Give me Canucks PPV in HD

Dear Ocra Bay,

In the last episode of The Crazy Canucks, I made mention about how nice it would be to have Canucks PPV games be broadcast in HD. I would believe that the reality of making this possible wouldn’t be too hard because, let’s face it, if we’re paying $11.95 per game(round about $150 if you buy all 17 games for the 2006-07 season), then we should really be getting our best bang for the buck.

Let’s be honest. What’s the best thing about Canucks PPV? It’s the play-by-play by John Shorthouse. Notice that I’m not saying much about Tom Larscheid, but I guess it’s somewhat worth to hear the next, insane thing that the guy is going to loft out of his mouth. I kinda see why you guys keep him around, but I’ll restrain myself from saying anything more.

The fact that everything is in sync, in terms of no satellite delay from watching it on TV and turning on the radio, and Shorty being amazing on the call is great. I’m not going to dispute that at all.

Sure, you guys throw those neat segments in between periods and have no commercials, but after that, what’s the big deal? Not a whole lot. If, as fans, we are forced to head out to a pub because we can’t get ourselves to throw down the cash to watch it at home, these things don’t matter. And for the most part, these games are huge money makers for pubs all over the lower mainland, most of which have those fancy, wide-screen, plasma or LCD TVs anyway.

Let me give you guys a quick comparison of what this might be like because some people don’t get the fascination between the two technologies. Believe it or not, there are massive differences between the two technologies.

Now this is crude mock-up of a picture that we took at a pre-season game against the Ducks. The point is, you get to see more of the ice. On a break-away, watch the goalie get setup, pee his pants while he freaks out in anticipation, and take on the shot from the opposing player. Watch the spray of ice in amazing detail. See each and every stitch on Green’s face from the puck he took in Nashville. To me, that is all worth the extra effort of catching a PPV game in HD.

The biggest advantage to go HD is the fact that your tickets are steep in price. We do love the team, but there are just some folks who can’t afford to go to as many games as we’d like to. Combine the cost of food and beverages and it’s much easier for us to gather at our nearest, buddy’s house who has a sweet 42-inch DLP with 5.1 dolby digital surround sound. Give me that great picture and sound that I crave, and you present a true like-you-are-there experience.

So what to do Canucks fans have right now?

Dreary, dull, and not near the resolution that it could be, pay-per-view television. The worst part is that no matter how content you can be listening to the game on the radio instead, you’ll never get to see video highlights unless they are able to get footage from the broadcast of the opposing team. Then there are blackout restrictions and rules that local media has to follow or else you guys will do something mean.

Yeah, it’s a little picky, but I’m sure there are plenty of sponsors out there who would provide some funds to make this a reality. “Canucks TV, presented in High-Definition by Futureshop!” Best Buy. The Source. I don’t care who, but you guys are one of the biggest attractions in town.

“Canucks Pay-Per-View in HD” Come on! Doesn’t that have a nice ring to it? Thank about it, Orca Bay.