Watch CBS News

Montreal Paper: Michael Felger 'The Village Idiot'

BOSTON (CBS) - The Boston-Montreal rivalry has been taken to new heights since Zdeno Chara checked Max Pacioretty into the turnbuckle March 8th at the Bell Centre.

Players are not the only ones taking shots at each other now-a-days, with the media now going toe to toe. First there was the 98.5 The Sports Hub's Felger and Mazz vs. The Ric Peterson Show on CJAD in Montreal simulcast, giving new meaning to the term "yahoo-ism" and the phrase "time oot." The talk back did not end politely to say the least.

Listen: Felger and Mazz Simulcast With CJAD in Montreal

If Michael Felger did not make enough friends north of the border with the simulcast, he now has Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette terming him Boston's "village idiot."

Read: Mark Recchi: Canadiens "Were Trying To Get Zdeno Chara Suspended"

Hickey caught the Felger and Mazz show Wednesday afternoon as he made the trek from Montreal to Boston, catching Mark Recchi's call to the show when they discussed Pacioretty's injury and the possibility the Canadiens "embellished" it, trying to get Chara suspended. This prompted Hickey to take some shots at Villain #2 in Montreal (Chara of course being #1) Thursday morning.

The intro to the segment promised "fact not fiction," which told me that the guys at 98.5 The Sports Hub don't understand the concept of sports talk radio. It's all about opinion. If you don't have people expressing opinions and debating the news of the day, it makes for boring radio.Of course, all you have to do is listen to Felger, the village idiot of Boston sports radio, to know that he likes to play fast and loose with the facts.

Felger did recognize that everyone hopes there will be no untoward incidents in a game that is important for both teams as they battle for first place in the Northeast Division.

But the one thing I find disappointing is that Felger questioned the severity of Pacioretty's injury, describing it as an "embellishment," and he got veteran NHLer Mark Recchi to go along with him.Felger stressed that the Canadiens reported that Pacioretty suffered a "severe concussion and a cracked vertebra," but that Pacioretty reported two days later that he wasn't feeling any effects from the concussion.

Did he make a quick recovery? Certainly. Everyone responds differently to hits on the head and there are no guarantees that he won't feel the effects sometime down the line. To suggest it wasn't a severe concussion isn't fact or opinion, it's pure ignorance.

It will be interesting to hear what Felger has to say come 2 p.m. on 98.5 The Sports Hub. If anything, this will just give him more ammo against the Montreal media.

Listen: Pat Hickey Joins Felger and Mazz

And don't forget there is also a hockey game to be played.

Tune in to the Felger and Massarotti show on 98.5 The Sports Hub Monday through Friday from 2-6 p.m.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.