Richard Hodgson is - and always will be - family

Bob McKenzie

TSN Hockey Insider

Follow| Archive

Until we meet again, Rick.

Today, the family and friends of Richard Hodgson will say goodbye to the 36-year-old TSN producer who left us all far too soon when he died suddenly on Friday morning.

Richard's lovely wife Jennie and five-year-old son Rickey will be there, of course, as will the whole Hodgson family.  Richard or Rick - we would call him either depending on the day - has seven brothers and sisters and 10 nieces and nephews.

His TSN family and friends will be there in force, too - honoring and mourning a kind and gentle man who was in so many ways the heart and soul of our network.

So much of everything at TSN ran through Rick.

What makes TSN a special place, certainly for me, is the people I get to work with. Not only are they really great, wonderful people but they're also really great at their job. Richard was the daily double, the exactor, as good as it gets on both counts.

You likely would not recognize him - unless you've seen the TSN Hockey Panel's version of The Hangover with Rick starring in the role of Alan - because he did his work about as far away as one could get from the lights, camera and action of Studio 6. But if you've watched any studio show on TSN -- hockey, football, you name it - you've seen Richard's work.

And, trust me, he was an ace. An unassuming ace, but an ace nonetheless.

There's no need to get too technical here with the background, but here's what you should know. The guys on the panel call for this highlight or that highlight in pretty much a constant state of chaos. We would tell Our Boy Puff - one of Rick's very best friends and another guy who is also an all-world guy and master at what he does - what we want, how we would like it to come together. Puffy would call Rick with the often complicated instructions/details and then Rick and his guys would go to work.

Fast.

Rick commandeered a small two-to-three man, square glass fishbowl work station at the other end of the building from our studio. Often times, there would be so little time to pull it all together but Richard always did. It always made it to air and it was always tremendous.

Puffy to Rick to air; it was like Tinker to Evers to Chance; poetry in motion.

No matter where I was - at home, on the road, in the studio - or when it was - weekday, weekend, day, night - if there was a questionable late hit in the NHL, Richard would be the guy I would email, asking him to tell me how many digital frames, or what fraction of a second, the hit occurred after the release of the puck. I only had to explain the concept once to him. Forever after that, whenever I would email him the request, he already had my answer for me.

That was Rick, always one step ahead.

On Friday afternoon, when Boston's Matt Beleskey hit New York Ranger Derek Stepan, I instinctively went to email Richard to get my fraction. I paused. I momentarily forgot he had died that morning.

So sad.

As much as Rick meant to us at work, his crowning achievement was his role as the TSN newsroom Santa.

Years ago, when the "official" TSN Christmas party ceased to occur for whatever reason, Richard simply went ahead and created his own at a downtown Toronto bar. He loved that bar; he loved that party; he loved getting dressed up in his raggedy ass Santa suit and mostly just loved bringing the TSN newsroom family together.

That party is coming up. I can't really fathom Rick won't be there, because he will, in spirit.

He's going to live on in every one of us who'll be there with him in our hearts, keeping his tradition and his spirit and love of life alive.

The last time I spoke to Richard was last week. It was to help him with some party planning, to assist in making sure that our TSN friends who lost their jobs last month all came to the Christmas party since we didn't really get a chance to give them all a proper send off.

We'll do exactly that today for our dear friend Rick Hodgson, though I'm sad to say I can't be there, at least not in person as I'll be in the U.S.

Those who can be there are encouraged to come as they are, wear a sports jersey if possible. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Rickey J.C. Hodgson Fund.

The memorial service today is at the same Scarborough funeral home where I said goodbye to both my parents and grandparents.

Fitting, I guess, because for me and so many others at TSN, Richard Hodgson is and always will be family.