In Toronto, Dhiren Mahiban noted former NHLer Paul Bissonnette will debut this season as an analyst on Coyotes radio broadcasts, as well as on the team's pre- and postgame shows on FS Arizona. Bissonnette during his playing career "carved out a niche -- first on Twitter and then Instagram, with the handle BizNasty -- by going against the grain of hockey’s conservative culture, where players rarely show their true personality." While there is "more to analysis than taking shots," one broadcast partner "already likes what he sees." Coyotes TV analyst Tyson Nash: "He’s a natural, he really is. I think even though we’re in the hockey business, we’re still in the entertainment business and what better guy to have than Biz" (TORONTO STAR, 10/3).
HE HAS THE TOOLS: On Long Island, Neil Best noted NBC's Mike Milbury will fill in for Ed Olczyk for the net's NHL coverage while he recovers from colon cancer surgery. Milbury's colleagues are "counting on his many years around the sport and the league, and long history of strong opinions, to ease his transition from studio to game booth." Milbury has "worked games on-site before," so he is "not a complete novice." However, he "plans to tread lightly, if he is capable of that." Milbury said working with Mike Emrick and Pierre McGuire, two guys "that have encyclopedic knowledge of the game, I don’t think I’m going to need to feed you any more than what I can take from my observations as an analyst and someone who’s been around the game for over 40 years now" (NEWSDAY, 10/3).
NEXT STAGE: The Columbus Dispatch has hired former Panthers beat writers George Richards and Steve Gorten for its Blue Jackets coverage. Richards had been with the Miami Herald "for nearly 29 years," including the past 12 on the Panthers beat, while Gorten covered the team for 10 of his 13 years at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. They "will fill the void left by Aaron Portzline and Tom Reed, who have taken their talents" to The Athletic (BIZJOURNALS.com, 10/3).
