Balancing broadcasting and ownership isn’t just for Tom Brady any more. At least the crew of the Barstool Sports-produced Spittin’ Chiclets hockey podcast more typically covers the NHL than the ECHL, though. Paul Bissonnette, Ryan Whitney, Keith Yandle and Mike Grinnell of that podcast announced Tuesday that they’ve bought an ownership stake in that professional minor league’s to-be-named expansion team in Greensboro, NC:
Ladies and gentlemen, it has finally happened…
The boys are now co-owners of an @ECHL hockey team‼️✍️ @ZawyerSports @GSOProHockey https://t.co/H2asmmniJU pic.twitter.com/WLUYB4zTa0
— Spittin’ Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) January 14, 2025
As noted there, this group has been looking to get involved in hockey ownership for some time. Indeed, they’ve previously targeted the ECHL, trying to launch a team in Colorado Springs in 2022. But they’ve now made it happen. And that’s already led to quite the quotes, especially from Bissonnette (also known for his current regular NHL on TNT national TV work and past Arizona Coyotes local TV work) in that above clip:
“I’m going to see my role as like a Jerry Jones/Lou Lamoriello. I’m going to have my ******* hands on everything. I will be doing media hits. If any of these media members question the moves I’m making, they will be fired on the spot. I’m going to run the **** out of this team to multiple championships, and these guys aren’t getting paid until they win.”
While a lot of that’s undoubtedly exaggeration for comic effect, this podcast having an ownership stake in this team will certainly change some aspects of media coverage around that team. That may not lead to firings of media members who don’t work for the team “on the spot,” but covering this team probably just got a lot more interesting.
Spittin’ Chiclets has been mostly focused on the NHL since their 2016 launch, but they have at times discussed minor-league hockey. That’s included a specific 2022 vlog series on the ECHL, plus talk of Bissonnette’s time playing at that level (between 2005 and 2009 with the Wheeling Nailers). And while there’s no indication if they’ll go full Welcome to Wrexham here, it certainly seems likely there will be some more ECHL content coming to this podcast. And it will be interesting to see how these former NHLers turned podcasters handle ECHL ownership, including interactions with the local media.
