Courtesy South Coast Today

(July 15, 2009) The National Hockey League, at 2 p.m. today, will present Fenway Park as the site for the next Winter Classic, the New Year's Day outdoor game in which the Boston Bruins will host the Philadelphia Flyers. But beyond Fenway's infamous visitor's clubhouse and the matter of where the Flyers will strap on pads, Tuesday's announcement that Bruins games are moving to "98.5 The Sports Hub" shouldn't get lost in foul territory.

From a clerical standpoint, the Bruins extended their deal with CBS Radio Boston, the owner of WBZ 1030. But the move is part of an Aug. 13 media shift with three significant ramifications: 1. WBCN, the 41-year-old "Rock of Boston," will go off the air while Mix 98.5 programming moves to 104.1 — BCN will exist online and on HD radio; 2. the Patriots and Bruins join a new all-sports format on 98.5; 3. Sports Radio WEEI (850 AM, 103.7 FM) will have its most viable competition yet.

The Sports Hub's won't be the first attempt by a rival signal to compete with WEEI since 850 gained sports-talk traction in synch with the mid-1990s rise of Patriots via the Bob Kraft ownership.

Although 1510 The Zone was the Celtics' flagship for awhile, its toned-down brand of sports talk couldn't overcome the weight of rights fees and big salaries for hosts Sean McDonough and Eddie Andelman. The Zone pounced on the conflict between the Boston Globe and WEEI, but even filling the airwaves with a formidable assemblage of accomplished journalists did not result in compelling radio.

Meanwhile, WEEI drive-time host Glen Ordway developed personalities that would lead to celebrity for guest hosts and callers alike. By surrounding himself with volatile personalities bent on verbal volleys bordering on mayhem, Ordway was able to step back from being the controversial opinion maker and instead put on his top hat as ring master and voice of reason.

More recently, 890 ESPN entered the fray, but its attempt to compete with WEEI via Michael Felger became a financial hardship mirroring what 1510 went through. Felger eventually went back to WEEI, which has the Red Sox and, until now, the inside track on access to the Patriots.

So what does 98.5 plan for its all-sports format besides an FM signal far stronger than that of AMs 1510 or 890? Will it try, as 1510 did, to try to send a "we're different from EEI" message? Will sports talk be the same thing, but with Felger and Gary Tanguay instead of Ordway and Pete Sheppard, the Bruins instead of the Celtics and the Patriots instead of the Red Sox? Does offering Pepsi instead of Coke guarantee a market split?

As Patriots flagship, 98.5 The Sports Hub will likely start by leveraging itself ahead of WEEI as the favored outlet for regular appearances by Bill Belichick and prominent Patriots. Business strategy will also trickle down to hockey fans hungry for radio coverage reflecting the Bruins' rising profile.

Pregame talk, postgame talk, Phil Kessel talk, Winter Classic talk. It's all in play now that the Bruins are finally on a level playing field.

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