Well, I can’t say I’ve ever had a blog before but I’ll try to check in here throughout the season.
If you’ve ever wondered who I am and how I became the color commentator, this blog is for you.
I grew up in Fridley, a northern suburb of Minneapolis and starting watching sports very young. My interest went to hockey around age 6, mainly because all my friends were playing it. I was fortunate to have supportive parents who took me around to all my games from squirt all the way through midgets (what is now Junior Golds.) I never did make the high school team, though I did try out and came close a couple of times. In the end, I think that was a good thing because our high school team never did win much and I was able to get a ton of playing time in midgets. I continued to play in intramurals in college (there was no club team then) and still play in city league to this day. Hockey is my favorite sport, having been a huge North Stars fan growing up and now following the Wild. I’ve also been a rapid Vikings fan all of my life, as you may be able to tell whenever you hear Schultzie and I talk about the NFL. Packer fan and Viking fan makes for great radio sometimes!
I started doing both play by play and color for BSU hockey back in 1986 for KBSB FM90 and KBSU-17 when I was a freshman in college. That was the reason I decided to come to Bemidji State and I dove right in. I continued to do that my four years at school, gaining experience that would eventually lead to the current gig. After an internship at KARE-11 and a brief stint at KSAX-TV in Alexandria, I landed a job at R.P. Broadcasting working for what was then only 1 station, Oldies 98. If you were around Bemidji in the 90’s, you may remember me as the kid promoting Oldies 98 on TV in my wrinkled T-shirt. In my time at R.P., we did broadcast a couple of BSU games but it was not a regular thing. I served as promotions director for what ended up to be 3 stations (Mix 103, Real Country 98.3, and Talk Radio 1360) until 1998 when I was hired by Paul Bunyan Telephone (soon to be Paul Bunyan Communications) where I still work today. Ironically, it was just after I left R.P. Broadcasting when I received a call to see if I would be interested in doing the color commentary for BSU hockey because R.P. Broadcasting had signed on to broadcast all the games after they made the jump to Division 1. Apparently, no one on the staff new a whole lot about the sport. What a bonus! I get the best seat in the house and get paid to watch my favorite sport and my favorite college team. (sorry Gophers, you are now 2nd since we’re in the same conference)
I’ve been at it ever since. It’s been a great ride and I am psyched for the next phase of the great tradition known as Beaver hockey. The WCHA is the best college hockey conference in the country and the level of hockey will be incredible. I hope you are able to tune in and join us for the journey. We can’t guarantee BSU wins, but we can guarantee a high quality broadcast with a lot of fun thrown in.
Lastly, if you were curious, they call me Biss….not to be confused with another word that may sound the same. It’s been my nickname as long as I can remember. It’s my last name shortened, not very original but it sure has stuck.
Till next time
Brian Bissonette