The NHL On TNT Face Off panel is known for having some fun with their coverage, and sometimes that includes animal noises. But panelist Wayne Gretzky isn’t particularly into doing that himself. That came up ahead of overtime in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Florida Panthers and Vegas Golden Knights Thursday, where panelist Anson Carter let out a roar (for the Panthers), panelist Paul Bissonnette mocked Carter’s breath and then meowed and made a paw-licking motion, and then tried unsuccessfully to get Gretzky to meow:
This is not Bissonnette’s first go-round with on-camera animal noises. Back on May 20, he offered a Chewbacca impression that cracked Gretzky up and asked him to do his own, and Gretzky again declined. There, host Liam McHugh brought up a previous case where Bissonnette had unsuccessfully tried to get former panelist Rick Tocchet (now the head coach of the Vancouver Canucks) to meow, and said the same applied with Gretzky. “He’s not doing the Chewbacca!” There, Bissonnette said “I do the farm noises, the legends don’t.”
It’s good to have clear delineations of panel responsibilities. Beyond the farm noises, Bissonnette’s also include getting roasted by guests:
https://twitter.com/BizNasty2point0/status/1665931467388764160
But this just more generally speaks to the fun being had on the Face Off panel and the wider NHL on TNT team. And that’s being well-received by many fans. And while Bissonnette couldn’t get Gretzky to meow on camera, perhaps that’s better left for the times when they crush post-show beers until 5 in the morning.
[Awful Announcing on Twitter]
About Andrew Bucholtz
Andrew Bucholtz has been covering sports media for Awful Announcing since 2012. He is also a staff writer for The Comeback. His previous work includes time at Yahoo! Sports Canada and Black Press.