We only have two more months to cherish CBC as the Canadian NHL rightsholder and just that time to appreciate the great work of producer Tim Thompson who creates the musical montages for Hockey Night in Canada.
His work before each HNIC game is greatly anticipated and is spread on social media after the montages air. Some of his best work was during the Sochi Olympics when he churned out nightly pieces and they were as good as anything you’ll see on sports television.
So as the Stanley Cup Playoffs opened last night, Thompson put together the montage to open CBC’s coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and it did not disappoint. Using Metallica’s “For Whom The Bell Tolls” and using classic hockey scenes like the Montreal-Quebec Good Friday Brawl to show how emotions get ramped up during the postseason, Thompson gave us three minutes and 20 seconds of pure genius. I was ready to lace up the skates after watching it.
Enjoy.
http://youtu.be/xtAeB7EhGv4
You can check out Tim’s HNIC work on his YouTube channel. Unfortunately, US viewers cannot see his brilliant Olympic montages as they’re geoblocked under International Olympic Committee rights rules, however, I hope you’ll be able to see them down the road.
Next season, Rogers takes over the NHL rights in Canada. I hope Rogers hires Tim or perhaps a US network brings him on board. Imagine his montages during NBC’s coverage.
