Kevin Weekes Turning Into a TV Star PDF Print
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By Susan Slusser

One of the nicest additions to this hockey season, in my mind, was Kevin Weekes joining the NHL Network. The longtime NHL goaltender has adapted to studio work and game analysis quickly and smoothly, and he's shown a real knack for observation and for a slick turn of phrase.

So I tracked him down during the Olympic break to find out how Weekes is finding the transition to the broadcast booth and I found him vacationing in the Bahamas (there are lots of NHL types there right now, he said).

Initially, one of the strangest things for Weekes was getting accustomed to the view from the press box while serving as an analyst for Hockey Night in Canada. He's always had the best view in the building, with all the action unfolding right in front of him. Now Weekes is peering down from the rafters. It took him a few weeks to feel comfortable.

Another adjustment that is often hard for recently retired athletes who move to TV is the need to be be critical of former teammates and opponents. Many can't say anything remotely negative. And while you won't find Weekes slamming players just for the sake of it -- he said he was very clear when talking about on-air jobs that he doesn't want to be a shock-jock or a say-something-outrageous guy -- he will point out any issues he feels pertinent. Nicely. He is Canadian.

"I always want to stay true to the game," Weekes told me. "I've been in the game a long time and I can appreciate what it means to play in the NHL, to be one of the best in the world. I have a healthy respect for those players, because I've lived it. I want that to come through on the air.

"I want to provide excellent analysis from the player's view, and to be objective. I'll always be a player first, a goalie first."

One big plus that Weekes brings is that he's so fresh from the game, and the league has changed so much in the past 15 years. He was there the whole time, making the adjustments, seeing how the post-lockout rules affected the flow of the game and the way it's played. He understands what is going on the ice right now. Not every analyst can say that. Heck, not even every coach or GM necessarily understands exactly how different the current NHL is from the game they played.

Weekes is following in a fine tradition. Goalies seem to make particularly good analysts -- and that makes sense. They're always watching the game. They're directing traffic around the net. They know where all the defensemen should be and what the opposing forwards are likely to be up to. They have to know what and where everyone is and what they're doing.

"I knew it was something I wanted to do eventually. This past offseason, the opportunity was a little more enticing than the opportunity to keep playing. ... This was a chance for a good, new challenge."
-- Kevin Weekes "It comes by nature of the position," Weekes said. "With that vantage point, 90 percent of the game is played in front of you. It's interesting, because when you're a goalie, you become a participant and a spectator at the same time. You know what everyone's responsibilities are, and you're reading all the plays as they're coming to you. It becomes a very analytical, individual position."

It's also a position that is often misunderstood, even within the sport. Goaltenders know all the tiny modifications and advancements in their equipment, they know all the latest techniques and positioning tips and tactics. They have different jargon from the skaters.

That's another bonus when it comes to having a goalie on the air -- he has the best insight about what the heck is going on there in the net. It takes a goalie to know a goalie.

"It's crazy," Weekes said. "You hear everyone say, 'You can't win without goaltending,' but a lot of people don't understand what goaltending is, from a developmental standpoint, from a mental standpoint, there are so many things, so many aspects to it.

"A lot of people say, ''It doesn't matter as long as you stop the puck.' Well, that's the end game, but it's just part of the bigger equation. I try to educate viewers about all those other things that go into it."

So does he have the goaltender bias? We've all seen it: the ex-goalie broadcaster who never has seen a goaltender flop or commit a penalty or any other infraction, but who constantly finds that skaters are interfering with the goaltender. If it's choice between the goalie and the skater, some former netminders always go goalie. I've yet to see Weekes do that to any sort of outrageous degree, but I asked, anyway.

"Some might call it bias," Weekes said with a laugh. "I call it understanding."

For instance, he mentioned the frequent complaints about the size of goaltenders' equipment -- well, no, Weekes said, actually, their pads are smaller than they used to be. They've shrunk three inches in the past decade or so. "The equipment is smaller and more streamlined than it's ever been," Weekes said. "The fact of the matter is that goalies are just bigger, faster and stronger. It's a position that has evolved more than any other in sports in recent years."

Weekes spent the past two seasons in New Jersey, playing behind one of the best ever, and learning even more about the position. But he hadn't gotten the call in more than 32 games in any of the past four seasons, so this summer, TV looked ever more like an attractive option. At the age of 34, Weekes retired from the NHL and went to work behind the microphone.

"I knew it was something I wanted to do eventually," he said. "This past offseason, the opportunity was a little more enticing than the opportunity to keep playing. It offered more opportunity for growth than being a backup, especially behind Martin Brodeur, who plays every night. This was a chance for a good, new challenge."

 
 
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