To start the month, ESPN had Stephen A. Smith and long-time Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay debate which professional New York sports will next win a title. When Kay argued the easy answer was the NHL’s New York Rangers, Smith was wildly dismissive about even having a conversation about it.
With ESPN owning partial NHL broadcast rights, the hockey community was understandably displeased. According to Kay, Smith’s thoughts angered some hockey people even higher up the ladder: the league powers that be.
