Calgary Flames play-by-play announcer Peter Loubardias, whose style seemed to grate on certain fans, has been fired by Rogers Sportsnet after three years, a move that left the 45-year-old “devastated,” “heartbroken” and “hurt.”

Vicki Hall of the Calgary Herald spoke to Loubardias as he traveled from Calgary to Saskatchewan.

“There’s probably not going to be any answers waiting for me in the Queen City,” Loubardias said. “But I need to get away from Calgary to clear my head.

“I’m devastated. Heartbroken. Hurt.”

Rogers Sportsnet has not announced a reason for the termination of Loubardias, who was also the voice of the Memorial Cup.

“We work in a business that is unbelievably subjective,” Loubardias said. “I have great respect for people in business and the people in the top positions. It’s a business, and they have to make the decisions they feel are going to make their network better going forward.”

With the start of the 2011 Masters Tournament today, DirecTV’s coverage officially kicks into full swing.

Leading up to today, DirecTV ran the 2010 Official Masters film and 2011 Masters Preview show on The 101 Network. Starting later this afternoon, you can watch all the action from Augusta National on channels 701-707, which combines ESPN’s and CBS Sports’ live coverage.

Below is a list of new features for this year: Read more

Aspiring sports writers take note: mediabistro.com’s “Intro to Sports Journalism” class starts today!

Use the code “SPORT50″ when signing up and save $50 on the course.

The class, taught by SI.com columnist Jeff Pearlman, will teach you what types of stories outlets and editors want to read, how to pitch, and the best places to break into the business, among other skills.

More info, including how to sign up, is available here.

Fox Sports Net and the World Poker Tour have inked a three-season deal that will keep the poker program on the RSNs.

The agreement will see WPT events airing Sunday nights at 8 and 11 PM, with replays throughout the week. The two companies are also partnering on a promotional campaign that will drive viewers to the programming during the season.

There are also some new additions to the telecasts:

Kimberly Lansing will be joining the program as anchor, joining play-by-play commentators Vince Van Patten and Mike Sexton.

There will also be a new analyst, to-be-named, who will host a recurring segment called “The Raw Deal.”

“FSN is excited to remain the home for The World Poker Tour, which continues to deliver great ratings for our affiliates. WPT is one of the most respected brands in poker and will only grow stronger with the tremendous innovations they are bringing to the show in the new season,” said FSN VP of Programming David Sussin. “Our network has long been a showcase for the best poker on television, and we are very happy WPT will continue that tradition.”

While the World Poker Tour was an innovator in the televised poker field, the World Series of Poker on ESPN has largely taken over the reigns as the top poker programming on TV. Still it was the WPT that first put small cameras in the table to show players’ cards, changing how the game was televised forever.

The full release, with more details including a new stop on the tour, is after the jump.

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Versus, which has been the national home of NHL games since 2005, plans to add more games to its lineup this season. According to Tripp Mickle in today’s Sports Business Daily, Versus will televise an additional 13 NHL games this season, bringing the total to 78.

The Comcast-owned network plans to complement its hockey game coverage by adding 30 “Hockey Central” pregame shows before the NHL telecasts.

When it acquired the rights to NHL games, Versus was betting that it would be proving its worth as a viable competitor to ESPN and Turner Sports once Major League Baseball and National Basketball Association rights came up. Of course, the deep pockets and even deeper relationships between Turner, ESPN and the leagues nipped that fear in the bud.

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