FSN Pittsburgh targets Youngstown

By Tom Williams

For 14 years, Time Warner cable-TV subscribers in Youngstown have survived without Fox Sports Pittsburgh, the regional cable channel that is home to the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins.

FSN Pittsburgh executives hope that’s about to change. The cable channel, which carries at least 190 games per year that aren’t available to other channels, has launched a campaign urging Pirates and Penguins fans in Youngstown who don’t have access to games shown by FSN Pittsburgh to make their voices heard.

The campaign has included newspapers ads encouraging fans without access to FSN Pittsburgh to go to two Web sites: getthepenguins.com and getthepirates.com, or make phone calls (1-800-700-4FSN) asking Time Warner to add the channel.

This week, FSN Pittsburgh is taking the campaign to the streets — specifically Wick Avenue and Front Street.

Thursday at noon, FSN Pittsburgh officials will be in attendance when the 2010 Pirates Caravan makes its annual visit to the Butler Institute of American Art for its annual luncheon. Among the Pirates who will be promoting the upcoming season are Manager John Russell, outfielder Andrew McCutcheon and President Frank Coonelly.

On Friday, FSN Pittsburgh has teamed up with the Youngstown Phantoms to sponsor an autograph-signing appearance by Penguins forward Tyler Kennedy.

Kennedy will be at the Covelli Centre from 5-7 p.m. to sign autographs for fans with tickets to the 7:15 p.m. Phantoms game against Sioux Falls.

In Game 6 of last June’s NHL Stanley Cup Final, Kennedy scored the winning goal in the Penguins’ 2-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings at Mellon Arena. Three nights later, the Pens defeated the Red Wings, 2-1, to win the franchise’s third Stanley Cup Championship.

“We consider Youngstown to be part our core market,” Penguins president David Morehouse said. “There’s a natural connection between Pittsburgh and Youngstown and we know many fans there have a passion for Pittsburgh sports.”

Morehouse was referring to Edward J. DeBartolo, the Youngstown businessman who was owner of the Penguins when they won their first Cup in 1991.

“It’s a natural place for us to be interested in,” Morehouse said.

In 1996, FSN Pittsburgh was created when the Fox sports network absorbed KBL, the previous cable-TV home for Pirates and Penguins games.

In recent years, FSN Pittsburgh has broadcast 120 Pirates games per season (out of 162 games) and 70 Penguins games (out of 82). The other Penguins’ games are carried on NBC or Versus, the NHL’s national cable-TV outlet.

Armstrong, who has Mahoning County’s most cable-TV subscribers, has carried Fox Sports Pittsburgh since the channel was created. Armstrong, which services Boardman, Austintown, Canfield and Poland, also carries NHL Network as part of a High Definition package and Versus as a digital channel.

Time Warner carries Versus and NHL Network on a digital sports tier.

Armstrong and Time Warner carry Fox Sports Ohio, the regional home for the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers and NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets, and Sports Time Ohio, the regional home for the Cleveland Indians.

Because of NHL rules, Blue Jackets regional telecasts are not permitted to be shown in Mahoning County because it is part of the Penguins’ exclusive market.

Coonelly said he’s received many e-mails and phone calls from frustrated Pirates fans.

“In the places where our games aren’t carried, Youngstown, by far, is the most vocal,” Coonelly said.

Heidi Mock, Time Warner Cable Director of Communications, said her system does not carry FSN Pittsburgh “due to the cost of programming that would ultimately affect all of its customers.”

That reason puzzles Morehouse and Coonelly since Time Warner is a much larger corporation than Armstrong.

FSN Ohio and FSN Pittsburgh sometimes duplicate programming. For instance, both channels will show the same college women’s basketball games tonight (Arizona State-Arizona and Duke-Maryland).

Mock says hockey fans can see NHL games on NBC, Versus and NHL Network. However, Time Warner subscribers are limited to 12 Penguins games out of the 82 regular-season games.

NHL Network showed Thursday’s Washington Capitals-Penguins game but the telecast was blacked out in the Penguins’ market.

FSN Pittsburgh has access to all Penguins’ games in the first two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs except those covered nationally by NBC or Versus. The conference finals and Stanley Cup Final are all national broadcasts on NBC or Versus.

FSN Pittsburgh’s hockey telecasts are extremely popular. Ted Black, FSN Pittsburgh General Manager, said Pens games are averaging an 8 rating, the highest for a NHL team in the US. (Buffalo is second with a 6.)

Last spring when the Penguins ousted the Capitals in the conference semifinals, the Game 7 telecast received a 24.97 rating in Pittsburgh (a record for all Fox regional channels).

williams@vindy.com