Conversations on The Road

Weber broadcasted the first Capitals game and every one after that until his retirement on April 13, 1997 — a total of 1,939 games.

When the Washington Capitals joined the NHL as an expansion team in 1974, Baltimore Clippers play-by-play announcer Ron Weber was hired to be the voice of the NHL’s newest franchise. The Lock Haven, Pennsylvania native called every one of the team’s record-breaking 67 defeats that year. Over the next 23 years Weber never missed a regular season or playoff broadcast, talking Capitals fans through 1,936 consecutive games.

 

 Ron Weber [19:45m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

For more than two years Ross Bernstein researched, met and interviewed more than 100 players and coaches who all share one common denominator — they had the distinct privilege of hoisting the Stanley Cup. 

In this Journey into Hockey, we speak with Ross Bernstein about his quest and what he discovered – about hockey’s holy grail and what it represents.

Ross Bernstein is the best-selling author of more than 40 sports books and has appeared on thousands of local and national television and radio programs over his career, including CNN, NPR and ESPN, as well as on the covers of the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and USA Today.

 

 Raising Stanley [17:02m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Bob Verdi is a fixture in Chicago – especially in and around Madison Street.

These days his official title is that of Historian for the Chicago Blackhawks. For years, he covered the team as a journalist. All told, he has decades of experience about the team – a Chicago version of Red Fisher.

We speak with Bob Verdi about the Stanley Cup team of 1961 – a club that included the likes of Glenn Hall, Bobby Hull, Stan Makita and Pierre Pilote, as well as what the Hawks have  meant to Chicago – even befoe their most recent Stanley Cup.

 

 Bob Verdi - Blackhawks [13:53m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The Philadelphia Flyers joined the NHL in 1967, one of six expansion teams. Over the next four decades they have established themselves as a bedrock franchise.

Love them or not, it is undeniable that they have impacted the  game.

In 100 Things Flyers Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die, Adam Kimmelman has assembled facts, traditions and achievements that inform and entertain. And you don’t even have to be a Flyers’ fan to enjoy the book.

We speak aith Adam Kimmleman, a deputy managing editor at NHL.com, about the Flyers and his insight as what makes them so special.

 

 Flyers [28:28m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Lou Nanne has a long association with hockey -as a player, coach and executive. In Minnesota he is a legend.

In this Journey into Hockey, we speak with Lou Nanne about his life in and out of the game. From his early days with John Mariucci through his N.H.L. career and beyond, Nanne shares with us his experiences and wisdom.

It’s entertaining and inspiring.

 

 Lou Nanne [9:37m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

He is best known for having a trophy named after him. The naming is justified.

Hobey Baker was a true hero in atime that it meant something.

Hobart Amory Hare “Hobey” Baker (January 15, 1892 – December 21, 1918) was a noted American amateur athlete of the early twentieth century.

Baker was widely regarded as one of the best athletes of his time, and is still considered one of the best American hockey players. When the Hockey Hall of Fame was founded in 1945 Baker was named one of the first twelve inductees, the only American among them. In 1973 he was named in the initial class of members for the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1975, and is the only person to be in both the hockey and college football halls of fame.

In this Journey into Hockey, we speak with Brian Codagnone of the New England Sports Musuem about Hobey Baker, the man and the legend.

 

 Hobey Baker [13:43m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is the story about Canada’s relationship with beer. From Victoriana through thes tubby to the invasion of the Americans to global corporate giants and finally the contemporary story of a new golden era.

Ian Coutts is the author of Brew North (Greystone; 2010). He joins for this journey – a Journey into Beer which is also a Journey into Canada.

 

 Brew North [21:45m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

As a journalist and life-long deli obsessive, David Sax was understandably alarmed by the state of Jewish delicatessen–a cuisine that once sat at the very center of Jewish life had become endangered by assimilation, homogenization, and health food trends. He watched one beloved deli after another shut down, one institution after another shutter only to be reopened as some bland chain-restaurant laying claim to the very culture it just paved over. And so David set out on a journey across the United States and around the world in search of authentic delicatessen. Was it still possible to Save the Deli?

In this Journey, we join David as he investigates everything deli–its history, its diaspora, its next generation. He tells us about the food itself–how it’s made, who makes it best, and where to go for particular dishes. And, ultimately, there there is for hope–David finds deli newly and lovingly made in places like Boulder, traditions maintained in Montreal, and iconic institutions like the 2nd Avenue Deli resurrected in New York.

It’s a great topic and he does a wonderful job - a cultural history of Jewish food, a vibrant travelogue, and a rallying cry for a new generation of food lovers.

 

 Saving the Kosher Deli [25:54m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Brian McFarlane is best to known hockey fans as a commentator on Hockey Night in Canada for 25 years. He made similar broadcasts on NHL games for the major American networks CBS and NBC and has written more than 50 books on hockey. McFarlane is an expert on hockey history and has compiled several volumes of NHL lore titled “It Happened in Hockey,” as well as a 1999 series detailing the colorful history of the ”Original Six” NHL teams.

 

 Standard Podcast: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Peter Puck [22:20m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download