A loud hot mic left Nashville Predators announcers laughing hysterically during Saturday afternoon’s NHL game against the Utah Mammoth at Bridgestone Arena.
With just under nine minutes remaining in the first period, a few F-bombs were heard on the FanDuel Sports Network South broadcast from someone on or near the ice who was very disappointed with the officiating.
“F*cking high stick! F*CK! Make a f*cking call! High stick!”
The second F-bomb was particularly loud and clear as play was paused due to an offside call.
Predators play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic and color commentator Chris Mason struggled through laughter to offer any additional commentary over the next 10 seconds as the broadcast went to a commercial break.
It’s rare that you hear the hot mic that loud on a broadcast.
A winter storm in Nashville (like much of America this weekend) led to the game starting at 12:30 p.m. local time, two hours earlier than initially scheduled. The combination of the start time and the weather understandably impacted the attendance at Bridgestone Arena. The official attendance was 6,159, according to Predators beat writer Alex Daughtery of The Tennessean.
So, that surely led to the hot mic audio being even clearer to hear than usual on the television broadcast.
It was a frustrating day for the Predators and the fans who braved the conditions, with the Mammoth coming away with a 5-2 road victory.
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.