Hockey Night in Canada
| Hockey Night in Canada | |
|---|---|
The present logo used since 1998.
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| Also known as | 'Molson Hockey Night in Canada' |
| Presented by |
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| Starring | |
| Theme music composer | Colin Oberst |
| Opening theme | "The Hockey Theme" (1968–2008) "Canadian Gold" (2008–present) "Sportsnet NHL Theme Song" (2014-present) |
| Country of origin | Canada |
| Original language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Camera setup | multi-camera |
| Running time | 360 minutes+ |
| Production company(s) |
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| Release | |
| Original network |
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| Original release |
Radio: 1931–1976 TV: October 11, 1952–present |
| Chronology | |
| Followed by |
NHL on Sportsnet (national over-the-air broadcaster through sublicensing) |
| Related shows | NHL on Sportsnet |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Hockey Night in Canada (often abbreviated Hockey Night or HNIC) is a branding used for Canadian television presentations of the National Hockey League. While the name has been used for all NHL broadcasts on CBC Television (regardless of the time of day), Hockey Night in Canada is primarily associated with its Saturday night NHL broadcasts, a practice originating from Saturday NHL broadcasts that began in 1931 on the CNR Radio network and continued on its successors, and debuting on television beginning in 1952. Initially only airing a single game weekly, the modern incarnation airs a weekly double-header, with game times normally at 7:00 and 10:00 p.m. (ET). The broadcast features various segments during the intermissions and between games (such as Don Cherry's Coach's Corner), as well as pre and post-game coverage of the night's games.
The Hockey Night in Canada brand is owned by the CBC and was exclusively used by CBC Sports through the end of the 2013–14 NHL season. Beginning in the 2014–15 NHL season, the brand is being licensed to Rogers Communications for Sportsnet-produced Saturday NHL broadcasts airing on CBC Television as well as the Rogers-owned City and Sportsnet networks. Rogers had secured exclusive national multimedia rights to NHL games beginning in 2014–15, and sub-licensed Saturday night and playoff games to CBC.
Hockey Night in Canada has its origins in the General Motors Hockey Broadcast which transmitted Saturday night hockey games of the Toronto Maple Leafs beginning in November 1931 over the Canadian National Railway radio network. In 1933, the CNR's successor, the Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission (CRBC), commenced broadcasts of Montreal Canadiens and Montreal Maroons games on its Quebec stations. In 1934, Imperial Oil of Canada took over the sponsorship from General Motors Products of Canada and the broadcast became known as the Imperial Esso Hockey Broadcast. The broadcasts began at 9 p.m. Eastern Time (around the start of the second period of play). Starting in 1936, the games were broadcast on the CRBC's successor, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The series acquired its present title around the same time, coined by Foster Hewitt. In much of Ontario and points west the show featured the Maple Leafs and were hosted by Gordon Calder with play-by-play announcer Hewitt and colour commentator Percy Lesueur. Montreal broadcasts were hosted by Doug Smith and Elmer Ferguson broadcast for Montreal Maroons games in English and René Lecavalier broadcast Montreal Canadiens games in French. After the Maroons folded in 1938, Smith and Ferguson provided English broadcasts of Canadiens games. The great popularity of the radio show (and its announcer Foster Hewitt) across Canada made it an obvious choice for early Canadian network television programming.
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Wikipedia