There’s been a lot of talk about what role newspapers will serve as people get information from the Web.

One area particularly vulnerable is sports because who really needs to read about a game 12 hours after it happened. If you want to know whether the undefeated New England Patriots beat the undefeated Dallas Cowboys yesterday, the Web will provide the answer instantly (the Patriots thrashed the ‘Boys).

In the newspaper world, covering sports has always been a pretty cushy assignment. You get to watch sports for a living, the hours are pretty good if you’re nocturnal, and there’s plenty of travel involved, particularly for beat writers. Of course, sending a writer(s) on the road can be expensive, and often the coverage isn’t superior or that much different from what you’d get from a wire service such as AP or Reuters.

As a result, many newspapers are questioning whether it makes economic sense to send a local reporter on the road at all. The latest newspaper to decide it’s not worth it is the struggling San Francisco Chronicle, which has purchased the contract of long-time San Jose Sharks beat writer Ross McKeon. The move is part of the SF Chronicle’s plan to eliminate 100 of its 400 editorial positions this year. (Hat tip to Julia Dominic)

At this point, it’s not clear how the SF Chronicle will now cover hockey but if I were a sports beat reporter, I’d be watching things pretty carefully. If any part of the newspaper business is ripe for change, it’s the sports section. If game coverage is a widely-available commodity, what should sports sections become? Do they focus on features, highlighting the individuals and trends rather than the games? Should sports sections be embracing the Web and taking advantage of video?

The future is unclear but change is coming.