By PJ PotterStaff writer
On Monday, Oct. 5, it was confirmed that Radio Hofstra University will once again be the flagship station of the Islanders, including all production and distribution of the broadcast throughout the regular season and NHL playoffs for the 2015-16 year. While broadcasting Islanders games, the college radio station headquartered at the Lawrence Herbert School of Communication will be referred to as the “New York Islanders Radio Network.”
The broadcasts produced by Radio Hofstra University will be distributed to WNYE 91.5 FM, SiriusXM satellite radio, the NHL Gamecenter app and WRCN 103.9 FM to reach Nassau and Suffolk counties.
“It’s a great opportunity for all station members to still get real-life professional experience. The first thing I thought about when the Islanders left Nassau Coliseum was if WRHU would still have the broadcasting rights. As a student, I’m happy to see they still have this tremendous opportunity,” said senior accounting major Justin Cusano.
After the team’s relocation from Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, there was no guarantee WRHU would continue its legacy as the only college radio station to be the chief station of a professional sports franchise.
“It was a pleasant surprise,” said junior journalism major Matt Durant regarding Radio Hofstra University signing the contract to keep WRHU a part of the NHL franchise. Durant was selected to be the producer for the Islanders this season after filling in several times last year to learn the role.
Hofstra students will not be the color analysts, who commentate during the game, as they were in recent years, but they will play major roles as sideline reporters, providing content for pre-game, intermissions and post-game. Mark Weiner, the sports director at WRHU and former producer of the Islanders, will be the lead reporter at the Barclays Center this season.
“My goal is to go interview the players, get the most I can get out of them and show why we should be there and show that we’re not just college kids, that we are professionals,” Weiner said.
Weiner, a senior journalism major, will be among 15 other members of the station’s sports department on a rotation as locker room reporters, engineers and providers of in-game updates.
WRHU has covered almost 400 games for the Islanders since 2010. “I know who has the capacity to work at a professional NHL level and I have trust in our reporters, engineers and everyone, that we can stand with the best of them across the NHL broadcasting networks,” Durant said.
In fact, major radio networks, such as ESPN and WFAN, have had complete confidence in Hofstra students operating playoff games.
During the 2013 NHL postseason, ESPN New York 98.7 FM partnered with WRHU to broadcast Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series between the Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins. Radio Hofstra University and WFAN teamed up for Game 6 of the series. Both games were produced, hosted and engineered by students at Hofstra.
Weiner said, “At the end of the day, I’m excited to spend another year being an NHL reporter.”