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Will Joe Bowen's Final Hockey Season End The Way He Hopes?
He's been the voice of the Leafs for 44 years and he's retiring at the end of the season. When asked what his all time highlight is, he says it hasn't happened yet. Nothing less than a Stanley Cup victory will be the icing on the cake for this veteran play-by-play man.
But what has left Joe Bowen almost as disappointed as the long drought, is no longer being able to travel with the team and having to call games from the studio, a practice that is sadly becoming more and more common in sports broadcasting.
"Part of the fun ended in recent years when he and Jim Ralph, his colour commentary sidekick, were told they couldn’t travel anymore and road games would be called off TV monitors."
Joe Bowen’s career highlight hasn’t happened yet. The Leafs are running out of time
- mace
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Re: Will Joe Bowen's Final Hockey Season End The Way He Hopes?
I think I can safely predict that Joe Bowen will not get to call a Leaf Stanley Cup Championship. Yes the Leafs will make the playoffs. However, you have to win four series to capture the trophy. The Leafs have won two playoff series in the last nine years. To ask them to win four this season? Not likely to happen.
- maybo
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Re: Will Joe Bowen's Final Hockey Season End The Way He Hopes?
It’s mind-boggling the cheapskates at Rogers continue this misguided policy. There’s plenty more to report on on-site than what’s available off a TV monitor.
Last edited by maybo (October 19, 2025 10:44 am)
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Re: Will Joe Bowen's Final Hockey Season End The Way He Hopes?
maybo wrote:
It’s mind-boggling the cheapskates at Rogers continue this misguided policy. There’s plenty more to report on on-site than what’s available off a TV monitor.
Yes, and how much could it really cost? Hotel, meals, transportation - although not if they ride on the team plane taking them to their out of town destination. Drop in the bucket for the cheapskates at ol' Red. You get no interviews, no feel for how the players are doing and no way to soak up the atmosphere or get insider info to use on the broadcast. None of that shows in the bottom line, but it does on air.
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Thread Starter- Shorty Wave
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Re: Will Joe Bowen's Final Hockey Season End The Way He Hopes?
It’s mind-boggling the cheapskates at Rogers continue this misguided policy. There’s plenty more to report on on-site than what’s available off a TV monitor.
Yes, and how much could it really cost? Hotel, meals, transportation - although not if they ride on the team plane taking them to their out of town destination. Drop in the bucket for the cheapskates at ol' Red. You get no interviews, no feel for how the players are doing and no way to soak up the atmosphere or get insider info to use on the broadcast. None of that shows in the bottom line, but it does on air.
Rogers are so bloody cheap, that’s for sure. They make a fortune off the Leafs, in game tv ads, ticket sales, merch etc. and they can’t spring for their announcer to actually call the game on location, yet they can afford a statue of Ted Rogers outside the Skydome, yes, the Skydome, which they could afford to buy as well. Cheap, bloody cheap, don’t like them one bit, call you tell?!