Talking with Ross Greenburg, NHL documentary producer, on Darryl Sutter, HBO vs. EPIX, and more

From its first episode in 2010, HBO’s “24/7 Road to the NHL Winter Classic” was appointment viewing. In an age when athletes are often guarded and impersonal in the public eye, the award-winning series gained a huge audience by providing genuine, entertaining windows into the lives of those on the game’s biggest stage.

The documentary’s widespread popularity made last September’s news all the more surprising. After three successful years of production, HBO and the NHL parted ways -- creating a substantial void in hockey media, one thought difficult (if not impossible) to adequately fill.
Then, EPIX -- a new, relatively unknown network -- swooped in.

EPIX and the NHL joined forces when Ross Greenburg, a former HBO Sports president who oversaw the first season of “24/7,” signed on to be the executive producer. Although many viewers felt lukewarm about the transition, Greenburg’s presence helped subdue concerns, as did the fact that he brought many HBO employees along with him.

And so far, the new programs have been received well. Greenburg and EPIX did a fine job with this season’s “Road to the NHL Winter Classic.” While it didn’t perfectly emulate the show’s older versions, it certainly accomplished its goals.

Now, the same group is composing a four-segment doc for the upcoming outdoor game between the Los Angeles Kings and San Jose Sharks, titled “Road to the NHL Stadium Series,” which premiered last week and continued on Tuesday night. The final two episodes will air on Feb. 17 and 24th at 10 p.m. ET.

Greenburg was gracious enough to talk about what it’s like to work with an upstart network, Darryl Sutter’s personality, California hockey and more.

SB Nation: Thanks for taking some time to chat. With the first two episodes in the books, are you happy with what “Road to the NHL Stadium Series” has accomplished so far?

Ross Greenburg: I am. We’re hitting it hard and in stride. I’m glad we had the four [“Road to the NHL Winter Classic”] shows earlier. It’s all the same crew, so it was nice to pick up here with no kind of training wheels attached. We just went right at it. Both teams have been very cooperative, and we’re on our way.

With San Jose, I think we’ve opened people’s eyes to [Joe] Pavelski and [Brent] Burns and [Joe] Thornton and Todd MacLellan. I think we’re introducing them to the American public in many ways. The L.A. Kings of course are star-studded, but I don’t know how many people got to know Drew Doughty, or [Anze] Kopitar, so we’re having fun with that.

SBN: Do you believe there are added challenges at EPIX that didn’t exist at HBO?

RG: Actually, there is no real change on the creative [side]. EPIX is open to tough language, and we’re able to portray the teams, the players and the coaches the way they are on a daily basis with no real censorship. That helps a lot, because if you’re in this kind of show, you need that kind of flexibility.

In terms of distribution, we’re seeing an uptick in getting the shows out to the American public. The live stream on NHL.com and EPIXHD.com opens this series up to anyone who has a computer or a tablet or a phone. And that, I think, is the new world we live in. I salute EPIX for wanting to get the word out on the show and for using this as kind of a launching pad.

It’s not a challenge, but a blessing.

SBN: Yeah, it’s nice to be able to access the show without paying a dime. Has this freedom kept ratings from dropping off substantially?

RG: I think the numbers are fairly similar [to past seasons]. EPIX doesn’t have the subscriber base that HBO does, but if you add in all the extra eyeballs off the Internet, you’re getting similar numbers, I believe. All the colleges, the kids, they go right to the Internet, and they’re all able to watch it. No subscription needed.

SBN: Do you feel as if the final product has changed since moving to EPIX?

RG: Not in my mind. I’ll let everyone else be the judge, but I’m as proud of this product as anything I’ve put on the air. I think this team has put out a quality series. It wasn’t around for the last few years at HBO, but I would measure this up with our initial series with the Caps and the Penguins.

SBN: It must be a huge help to have lots of your old crew at HBO working on this new project.

RG: They’ve been great. Aaron Cohen is one of the best writers in all of sports television. We’ve worked together for a lot of years. He’s a special person as well as writer. Mark Greenberg [EPIX CEO and President] and I go way back. We have a lot of cameramen that we’ve used in the past. Great editors who have not only worked at HBO but Showtime, too, on the “Total Access” series.

It’s fun getting a good, classy group together and putting together the kind of television we’re used to.

SBN: Do you tape a lot of footage that’s too inappropriate to air, even with the kind of leeway not found at cable networks?

RG: You bet. You’re seeing the “Walt Disney” version of this show. We’re taking out plenty. We can’t cross the line, and we can’t become the comedian that looks for the dirty joke just to get a laugh. So yeah, we’re taking out a ton of language and moments that are not made for any television. You follow anyone around long enough and you’re going to get stuck in those situations.

The coaches are getting a kick out of it. They warned me. In our meetings before we started, they said, “Hey, we curse a lot.” We said, “Bring it on. We’re not going to embarrass you. We’re not going to abuse the privilege of putting the microphone on you. It’s not going to happen.”

SBN: Most of the teams in the Winter Classics have been from large, traditional hockey markets in the North. From your perspective, how do these California cities stack up?

RG: It’s interesting. First of all, we have the Stanley Cup champions from two of the last three years, so that doesn’t hurt. They have a national presence. Even though they weren’t one of the Original Six, Gretzky introduced the great game of hockey to California. They’ve taken it to another level over the last few years.

And San Jose is a great market for hockey. We showcased the Sharks practice facility, which has become a haven for teams from around the state. They all come there for games, tournaments, practices. It really is a hotbed.

We want to show people how that state is at the forefront of the spread of the sport. We did that right from the top of the first episode, and we did that in Episode 2. There’s been this migration of hockey to California, and it’s fun. It’s fun to document; it’s fun to see the enthusiasm of the fan bases there ... They sold out Levi’s Stadium in about 48 hours. That didn’t necessarily happen elsewhere in the other outdoor games across the country.

SBN: Darryl Sutter is one of the most entertaining people in the game. What’s your impression of him?

RG: Personally, I’ve really enjoyed the time I’ve spent with Darryl Sutter. Last year we did “NHL Revealed,” and we covered him and his team, and I turned around and met with him in November about this series. He couldn’t have been more gracious to me.

He’s a character. He’s a sly fox, too. He knows exactly who he is. He knows exactly what he wants out of his team and how he’s going to handle the media. I think that’s coming through on the show. I think Episode 2 has some interesting moments with the media. He is who he is, he doesn’t hide behind anything or anyone, and he’s won two of the last three Cups, so it’s hard to argue with his success.

SBN: My favorite part of the first segment was the focus on Darryl’s son, Chris. His interactions with the players are fantastic and seem to bring out the best in everyone. How has it been to work with him?

RG: Chris is such a breath of fresh air. We knew going in that he had a real special relationship with the Kings. As Doughty said, he perks up the locker room when he gets up and speaks. We marvel at how confident he is. He’s such a special kid, and I salute Darryl and his wife for bringing us someone so special.

It’s nice to see that relationship and to also know parents with special needs children love them as much as anyone else. We had the good fortune to do this with Barry Trotz and [his son Nolan] and we’re fortunate to do it now with Darryl Sutter and Chris.

SBN: What kind of future do you hope for EPIX and this program?

RG: I think this program will hopefully be a mainstay, because they see the success of it. In many ways, EPIX takes me back to my early days at HBO. It’s grown because of the programming we put on the air. If you put it on, they will come. That’s the whole point. What was AMC before “Mad Men”? So, I think this is one of many shows they showcase as their product to try to attract viewers.

That’s what the business is about. I think you’ll not only see this show stick around, but I would look forward to a lot more documentaries on EPIX. We’re constantly looking for more sports programming to put on. It’s fun to be there at the dawn of a new network, because you’re able to build something based on the special programming.

Episode 3 of “Road to the NHL Stadium Series” airs next Tuesday at 10 p.m. EST. The first two episodes can be streamed at EPIXHD.com.