A sports media spat so petty, so spiteful, so focused on squeezing as much free shit out of a corporate partner as possible, it could only have involved the NHL.


The background: ESPN has reportedly won the bidding to broadcast the World Cup of Hockey, an eight-team NHL/NHLPA-run tournament to be held in Toronto in 2016. TSN's Rick Westhead, who first reported the ESPN agreement, claims that NBC—the league's television partner—feels like it was used for its Super Bowl swag and suites:


This is wonderful. This is like you being sick of your significant other but not dumping them until the summer's over because they've got a beach house. There is absolutely zero doubt in my mind that the NHL did this.