Hockey Lockout Live gets regional recognition

BayToday.ca's Chris Dawson (left), Host Kevin O'Shea (middle) and CKAT News Director Clint Thomas (Right) discuss hockey issues during episode 20 of CKAT’s Hockey Lockout Live which received regional recognition. Photo by Reay Hunter.

The NHL lockout turned into a very good thing for the CKAT newsroom in North Bay.

The Rogers radio station was given an honourable mention in the regional continuing coverage category for Hockey Lockout live at the Radio Television News Director’s Association annual awards banquet in Toronto last week.

The 21 episode radio show was implemented to fill the space left on the AM 600 radio dial when Toronto Maple Leafs games that were supposed to be broadcasted on CKAT were cancelled due to the NHL lockout.

For seven weeks the radio program on CKAT experienced a whirlwind of controversy and interviews with all kinds of people from the hockey world; many with connections to North Bay.

Hockey Lockout live included players like Craig Rivet, and Greg de Vries, NHL managers like Bill Barber, former NHLers like Larry Keenan, Mike Foligno and Darren Turcotte, National media personalities like Bob McCown of Primetime Sports and Mike Brophy of the Hockey News, and even a twenty minute interview with NHLPA Vice President Ted Saskin.

While the CKAT newsroom won regional awards for best newscast and a national award in the live special event coverage category for ”Coffee with the Candidates,” at the event, News Director Clint Thomas believes the honourable mention is maybe even more impressive.

“I’m as happy with the honourable mention in this category because competition was much stiffer,” said Thomas noting that they were up against radio stations in Toronto and Montreal in this category. Lockout live lost out to 680 news out of Toronto for their continuing coverage of a shooting in the cities downtown.

“I’m happy everybody in the station contributed to it,” said Thomas.

“We really banded together and they poured their soul into hockey lockout live and it turned out fantastic.”

While the show was a success they certainly hope they never have to fill seven weeks of content again this fall talking about a continuing NHL lockout.

I think everyone would agree with that.