Are commentators remote from event bad?

I was watching some of the NHL Premiere from Finland and Sweden, and I noticed that some of the commentary could not have been there. Pierre McGuire was on both TSN broadcasts, and I'm pretty sure that was the same play-by-play guy calling it. The Versus coverage sounded like it was remote as a couple of time Dave Strader seemed to not quite know what was going on, or the exact time left.

I am not saying it is definitely bad to be calling an event remotely, but I am concerned. What kind of a feed are the broadcasters getting? Is it the same thing I am seeing? Doesn't that limit them to the things that happen away from the shot being shown? I know when I go to a hockey game, I see much more of what's going on. That's not just the play, but things like players going off injured or for equipment issues, seeing things going on behind the play, and so on.

The first I recall really seeing this was in 2008 for the Olympics in China. For some sports (like table tennis), they were definitely getting used to it, and I recall some comments being made. Next I remember watching the FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa. There I would have really preferred for the commentators to be there. I have found a lot of direction of soccer game coverage to be poor. (Too many "hero" shots and not focusing on the play are my two biggest complaints.) In that case, if they're remote, they're left in basically the same boat I am in trying to figure out what happened when something significant happened. Were they there, they could potentially see the bigger picture better.

I also fear that if the commentators are remote that they won't be able to get a feel for the crowd - what the mood/energy is like. If they don't have that feel, they can't convey that.

What will happen with the meetings with the coaching staff and players for the game? Someone else will have to do that pregame scouting, or will some productions going for being cheap just skip that, thinking it's unimportant?