WBD Sports’ NHL on TNT broadcasts are in their third season, and there have been some changes to studio show NHL on TNT Face Off in that time. Those included initial panel member Rick Tocchet returning to the league midway through last season to coach the Vancouver Canucks, Henrik Lundqvist going from a guest analyst to a regular ahead of this third season, Wayne Gretzky being featured more regularly as time went on, and a few other tweaks. But panelists Paul Bissonnette and Anson Carter and host Liam McHugh have been constants, with McHugh in particular not missing an episode of Face Off.
That streak ends Wednesday, though. And it ends thanks to McHugh receiving jury duty. He posted about that on Twitter with a Simpsons meme featuring noted terrible attorney Lionel Hutz:
my @NHL_On_TNT ironman streak will end tonight due to jury duty.
the great @NabilKarimTV gets to try and control @BizNasty2point0 @AnsonCarterLA & @HLundqvist pic.twitter.com/YJwi6F0WOJ— Liam McHugh (@liam_mchugh) October 25, 2023
It’s always worth remembering that sports television jobs are just that, jobs, and that the people doing them still can run into a lot of the same issues experienced by everyone else. And jury duty in particular can come for anyone. But it might seem sort of odd to go into court and have a regularly-on-TV voice like McHugh on your jury.
At any rate, as McHugh mentions, Nabil Karim will be filling in for him. Karim worked at TSN in Canada from 2011 to 2019, then headed to ESPN. He joined WBD Sports (then Turner) in 2022 as primarily a NBA TV host, but has also contributed across their other NBA and NHL programming, including as a rink-side reporter for NHL on TNT broadcasts. And now he’ll be stepping into McHugh’s chair for a night. We’ll see how he handles overseeing what’s often one of the more entertaining panels in sports.
The NHL on TNT features the Washington Capitals and New Jersey Devils Wednesday, with pregame coverage beginning at 7 p.m. ET and puck drop at 7:30 p.m. ET.
[Liam McHugh on Twitter]
