The Chicago Blackhawks are alienating fans with their current television problems

The Chicago Blackhawks' problems getting their regionally televised games to fans continues on.

Whether the Chicago Sports Network finally gets on Comcast's Xfinity, fans are continuing to feel alienated by the franchise.

Owner Danny Wirtz has been making the rounds trying to explain how Comcast, Hulu, and Fubo are not seeing the value in carrying the CHSN. Instead of granting interviews, he should just accept that Comcast is not budging off of their offer and take the deal.

With every game that passes where the majority of Hawks fans cannot view the contests, the more it continues to alienate a loyal fan base.

It seems like ever since the Kyle Beach scandal broke, it has been one bad public relations hit after another for the Hawks. If it is not discovering former team leaders covering up an alleged sexual assault by the team's former video coach toward Beach in 2010, it is the club being sued by a former consultant for fraud and sexual harassment.

The fan base also had to endure a very emotional parting of ways between the franchise and beloved icons Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews in 2023.

Add in that the franchise is off to a 1-2-1 start and lots of losing that has taken place over the years, well, it is not a good look for the team to keep absorbing so many PR blows.

The Hawks' partial ownership of CHSN has been nothing short of a disaster since it was announced this was the direction the team was taking with their television broadcasts.

Now, the Blackhawks cannot be blamed for YouTube TV refusing to carry regional sports networks. NBC has been wanting to get out to the RSN business recently, so joining up with the Chicago Bulls and White Sox to create CHSN was a response to that. It is hard to be too upset with the Hawks for that decision.

However, the Hawks could have also joined up with the Chicago Cubs on their Marquee Sports Network and avoided this to begin with. The Blackhawks could have also gone it alone with the distribution of their broadcasts.

Instead, they are in this mess now where fans grow tired that they cannot watch their Hawks from the comfort of their homes. This almost feels like the days of when Bill Wirtz was the owner and refused to put home games on television. The only difference is road games are now not available to most of the fan base.

Now, there are workarounds, such as switching to DirecTV, which is carrying CHSN. Those living in Chicago, Rockford, or South Bend can also use antennas to get the over-the-air signal. The problem with that is some are having trouble getting the signal depending on where they live. Also, a lot of the audience has grown accustomed to DVR.

This is just another mess for a team that is not putting out a winning product on the ice. It is a self-inflicted one, to boot. You have to wonder how many more of these loyal fans can endure.