Don't put away the whistle

One of the worries when a former player migrates to the broadcast booth is that he or she will develop "ex-athlete syndrome," which is a chronic inability to criticize players.

When NESN added former NHL referee Paul Stewart to its rotation of Bruins studio analysts, viewers expected the same outspoken guy who was a welcome guest on talk radio. He was regarded as somewhat of a renegade in that he was comfortable dealing with the media and was forthright.

So it was disappointing when Stewart reneged Saturday night when all around him -- broadcasters Dale Arnold and Gord Kluzak and studio host Tom Caron -- were begging him to weigh in on a pair of controversial penalty calls during the Bruins-Canadiens game.

The plays in question: The penalty shot called against the Bruins 26 seconds into the game, and the checking-from-behind/automatic game misconduct against Joe Thornton midway through the third period.

With viewers all over New England screaming "That's no penalty shot!" on the first call, and "You've got to be kidding!" on the second, Stewie came up with "ex-ref syndrome" on a night when NESN seemingly had the right guy in the house.

Kluzak was looking for a yes or no answer to the question, "Were they good calls?" When such a response wasn't forthcoming from Stewart, Caron noted, "This guy is ready for the Democratic convention."

Instead, Stewart went into education mode, giving the new criteria for penalty calls and deferring to referee Kerry Fraser's "1,500 games of experience." The non-answers frustrated viewers, his broadcasting colleagues . . . and, yes, himself.

Stewart was uncharacteristically flummoxed yesterday when discussing the calls.

"I probably wouldn't have called a penalty shot on the play, and I called a lot of them in my time," he said.

On the second, he said, "My gut reaction was that it was a minor [penalty] at best."

That being said, Stewart, in checking with league officials, learned that commissioner Gary Bettman had sent out a letter in the wake of the Todd Bertuzzi suspension, mandating that officiating crews protect players.

"I erred in not saying that," said Stewart, who also said -- in so many words -- that he's trying to learn the TV rulebook for his new roles, both on NESN and as director of the Bruins Foundation. "As I said to Gordie, `It's not my job to rate the referees.' Plus, I'm afraid of saying something that the league will fine the Bruins for if they consider me speaking for the team," he said, a reference to his "day job" with the team.

Suggestion: Call them as you see them and let the chips fall. It's always worked out in the past.

Pinch hitter

When the baseball season begins, Caron will start out as the NESN pregame and postgame studio host, working with analysts Dennis Eckersley, Jim Rice, Bob Tewksbury, and Sam Horn. Eric Frede will assume Caron's duties at the ballpark, working on the pregame show, doing the fan-in-the-stands bits, and handling postgame interviews on the field and in the locker room . . . NESN is planning a 12-hour day of coverage Sunday around the Bruins' final regular-season game in New Jersey (1 p.m.) and the Sox-Orioles opener at Camden Yards (8 p.m) . . . Kristen Mastroianni is host for the pilot episode of a Boston College-backed show, "Eagle Insider," that will air tonight on NESN at 6 and 10. If the show gets picked up, she'll be the host, but working under her married name, Kristen Pascucci. The show is the creation of executive producer Tim Egan of Videolink. The pilot has reports on BC's winter sports, a one-on-one with hockey coach Jerry York, plus Eagle alums Dan Koppen (Patriots center) and a fellow named Flutie who was scrimmaging with the women's basketball team . . . The Globe's Nick Cafardo and Michael Holley will work Thursday's "Sports Plus" baseball preview show to be taped at The Place at 7 and air on NESN at 10, following Bruins-Capitals . . . HBO's "On the Record with Bob Costas" returns for a fourth 12-week season, with the first 45-minute show set for Friday night at 11.

Ready for football

The NFL Network, still a rumor to those of us without DirecTV, is cranking up its programming. First, actual games begin Saturday at 8 p.m. with same-day coverage of the NFL Europe opener between Amsterdam and Frankfurt. Second, classic telecasts begin next Monday with two-hour replays of games from the NFL archives. The Patriots will be featured on Monday, May 10, (a 2001 game vs. San Diego) and the following Sunday (a 1992 game vs. the Jets). Third, an eight-part "How They Were Built" series begins next Tuesday at 8 with the AFC East . . . Mike Hall, winner of ESPN's "Dream Job," answered five questions correctly on "SportsCenter" Sunday night, each one increasing his salary by $5,000 from a $70,000 base. He learned immediately about life in Bristol, Conn., as he was put right to work on last night's early and late "SportsCenter." . . . If you didn't sleep too late this morning, MLB's season opener between the Yankees and Devil Rays in Tokyo began at 5 a.m. on ESPN . . . And if you feel cursed, ESPN has a hour on the "curses" surrounding the Sox and Cubs Sunday at 1 p.m. Boston-based comedian Lenny Clarke is host of "The Babe and the Billy Goat: Reserve the Curse?"

Bill Griffith's e-mail address is griffith@globe.com