The return of live sports is on the horizon.
It’ll kick off this weekend with a couple of UFC fights on pay-per-view and be followed by seven NASCAR races in 10 days the following week.
It’s not much, but it’s a little taste as the sports world works its way back towards some sense of normalcy. Until then, however, sports fans will be looking to get their fix any way they can. And this week, there are a variety of ways to do just that on a television schedule that features some classic games on the regional and national level.
Here’s my top picks for sports on TV this week:
Monday: Monday Night Football Classics – Packers vs. Seahawks, 8 p.m. on ESPN
This is one of those games that is remembered more for its controversy than the product on the field. And the rebroadcast of this game from September 24, 2012 will certainly irk Packer fans — and league officials, for that matter — to this day.
Leading for most of the game in what was a defensive slugfest, the Packers allowed Seattle and their rookie quarterback Russell Wilson to drive down the field to set up the game’s final play. There, at the 24-yard-line, Wilson threw a pass in the direction of WR Golden Tate in the back of the end zone. Tate and Green Bay safety M.D. Jennings both wrestled for the ball and it appeared that the Packers had won the game on an interception. But the two officials standing over the play simultaneously gave separate signals of touchdown and touchback and after discussion, a review and a long delay, it was called a touchdown and Seattle won the game, 14-12. The kicker: the game was being officiated by replacement referees, who had already blown their share of calls while taking over for the “real” refs through the first three games of the season.
The confusion over the play, and subsequent embarrassment for the league, led them to expedite contract negotiations with its referee’s union and have the regular refs back on the field the following week. On the call for the game are former ESPN broadcasters Mike Tirico and Jon Gruden.
Tuesday: 1999 Eastern Conference Finals Game 5- Sabres vs. Leafs, 7 p.m. on MSG
The Sabres beat their rivals 4-2 in what was the franchise’s biggest playoff victory in 25 years at the time and advanced to their first Stanley Cup Final since 1975. Buffalo, playing on the road at Toronto’s Air Canada Center, fell behind 1-0 before rallying to tie the game at two after two periods. Then — indicative of their team during that dream season — journeymen forwards Erik Rasmussen and Dixon Ward scored the team’s two third-period goals to seal the win and take the series four games to one. Unfortunately, the game was nationally broadcast so Sabres fans will not get to hear legendary play-by-play man Rick Jeanneret on the call Tuesday.
Tuesday: 2004 ALCS Game 4 – Red Sox vs. Yankees, 7 pm. On ESPN
Even if you aren’t a fan of either franchise, this game set in motion one of the biggest comebacks in a playoff series in sports history. The Yankees were dominating their rivals in the best-of-seven set, leading Boston 3-0 and looking for the sweep at Fenway Park. New York was just a few outs away from clinching another World Series appearance, but then the Red Sox rallied in the 9th. That inning is best remembered for Boston’s Dave Roberts stealing second base and then being driven in by teammate Bill Mueller to earn a rare blown save off New York’s Mariano Rivera. It was the turning point in the series and allowed Red Sox legend David Ortiz to belt a two-run walkoff homer in the bottom of the 12th inning. Of course, Boston went on to win the next three games of the series to stun the Yankees in seven games. They then rode that momentum into the World Series against St. Louis to deliver a championship for the first time in 86 years.
All week: Pirates and Penguins classics, 7 p.m. on AT&T Sportsnet
AT&T — the television home of both franchises — is keeping its broadcast schedule for these classic games tightly under wraps until the day of, but did announce that it would start its nightly throwbacks this evening with the full broadcast of the Penguins’ 6-0 win over the Nashville Predators in Game 5 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final. The network has already featured several games from that series over the past week and on the Pirates’ side, they’ve recently shown John Candelaria’s no-hitter at Three Rivers Stadium against the Dodgers in 1976 as well as Jameson Taillon’s complete game one-hitter against the Reds in 2018. The teams have been announcing what games will air the day of using #bucsclassics or #pensclassics on their social media platforms. They’ve also broadcasted interviews with players and coaches from the featured games as well as analysis and studio shows on Twitter as well as www.pittsburgh-attsn.att.com.
Friday: 1999 Stanley Cup Final Game 6 – Sabres vs. Stars, 7 p.m. on MSG
No telling of the Sabres’ 1998-99 season is complete without the re-airing of the controversial heartbreaker that robbed the city of Buffalo of its first championship. MSG will certainly need to fast forward at several points during the broadcast, as the game went three overtimes and remains one of the longest games in Stanley Cup Final history. Sabres fans don’t need a reminder, but the game ended when Dallas’ Brett Hull poked in a rebound (even though his foot was in the crease) past Sabres goaltender Dominik Hasek. The NHL had implemented a rule that season — since changed — that prevented offensive players from scoring while any part of their body is in the crease. Despite a review, the call stood and the Stars got to hoist the Cup. The league later admitted it was the wrong call, and that Hull’s goal should not have counted. The Sabres lost the game, 2-1, and have not advanced past the Eastern Conference Finals since.
(Anthony Sambrotto, the Bradford Era Sports Editor, can be reached at asambrotto@bradfordera.com)
