HDNet

[Doohicksie]

I got an HDTV right after the holidays and finally got set up with DirecTV HD. The Sabres-Bruins game has been a big disappointment so far. Yeah, the good guys are up after two periods, but the broadcasters (who aren't the NESN stooges) nevertheless seem to be Boston homers. The color guy is clueless. When Kalinin got the penalty after flubbing the puck behind the Buffalo goal, the broadcasters had no clue there was even a penalty until about 5 seconds after the play started. They seem like they're trying to cover a game while talking to someone else about fishing or something; they're just clueless.

 

And the camera angles? Yikes! 80% of the time, it's the great big overhead shot where the players look like ants. THIS IS HD!!! I want CLOSEUPS! From that far away, it's hard to read the players well enough to figure out where the puck is, and you can't see any players' numbers.

 

HDNet sucks.

[BuffalOhio]

Agreed. Love the picture, but Larry Murphy is awful as a color commentator. I think he took too many pucks to the noggin.

 

The camera work was brutal, too.

[nfreeman]

Here's a dissenting view -- I thought the production was pretty decent. Great HD picture. The wide-angle shot shows more of the action. Pretty good camera angle coverage for replays. Pretty good topical discussion of potential trades. Good excitement by the play-by-play guy. I thought Larry Murphy was OK too. And I really liked the coaches roundtable in the 2nd intermission -- it left me wanting more.

 

Obviously I would've preferred Rick and Jim in HD, but I don't see that happening anytime soon. (The TSN and CBC coverage is also superior, but for some GD reason we can't get those telecasts in HD, even though they are broadcast in HD). I greatly preferred the HDNet telecast to NESN.

[Doohicksie]

It's funny, really, because I didn't realize it was Larry Murphy when I wrote the original post.... when I saw them talking before the period started I recognized him. I lived in Detroit for 6 years and the Wings are my second team. Murphy does their color games on the road (now that Mickey Redmond is easing into retirement). With Ken Daniels, Murphy is a lot better. There was no chemistry in the booth tonight.

 

Still.... the view they did most of the live action in was like having the highest possible nosebleed seats. Terrible. Terrible.

[Stoner]

I love the high angle. When the angle is too low or the camera is in too tight, it's too hard to follow the play. There's a reason everyone thought the oranges were the best seat in the house at the Aud...

[wjag]

Here's a dissenting view -- I thought the production was pretty decent. Great HD picture. The wide-angle shot shows more of the action. Pretty good camera angle coverage for replays. Pretty good topical discussion of potential trades. Good excitement by the play-by-play guy. I thought Larry Murphy was OK too. And I really liked the coaches roundtable in the 2nd intermission -- it left me wanting more.

 

Obviously I would've preferred Rick and Jim in HD, but I don't see that happening anytime soon. (The TSN and CBC coverage is also superior, but for some GD reason we can't get those telecasts in HD, even though they are broadcast in HD). I greatly preferred the HDNet telecast to NESN.

I'm with you. It was a pretty pedestrian game. But I thought they did a pretty decent job. They were discussing facts about both teams equally IMO. My kids were distracting me during the coaches round table, but I liked that too. I thought the replay during live play was cool. The picture was better than what we get on plain old CI.

 

Sabres fans associate RJ with how a game is called. Read message boards... Every other city who listens to Sabres broadcasts hates him. He was talking about dogs the other night!! Hockey coverage is and will always be local. When you don't hear your guy (your homer), it just sounds and feels different.

[Doohicksie]

When you combine a twin-screen replay during live action with that nosebleed camera angle, there is no way to see what's going on in the live shot.

 

Maybe 30-inch HD just isn't big enough for that type of broadcast. Still, I was very disappointed. I enjoyed the game better switching over to NESN and listening to those idiots but getting better camera angles.

[BuffalOhio]

It was hard to see on the 50-inch, too!

 

I just thought it was a crappy production overall. They rarely showed replays of penalties, so I had to rewind to see WTF was being called. Add to that the fact they never mentioned some penalties, and it was difficult at best.

[eball]

To me, the benefit of the wide-angle HD broadcast is that it feels more like being at the rink. Hockey has long suffered as a TV sport (to those who aren't passionate fans or who did not grow up watching it) because it's so much better live, and hard to follow the action when the shots are in close.

 

I enjoyed the broadcast -- on my 46" screen it was beautiful.

[ncsabre]

As long as it was in HD I didn't care how bad the announcers were or the terrible camera shots. Just watching anything in HD is the way to go. It was a tough decision last night. Sabre game in HD with horrible production(which I didn't think was all bad) or watch it on NESN with the Bruins announcers.. You make the call!!!!!