So this isn't quite Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice but the partnerships of Tim and Sid as well as Jay and Dan are going through transformation.
Tim and Sid, the afternoon radio/TV sports talk guys on Rogers Sportsnet, are separating. Sid Seixeiro is leaving to join Breakfast Television, Citytv's morning talk show. Jay and Dan, the late-night SportsCentre TSN duo who briefly left Canada for Fox Sports 1, are separating involuntarily. Dan O'Toole was one of many Bell Media layoffs.
A coincidence that the second name in the duos won't be doing sports. This leaves Tim Micallef (of Tim and Sid) and Jay Onrait (of Jay and Dan) wondering who they will work with on a long-term basis.
If you think that the Seixeiro move is a bit odd, morning television might seem safer. Though the Vancouver and Calgary versions were cancelled last November for a national version from Toronto that will feature Seixeiro. Seixeiro has a job and O'Toole does not.
Seixeiro's last day is February 26 and his first day on Breakfast Television will be March 10.
Chris Cuthbert picks Stanley Cup final over TSN, jumps to Rogers Sportsnet
Jay & Dan were best thing on Fox Sports 1 sinking ship
— Jay Onrait (@JayOnrait) February 8, 2021
O'Toole could jump to Rogers to replace Seixeiro though the contrast of what worked for Jay and Dan would not work well for a Tim and Sid type program.
Micallef might be looked upon as a possible replacement to call CFL games for TSN, owned by Bell Media. Micallef has experience calling university football. Given that Canada didn't have the CFL or university football in 2020, making that kind of a move has some issues.
TSN might bring in Dave Randorf to do some early-season CFL games but Randorf would have to go back to Tampa by mid-September to call the NHL Tampa Bay Lightning games. Rick Ball is staying with Rogers to call Calgary Flames and Hockey Night in Canada games.
Despite the huge Bell Media layoffs, someone has to replace Chris Cuthbert on the CFL telecasts. TSN didn't really replace Cuthbert for the NHL, using freelancers here and there for conflicts with Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators games. Jon Abbott of TSN 1040 Vancouver filled in for a game. Then Abbott and all his co-workers lost their jobs as TSN 1040 flipped formats. The same also happened at TSN 1290 in Winnipeg and TSN 1150 in Hamilton. Bell Media eliminated the newsroom staff at CJAD Montréal.
CanadianCrossing.com TSN coverage
CanadianCrossing.com Rogers Sportsnet coverage
Last week, parent company BCE announced a quarterly profit of $889 million in the 4th quarter of 2020. This was an increase versus the $672 million from the same period in 2019.
Having a 2021 CFL season can help reduce the Bell Media losses. Having an end to COVID-19 would help as well.
photo credit: TSN
Twitter capture: @JayOnrait
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