Between trending TikToks and viral YouTube videos, TSN’s beloved digital sub-brand BarDown is both a hub for first-of-its-kind digital content and a favourite online destination for Canadian sports fans. And now, for the first time, the BarDownskis are coming to television beginning today (March 30) at 7 p.m. ET on TSN.
BarDown has become a dominant force in the digital sports world. The brand’s more than two dozen contributors, aka “BarDownskis” have become some of Canada’s most engagement-worthy Instagrammers, continually topping the YouTube trending charts in North America. They’ve received shout outs across the sports world, from Tessa Virtue and Kacey Bellamy, to NHL.com, and have been honoured with a Webby nomination for their social coverage of the 2016 NBA All-Star game. After celebrating the site’s fifth anniversary last year, BarDown hosted their first-ever live event, which featured a sold-out crowd at the Hockey Hall of Fame.
“BarDown’s relentlessly creative content connects with young sports fans and consistently receives major engagement online,” said Nathalie Cook, Vice-President, TSN. “With the way that the BarDown team has taken the digital world by storm, we’re thrilled for them to expand their reach and grow their following among TSN’s television audience.”
Featuring extended content from their fan-favourite YouTube videos, the stars of BarDown deliver hockey hijinks, video game reviews, and fan-favourite quizzes across eight, 30-minute episodes. Among the upcoming episodes:
“Coach Crashing and Hockey Debates” Jesse and Corwin play dress-up and morph into their bench-boss alter-egos as they attempt to coach hockey teams they have no business coaching, and they somehow end up behind the bench at an NHL charity event!
Jesse and Luca then attempt to settle a few age-old hockey debates with Toronto Maple Leafs forward Zach Hyman. The debate becomes quite personal for Jesse as he polls the crowd on whether hockey pants go on before skates, or the other way around.
“Escapades of a Beer League Hockey Team” The BarDown beer league hockey team does what no beer-league hockey team has done before… bringing out 1,000 pucks for pre-game warm-ups. Perhaps there was a reason why no team has ever done this before?
The camaraderie continues as Corwin McCallum helps fellow teammate D.Z. tape his stick, but does so with 100 rolls of tape. (Another spoiler alert… it’s VERY heavy).
“Going BarDown – Hockey Pranks” The BarDown beer league hockey team returns as they try out a few new hockey pranks on teammate Jesse Pollock. The episode also includes the BarDownskis attempting to eat 100 fast-food burgers as a pre-game meal. Not for the faint of heart!
“How Hard Is It to Pull a Gretzky Rookie Card?” A mint condition, Wayne Gretzky rookie card is a coveted prize for any sports fanatic’s card collection – but exactly how hard is it to find one? The squad attempts to track down this prized hockey possession, and discovers just how much it might cost. (Spoiler alert… it’s not cheap).
“NHL Expansion Quiz and T.J. Rogers in a Skateboard Shootout” NHL legend and Hall of Famer Teemu Selanne becomes the very first guest contestant in a BarDown tag-team quiz, testing the team’s knowledge on all things NHL expansion.
The episode also features professional skateboarder T.J. Rogers facing the BarDownskis in a new kind of shootout challenge… a skateboard street hockey challenge!
“NHL Mascots Quiz and Ice Cube Judges Retro Logos” Everyone loves a good old skill-testing quiz, but how impressive is your knowledge of NHL mascots? Luca Celebre tests the BarDown team’s expertise of anthropomorphic animals and personified objects from around the league.
Then, hip-hop icon, actor, writer, and founder of The BIG3 Basketball League Ice Cube stops by the BarDown studios to discuss which retro NHL logos he would actually consider wearing on a hat.
“Sports Video Games Debates” The BarDown squad debates the Top 10 sports video games of all time. Daniel Zakrzewski (D.Z.) highlights the history of what many fans consider to be “the golden age of hockey video games”, and how we got to the point where 2K, Sony, and Midway fled the market.
Also from BarDown Studios, DIGITAL SPORTSCENTRE continues weekdays at 3 p.m. ET on TSN’s official Instagram story, and BarDown Hockey Talks air every night at 8 p.m. ET via Instagram Live. Fans can tune in to chat about all things hockey with the beloved BarDownskis, alongside guests including NHLers Jordan Binnington, Tyson Jost, Marcus Foligno, and more!
