Overview

• During ABC’s Padres–Cubs Wild Card broadcast on Oct. 1, Kevin Brown introduced an Oct. 7 NHL Opening Night tripleheader promo and asked for Ben McDonald’s take.
• McDonald answered, “There is zero chance I’ll be watching,” after Brown joked that he would be watching because he works for ESPN.
• Brown ended the moment by saying, “We’ll be watching — thanks for the ratings,” as Jessica Mendoza laughed.
• ESPN hockey announcer John Buccigross later mocked the remark on X, noting that “zero” also matched McDonald’s career postseason innings.
• The same NHL promo aired during Red Sox–Yankees with no follow-up commentary, and no ESPN discipline or internal statement has been reported.