Saturday night is always Hockey Night in Canada and Canadians have proven that they are happy to keep it that way. In less than 24 hours since the launch of HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA: YOUR PICK, fans have responded in droves with more than 20,000 votes recorded to date at CBCSports.ca/YourPick and Facebook.com/HockeyNightInCanada for the October 13 broadcast.
HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA: YOUR PICK puts fans first by allowing them to choose which games will air on CBC-TV on Saturdays at 8 p.m. (8:30 p.m. NT) by selecting from a list of five games from any era including memorable NHL regular season, All-Star and playoff games as well as marquee international match-ups.
“Canadians have sent a clear message to us and to hockey fans everywhere that they want their Hockey Night in Canada, and we’re thrilled to let them have a choice in what they see,” said Kirstine Stewart, Executive Vice-President, English Services, CBC. “The response has been amazing, and that’s a credit to the passion our viewers have for hockey and for the tradition of CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada.”
Fans can continue to vote for their choice for the October 13 broadcast until 11:59 p.m. ET on Monday, October 8, and voting is unlimited so fans can vote as often as they’d like. A new set of five games will be posted each week along with descriptions detailing the significance of each memorable match-up. Each option will give fans the chance to re-live some of the most iconic games in hockey history, or to see legendary on-ice battles for the first time. The next set of five game choices will be posted on Tuesday, October 9, at which point fans can begin casting their votes for the October 20 broadcast.
Once they’ve made their picks, viewers can share their vote on Twitter by using the hashtag #HockeyNight. A live Twitter feed located at CBCSports.ca/YourPick allows fans to stay up-to-date with the online conversation as they cast their votes.
The games you can choose from this week:
May 10, 1979: Boston vs Montreal
The infamous “too-many-men-on-the-ice” playoff game. Behind the Bruins bench: Don Cherry.
Oct. 8, 1992: Montreal vs Ottawa
The Senators’ second coming. Ottawa returns to the NHL, debuting against the Habs.
May 1, 1993: Toronto vs Detroit
Nikolai Borschevsky scores a Game 7 overtime winner. Leafs knock off the Red Wings.
May 25, 1994: NY Rangers vs New Jersey
Mark Messier guarantees a playofff win, then delivers for the Blueshirts.
Dec. 27, 2000: Toronto vs Pittsburgh
The Magnificent One’s triumphant return. Mario Lemieux comes back from a three-year retirement and dominates.