Detroit series aired on TSN.
"It's unfortunate and we certainly sympathize with the hockey fans out there," he said.
"But at the end of the day, as the national public broadcaster, we also feel we have an obligation to cover important public events like the electoral process."
