Missing in Vancouver

"What would Peter do?" That's what flexible bracelets worn by ABC News staffers said in the months following the untimely death of their leader.

One wonders how the Canadian-born anchor would have handled the awkward moment near the end of last night's colorful Olympic opening pageant when one leg of a tower that was to support the iconic cauldron of flames failed to deploy, leaving Wayne Gretzky's torch with nothing to ignite and his perfect haircut in danger of an unplanned singe.

Matt/Bob, the pleasant interchangeable NBC talking head(s) seemed perplexed; no doubt, their earphones were buzzing with instructions from unseen directors. As the seconds ticked away, Bob/Matt stumbled through a touch of irony, a hint of criticism, and even a moment of concern for the host committee's plight. His/their relief was apparent when The Great One sparked the faux cauldron via a rising streak of lighter fluid along one of the three remaining legs and trotted out of the arena to downtown Vancouver to ignite the obligatory outdoor cauldron.

But for a brief photo of P.J. in a kaleidoscopic Canadian travelogue delivered by his surviving friend/competitor Tom Brokaw during NBC's 90-minute run-up to the actual opening ceremony, one missed hearing/seeing him -- especially when a glitch arose. How might he have reacted? What might he have said? No one loved Canada more than Peter Jennings; no one would have been prouder to have been in that building; and, I am certain, there would have been no hesitation in his presentation of what was happening -- or not happening.

Of course, the errant cauldron leg was of manifest insignificance when measured against the tragic death earlier yesterday of a young Georgian luge athlete. One likes to think that PJ would have made that comparison immediately with the perspective and grace that defined his work.