MSG Network

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The Madison Square Garden Network, more commonly referred to as the MSG Network or simply as MSG, is a regional cable television and radio network serving the New York City area. The network takes the name of Madison Square Garden and has long been the producer of radio and television broadcasts of the NBA's New York Knicks and the NHL's New York Rangers, which play their home games at the Garden.

Other Sports Coverage

In addition to Knicks and Rangers games, MSG currently carries cable television broadcasts of the WNBA's New York Liberty and MLS's Red Bull New York (formerly MetroStars). The radio division of MSG Network currently produces Knicks and Rangers broadcasts for 1050 ESPN Radio.

MSG and its sister station FSN New York, also broadcasts MAAC basketball, NEC basketball, Atlantic-10 basketball, Pac-10 football and basketball, Big-12 football and women's basketball, and ACC basketball. The latter three are part of national FOX Sports Net broadcast contracts.

Selected New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils games also air on MSG when both teams play at the same time, with one airing on sister-channel FSN New York, which along with MSG are officially referred to as MSG Networks. In turn, selected Knicks and Rangers games air on FSN New York when there the other team is on MSG and no Islanders or Devils game at the same time.

If more than two of these four local teams are playing at the same time, the Rangers play on "MSG2," and the Islanders or Devils play on "FSN New York 2," which are channels different for each cable system, many being broadcast on the TV Guide Channel, while satellite systems will show them on a sports alternate channel. These channels are sometimes not available outside the immediate New York City area. Local television listings: MSG2 & FSN New York 2

Original Programming

• MSG's flagship program is MSG SportsDesk , a daily sports highlights show, which is shown numerous times during the day. An abbreviated version of MSG SportsDesk is shown during halftime and intermissions of sporting events on MSG and FSNY. This fall, the show will be renamed MSG 360 with increased focus on anything taking place at MSG. This is expected to keep the show away from competition with SNY's SportsNite.
• The Boomer Esiason Show features interviews and commentary from former NFL quarterback Boomer Esiason.
• Unnecessary Roughness focuses on local NFL action.
• Hockey Night New York Live! was added as a Thursday Rangers, Devils, and Islanders show.
• Live from the Play by Play was added as a Knicks post-game show.
• High School Weekly focuses on high school football and basketball from around the region
• The LAX Report, added in 2006, is a local high school lacrosse show similar to High School Weekly
• MSG Soccer Report, added in 2002 (previously as the Metro Soccer Report, which underwent a format change in 2005), covers Red Bull New York and other local soccer news.
• MSG Vault, added in 2006, is a series that features classic Knicks and Rangers games that have not been seen by the public in decades.
• Rangers 10 To Remember, added in May 2006, re-broadcasts ten memorable Rangers games from the past season during the summer off-season when MSG has little other sports coverage

Personalities

MSG Network

• Mike Breen: Knicks game play-by-play announcer
• Steve Cangialosi: MSG SportsDesk host and reporter
• Mike Crispino: Fill-in Rangers game play-by-play announcer; MSG SportsDesk host
• Bill Daughtry: MSG SportsDesk host and reporter
• John Davidson: Rangers game color announcer
• J.P. Dellacamera: Red Bulls play-by-play announcer
• Boomer Esiason: Host of The Boomer Esiason Show
• Stan Fischler: MSG SportsDesk hockey analyst; occasional Rangers game studio analyst
• Walt "Clyde" Frazier: Knicks game color announcer
• Anthony "Fooch" Fucilli: MSG SportsDesk reporter (mostly football)
• Christopher Fusco: MSG SportsDesk legal analyst
• John Giannone: Rangers sideline reporter and occasional studio host; MSG SportsDesk host
• Jay Glazer: Host of Unnecessary Roughness; MSG SportsDesk football analyst
• Fran Healy: MSG SportsDesk baseball analyst
• Rick Jeanneret: Sabres game play-by-play announcer
• Dave Jennings: MSG SportsDesk football analyst
• Deb Kaufman: MSG SportsDesk host and reporter
• Jim Lorentz: Sabres game color announcer
• Dave Maloney: Fill-in Rangers game color announcer
• Shep Messing: Red Bulls game color announcer; co-host of MSG Soccer Report
• Mary Murphy: Liberty game color announcer
• Mike Quick: Host of High School Weekly and The LAX Report; high school sports reporter
• Sam Rosen: Rangers game play-by-play announcer
• Joel Sherman: MSG SportsDesk baseball analyst
• John Starks: Fill-in Knicks game color announcer; MSG SportsDesk basketball analyst
• Al Trautwig: Rangers and Knicks home game pre-game and intermission host and sideline reporter; host of Hockey Night New York Live! and NYK Way; co-host of MSG Vault
• Bob Wischusen: Liberty game play-by-play announcer; MSG SportsDesk host and reporter
• Ethan Zohn: Co-host of MSG Soccer Report

FSN New York

• Stan Fischler: Devils intermission analyst
• Deb Kaufman: Islanders pre-game and intermission host and sideline reporter
• Matt Loughlin: Devils pre-game and intermission host; fill-in Devils game play-by-play announcer
• Joe Micheletti: Islanders game color annoucer
• Chico Resch: Devils game color announcer
• Howie Rose: Islanders game play-by-play annoucer

Buffalo Sabres Coverage on MSG

After the collapse of the Empire Sports Network caused by the bankruptcy of Adelphia, MSG now also broadcasts the Buffalo Sabres to Upstate New York customers. The Sabres essentially control the entire broadcast, including an exclusive post-game show.

MSG in Upstate New York

Aside from Sabres games, MSG controls the broadcasts of all other local teams that it carries. Rangers, Devils, and Islanders games are blacked out in the Sabres primary broadcast territory, which is Buffalo and Rochester, but Knicks games are broadcast on FSN New York or a temporary alternate channel.

Most of upstate New York (notably Albany, Binghamton, and Syracuse) gets all Sabres games but also the Rangers, Islanders, and Devils if the Sabres are on the road AND the Knicks are not playing on the same night. In some areas, Knicks games air on MSG, while FSN New York carries the Sabres. Sabres games, however, are not broadcast in Plattsburgh, which receives the same MSG and FSN feeds as the NYC market.

FSN New York is no longer on Time Warner's expanded basic systems in upstate New York as SportsNet New York filled its slot.

College sporting events may also be blacked out in parts of upstate New York, especially involving teams from the Big East Conference, because MSG sometimes can only acquire broadcast rights in New York City and its immediate suburbs.

Baseball Coverage 1989-2005

Between 1989 and 2001, the network was the cable home of the New York Yankees. MSG also produced the Yankees radio broadcasts from 1994 to 2001, which aired on WABC-AM. In 2002, the Yankees left MSG to form the YES Network. From 2002 to 2005, MSG aired games from Major League Baseball's New York Mets on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, games which previously aired on FSNY. After the 2005 baseball season, Met games moved to SportsNet New York, a cable network partially owned by the Mets.

History

The MSG Television network debuted on October 15, 1969 with a game between the Rangers and the Minnesota North Stars. MSG Network, thus, became the first regional sports network in North America, and one of the first of its kind in the world.

Future Plans

Since there is a hole in their programming schedule, which was created by the fact they do not have the rights to either the Yankees or the Mets, the network has announced that, in upcoming months, more entertainment-oriented programming will air on the network. This programming will include concerts and professional boxing and wrestling cards that have taken place at Madison Square Garden in the past and continue to occur to this day. [1]

Ownership

The network is majorly owned by Cablevision, which also owns Madison Square Garden itself, the Knicks, the Rangers and the Liberty.

External link

• Official Site