ARTHUR:
The Ducks avoided giving away their preseason finale tonight, beating Los Angeles 3-2 in overtime after letting the Kings back in the game with less than five minutes to go. Jonas Hiller was perfect through 37 shots, but gave the puck away on a pass behind the net on the power play, and Justin Williams scored on a wrap around. A deflected shot from Jack Johnson would send the game to overtime, but a bench minor for Too Many Men put the Kings on the PK where Teemu Selanne potted the gamewinner.
Newly named captain Ryan Getzlaf had a goal in the 3rd and the primary assist on Selanne's score in overtime. The Ducks have named their Finnish forwards (Selanne and Koivu) as his alternates, and all three players maintained rather active dialogues with the referees tonight. Cam Fowler looked stellar in his final preseason game, making it seem like a foregone conclusion he will get the start as the Ducks pull into Detroit for their season opener next week.
In response to the sudden cancellation of tonight's webcast, we've started a letter writing campaign to Fox Sports West. Unfortunately, the only contact email I can find for the company is their standard "contact us" email. This will have to do unless someone can find another one.
If you would like to participate, please write a letter expressing your disappointment in their decision to communications@foxsports.net
If you are unsure of what to say or don't have the time to compose a letter, our staff writer Robby offers the following form communication, which you may borrow from as much or as little as you like:
To Whom It May Concern,
I am writing to express my disappointment with Fox Sports Prime Ticket’s decision not to stream the preseason game on Sunday, October 3rd between the Anaheim Ducks and the Los Angeles Kings. Fox Sports West/Prime Ticket had previously announced plans to broadcast both the Tuesday, September 28th contest and the October 3rd game.
As a hockey fan, I was extremely pleased with Fox Sports’ commitment to provide hockey via Internet video stream. We are not typically afforded any kind of respect/consideration from broadcast networks, and I was encouraged by the direction the network seemed to be pursuing. Indeed, I was one of the many who watched the streamed broadcast of the Tuesday, September 28th game, and I greatly appreciated the opportunity to do so.
However, it seems that the network has decided to renege on its announced coverage. As fans, we were offered a cryptic explanation that claimed: “We’ve decided to hold off and re-evaluate the process. We want to make sure we’re providing the best experience for the fans.”
I can only guess that Fox Sports is using the quality of the September 28th broadcast as a potential justification for going back on its word. I can safely assure you, as I’m sure many other hockey fans will too, that we would prefer to have ANY type of live video stream (issues or not) instead of nothing at all.
I am deeply disappointed that the network has decided to reverse course after it seemed they were finally willing to innovate on behalf of hockey fans. This effectively erases all good-will Fox Sports had created through the September 28th broadcast. Unfortunately, given the nature of NHL broadcast agreements, I am effectively at the mercy of your network’s whims.
I urge you to reconsider your decision in future matters.
Respectfully,