Ian hosts like it's a rainy afternoon in a coffee shop. With hockey.
Grab a coffee, it's raining, it's hockey.
Known for: Answers a disaster or a bad stat with one flat coffee tasting note, one or two a show
Picks on Piper Shore: Ian cuts Piper off right before her best detail most nights, telling her to dock it there.
The file
Drinks seven coffees a show
Hosts with an umbrella nearby
Alison Lookahead
Studio analyst
Alison brings the data, every time, and a chart to back it up.
The data says otherwise.
Known for: Brings a new chart each show and explains its axes before the point
Picks on Brett Festival: Alison argues at length with a fresh chart and keeps losing to Brett's four-word gut calls, which her chart then proves.
The file
Has a chart for every player
Brings a tablet full of graphs
Brett Festival
Studio analyst
Brett trusts his gut. His gut doesn't do charts.
I don't need a chart, I can feel it.
Known for: Calls the answer in four words before Alison's chart loads, and is right
Picks on Alison Lookahead: Brett needles Alison on purpose by asking whether her chart can feel it, and wins every exchange by saying less.
The file
Has never looked at a chart
Trusts his gut on everything, including lunch
John Forthsound
Play-by-play
John brings classic, folksy charm to every broadcast.
Hey hey, whaddya know!
Known for: Greets someone in the building who doesn't need greeting (the linesman, the backup goalie, an usher) with a folksy hello, at most once a show
Picks on JT Frownie: John corrects JT's botched goal re-calls flatly, then says hey hey anyway.
The file
Has called games for decades
Says hello to every usher
JT Frownie
Color analyst
JT brings energy and loves a hard-working shift.
That's a hard-working play, love it!
Known for: Praises the effort on a play that went horribly, one a show
Picks on John Forthsound: JT high-fives John's corrections as great hustle, which makes them impossible to land.
The file
Has never had a lazy shift, he says
Brings smoothies to the booth
Grew up in a small Pacific Northwest town where the nearest ice was an hour's drive away
Piper Shore
Rinkside reporter
Piper reports from ice level with a breezy, ferry-ride vibe.
All aboard for the latest from ice level!
Known for: Turns the night's worst news into a weather-at-sea announcement, one a show
Picks on Ian Furnace: Piper treats every cut-off as rough seas, and resents that Ian always drops anchor right before the good part.
The file
Keeps a ship's bell at her rinkside spot
Has a sailor's hat in her bag
Tap a host to hear from them. All characters are fictional parodies.