TSN bids adieu to its top insider

After decades of being synonymous with Canadian hockey, Bob McKenzie is entering what he calls a “soft retirement.” McKenzie, who has been an insider for TSN since 1986, officially retired this week following the NHL’s draft lottery. McKenzie was originally supposed to retire slightly earlier this year, with his contract expiring after the completion of the Stanley Cup Finals (initially slated for June). While McKenzie has bid an “official” farewell, he will still make appearances on TSN for special hockey events such as Trade Deadline Day and the World Juniors.

Hivestack gets $10 million boost

Programmatic OOH specialist Hivestack received CAD $10 million in equity funding from Invetissement Québec to support its global expansion, while also expanding its workforce in its Montreal headquarters. While it will hire across all areas, its strongest focus will be on R&D. Guy LeBlanc, CEO of Invetissement Québec, said in a statement that Hivestack’s work in technology, AI and innovation will play a key role in stimulating the Quebec economy.

CBC takes Family Feud to family game night

CBC, distribution company Fremandle and toy and entertainment giant Spin Master paired with Imagination Games to launch a new Family Feud Canada board game, which is sold exclusively at Walmart Canada stores. The English and French-language game was developed following the successful launch of Family Feud Canada on CBC last fall. Besides meeting performance expectations on linear, averaging 518,000 viewers per episode four nights per week and reaching a total of 2.6 million viewers, the show also received some global notoriety on social media in January due to one contestant’s disastrous-yet-viral sudden death answer. The show, hosted by Gerry Dee, is expected to return this fall with 104 new episodes.