2 hockey games on NESN Beanpot, AHL stars scheduled Monday

Hockey fanatics may spontaneously combust while trying to keep their eyes on the puck Monday.

New England Sports Network is literally doubling up its hockey coverage that day.

NESN will air two live sports broadcasts simultaneously at 7 p.m.

Simultaneously? How?

NESN has two different satellite signals at its disposal, which it has begun to use more often. That added flexibility will come in handy Monday as the regional sports network airs the AHL All-Star game live from Portland and the 51st annual Beanpot Hockey Tournament semifinals Monday night.

Two signals obviously doesn’t mean much if you don’t have two channels to show them on. Since NESN has only one channel in local cable and satellite lineups, they needed some help from cable and satellite companies to pull this off.

In the Greater Bangor area, and most of northern and eastern Maine, Adelphia Cable and DirecTV have stepped up to provide an additional outlet for the extra hockey coverage.

Adelphia Cable and DirecTV customers will be able to see NESN’s Beanpot coverage, which features games at 5 and 8 p.m., on the regular NESN channel (35 on Adelphia and 623 on DirecTV). The AHL All-Star game will be shown on Adelphia Cable access channel 12 and DirecTV channel 625.

“If you’re a hockey fanatic and you don’t have picture-in-picture, you’re done,” NESN promotions-public relations director Gary Roy said jokingly.

The channel crunch resulted from NESN’s desire to air the all-star game for the first time in years due to the fact a New England city is hosting it.

“We have not done it in past years, but because it’s in Portland, we decided to make a commitment to them to do it,” Roy explained. “The problem, I think, was it was awhile back that we did so and that was before we knew what the Beanpot schedule was.”

NESN will also air the Pepsi AHL All-Star skills competition Sunday at 8 p.m.

Tom Caron will handle play-by-play for both the skills competition and all-star action while Andy Brickley will provide color commentary. University of Maine alumnus and Portland Pirates radio voice Dave Ahlers will serve as rink-side reporter for NESN’s AHL All-Star coverage.

Beanpot coverage will be handled by Don Orsillo (play-by-play), Bob Norton (color), Corey Masse (intermission host), and Brian Schactman (rink-side reporter).

NESN will also air the Beanpot championship game live on Monday, Feb. 10 at 8 p.m.

Hannigan honored

Bangor all-sports radio station sportscaster Dan Hannigan has been named the 2002 Maine Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association for the second time in the last three years.

Hannigan, who hosts the Hangtime show weekday afternoons on WZON (620 AM), is in his eighth year as the radio voice of University of Maine hockey.

This is the fourth straight year a Sports Zone announcer has won the award. Rich Kimball won in 1999 and 2001.

The award will be presented April 28 in Salisbury, N.C. Joe Buck was named NSSA national sportscaster of the year.

Andrew Neff can be reached at 990-8205, 1-800-310-8600, or ANeff@bangordailynews.net