By Angelo Restivo — Production Director
Buffalo has become one of the major sports fandom hubs in the United States harboring a passionate fanbase that’s active at all times of the year. The NHL draft perfectly represented that. An ultimate culmination of fans from different cities across the U.S and Canada — and I had the honor of covering it.
When I first applied for media credentials the league took months to reach out. I began to think that we were not going to be able to make an impact on the college radio world. But two weeks before the draft we finally got approved. It became a rush to gather equipment and people, leading to our initial group of six, which then fell to just two. We remained determined to make the best content possible.
Noah Randall and I worked on this entire project with no money. We stayed at my house overnight an hour away from Buffalo, ate dominos and media room brownies, and drove my uncle’s truck both days of the draft. With no distinct way of reaching out for help, we had to come up with our own strategies with one mantra “it’s a great day to have a great day.”
The first day of the draft was scary. We got to the arena, received our credentials and had one question, “what now?” After walking around for quite a while we discovered a game, shoot a puck into nine distinct spots. I had never shot a puck before. Nonetheless I picked up the stick went 5/9. Then it hit me — if we had fun our audience would have fun.
We spoke to fans, watched the players enter on the red carpet, and met Bardown’s own Jesse Pollock. Noah had known about Jesse for a long time, but when I heard his name I thought, “who?” After speaking with Pollock, we entered the media room and discovered something we could never have imagined, we were going to talk to the players. That day we spoke to the #1 overall pick, both Sabres first round picks, and multiple players from nearly every team.
The second day just felt like business as usual. We knew what we were doing and we executed. After a while though, one sound piqued my interest. My own voice. I don’t mean the type of situation where you’re just sick of hearing yourself talk, but my voice was coming from the phones of journalists who had been in this industry for years, some before I was even born. This is the exact moment Noah and I knew we had succeeded. My only regret of the day was not talking to a player from my mother’s hometown team, the Tampa Bay Lightning.
This experience shaped me in many ways. It gave me growth and leadership experience that one could only dream of. My utmost gratitude must be expressed to WSBU, Noah Randall, and most importantly my mother who gave me the strength to achieve my dreams. If there is one message I could express to those who look to insert themselves into the wild world of sports media, it is that everyday is a great day to have a great day.
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