NHL and the Radio

Radio has been a part of the NHL since the 1920's and continues its tradition today. Back in the 1920's, hockey on the radio was only in Canada and stayed that way until the 1950's when Canada's radio programs made the jump to TV. Although the NHL on the radio went away for a couple of decades, hockey has still been strong with the help of local affiliates and amateur pro hockey games. The radio made a comeback in the NHL after the lockout however, with the introduction of satellite radio. Between 2005 and 2007, both of the major satellite radio networks, Sirius and XM, shared broadcasting rights of NHL games. As of July 1st of 2007, XM has become the major broadcaster of the NHL on the radio. When XM first took over, the radio company only aired some of the NHL season. But as of last year, XM now broadcasts all NHL games during the regular season and playoffs. Although hockey can be hard to understand over the radio, it still helps the general public with its connection to the NHL. From my perspective, radio has kept the world informed with what's happening with the NHL and other hockey leagues across the country. With XM's ability to air every single game on various channels, it gives fans an easy way to keep track of their favorite teams. If only they could to that on television...