An Incredible Game in My Backyard, and I Missed It (Twice)

Tonight I followed online what I can only guess was one of the most amazing NCAA Ice Hockey Tournament games ever. It was carried on ESPNU, which I don't think I get on Comcast Digital. More disappointing was the lack of coverage on WCCO Channel 4 after the game.

First, the details: The University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs trailed Princeton 4-2 late into the third period. They scored with :40 left, and then again with .8 second left to tie. They won 5-4 in overtime. (As an aside, this is yet another game to remember when some idiot complains about a team pulling their goalie late in the game because "that never works!" I've personally seen several games in which it has worked.)

WCCO news was the only local news program on late enough to have the score and highlights, because they were delayed by the NCAA men's basketball tournament. Despite being delayed, my old roommate Mike Max made no effort to truncate the sportscast. Yet as long as he went on about the T-Wolves' obvious loss, the basketball tournament, the state high school boys' tourney, and a meaningless Twins spring training win, he couldn't fit even twenty seconds in to mention the hockey game. They couldn't even preempt the program-ending clip of LeBron James hitting a long basket in one-take for a 60 Minutes bit or something (who really cares?).

Not to pick on Maxie...he's a good guy, honestly. But he was never a hockey guy, and that may have something to do with it. (I've always wondered why so many Minnesota sports media guys are so disinterested in hockey...how do they even get jobs in this market?)

'CCO may say that even in this state and market, the NCAA hockey tournament isn't a big enough story for them to cover. But that would be hogwash. Consider:

1. This is supposed to be "The State of Hockey"
2. The game was in town at the U of M campus
3. The game featured a Minnesota team
4. It ended in plenty of time to relay the scores and video back to the station

Maxie once asked me what icing was. I'm sure he's better educated on the game now, but he's still a basketball, baseball, and football guy far ahead of hockey. Too bad. From Sid Hartman to Dan Barreiro, the Twin Cities mainstream sports media is lacking in depth in the hockey department, and has been for years.

Hopefully, YouTube will come to the rescue for me.