NHL Game of the Week | |
---|---|
Genre | NHL game telecasts |
Presented by | Sean McDonough Ray Ferraro Emily Kaplan Bob Wischusen Ryan Callahan Leah Hextall Mike Monaco A. J. Mleczko Blake Bolden Dave Jackson Steve Levy Mark Messier P. K. Subban John Buccigross Kevin Weekes Arda Ocal |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 15 |
Production | |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 180 minutes or until game ends |
Production company | NBC Sports (2006–2021) ESPN (2021–present) |
Original release | |
Network | NBC ABC ESPN+ |
Release | January 14, 2006 - May 8, 2021 (NBC); November 26, 2021 - present (ABC) |
Related | |
NHL on NBC NHL on ABC |
The National Hockey League Game of the Week is a branding used for regular season National Hockey League weekend games that are typically televised on a national broadcast network in the U.S.
The branding was previously used by NBC on Sunday afternoons, beginning at the weekend of the NFL Conference Championship games when it held NHL broadcast rights between the 2005–06 and 2020–21 seasons. During the 2016–17, NBC began to promote the Star Sunday brand on both the Game of the Week and its Sunday Night Hockey broadcasts on sister cable network NBCSN, focusing primarily on the NHL's star players. Star Sunday featured extensive pre-game, in-game and post-game coverage of each featured player. The first game under the new package featured the New York Rangers and the Detroit Red Wings on January 22, 2017, with Ryan McDonagh and Dylan Larkin the featured players of their respective teams. [1]
Beginning with the 2021–22 season, ABC replaced NBC as the league's network broadcast partner. [2] [3] Since then, ABC has typically aired one game per weekend, usually on Saturday afternoons, beginning in February. Due to the current arrangement of ABC's sports programming being produced and co-branded by ESPN, the broadcasts carry the NHL on ESPN production and branding.
Historically, there was game of the week broadcasts in the past but until NBC Sports took over broadcasting rights to the National Hockey League from ESPN and ABC they were never consistent.
Starting in 2007–08, the most important games on primarily Sundays or Thursdays would be titled NHL on NBC Game of the Week which eventually got moved to only Sundays later that season.
Then as a part of the deal made between NBC and the NHL in 2011–12, the game of the week package would add the NHL Thanksgiving Showdown to its schedule and this would continue until the 2020-21 season. [4] [5]
In March 2021, after nearly 20 years away, ESPN announced it had reacquired broadcasting rights to the NHL and as a part of that deal ABC would take over rights to air the game of the week package. [6] [7] [8] [9]
ABC Hockey Saturday as is would be called would debut on November 26, 2021 with the Thanksgiving Showdown between the New York Rangers and the Boston Bruins. [10]
ABC’s game of the week coverage consists of mostly of either doubleheaders or tripleheaders from Saturday afternoon to night which usually begins at the last weeks of the season which starts with a 30-minute pregame show. [11]
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 13, 2007 | 2 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 5 | Philadelphia | 3 |
Boston | 1 | NY Rangers | 3 | ||
Los Angeles | 5 | St. Louis | 6 | ||
January 28, 2007 | 3:30 P.M. | Colorado | 1 | Detroit | 3 |
Dallas | 1 | Anaheim | 4 | ||
Philadelphia | 2 | Atlanta | 1 | ||
February 11, 2007 | 3:30 P.M. | Colorado | 5 | Dallas | 7 |
Tampa Bay | 4 | New Jersey | 1 | ||
Chicago | 5 | Columbus | 4 | ||
February 18, 2007 | 3:30 P.M. | Washington | 2 | Pittsburgh | 3 |
Chicago | 1 | NY Rangers | 2 | ||
San Jose | 2 | Dallas | 5 | ||
March 4, 2007 | 12:30 P.M. | Colorado | 4 (OT) | Detroit | 3 |
Philadelphia | 3 | Pittsburgh | 4 (SO) | ||
March 11, 2007 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 6 | Detroit | 3 |
Carolina | 1 | NY Rangers | 2 (SO) | ||
March 25, 2007 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 1 | Pittsburgh | 5 |
NY Rangers | 2 (SO) | NY Islanders | 1 | ||
April 1, 2007 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 4 | Columbus | 1 |
6 P.M. | Los Angeles | 2 | San Jose | 6 | |
April 8, 2007 | 1 P.M. | Buffalo | 3 | Philadelphia | 4 |
Chicago | 2 | Dallas | 3 |
Starting this season, NBC aired these Game of the Week games on a national basis, in addition to carrying the national broadcasts of the Winter Classic on New Year's Day and the Stanley Cup Playoffs during the Spring.
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 20, 2008 | 1:30 P.M. | Boston | 3 | NY Rangers | 1 |
February 3, 2008 | 2 P.M. | NY Rangers | 5 | Montreal | 3 |
February 10, 2008 | 1 P.M. | Anaheim | 3 | Detroit | 2 |
February 17, 2008 | 1 P.M. | Detroit | 0 | Dallas | 1 |
March 2, 2008 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 4 | NY Rangers | 5 (SO) |
March 9, 2008 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 4 | Washington | 2 |
March 16, 2008 | 12 P.M. | Philadelphia | 1 | Pittsburgh | 7 |
March 30, 2008 | 3 P.M. | NY Rangers | 1 | Pittsburgh | 3 |
April 6, 2008 | 12:30 P.M. | Chicago | 1 | Detroit | 4 |
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 18, 2009 | 12:30 P.M. | NY Rangers | 0 | Pittsburgh | 3 |
February 8, 2009 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 2 | Pittsburgh | 0 |
February 15, 2009 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 5 | NY Rangers | 2 |
February 22, 2009 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 2 | Washington | 5 |
March 8, 2009 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 3 | NY Rangers | 4 |
March 15, 2009 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 1 | NY Rangers | 4 |
March 22, 2009 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 3 | Pittsburgh | 1 |
April 5, 2009 | 12:30 P.M. | Minnesota | 2 | Detroit | 3 |
April 12, 2009 | 2 P.M. | Detroit | 0 | Chicago | 3 |
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 17, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | Chicago | 4 (SO) | Detroit | 3 |
January 24, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 2 | Philadelphia | 1 |
January 31, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 1 | Pittsburgh | 2 (SO) |
February 7, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 4 | Washington | 5 (OT) |
March 7, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 5 | Chicago | 4 |
March 14, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 4 | Chicago | 3 |
March 21, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | NY Rangers | 1 | Boston | 2 |
April 4, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 3 | Philadelphia | 4 |
April 11, 2010 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 4 (SO) | Washington | 3 |
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 23, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 4 | Chicago | 1 |
February 6, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 0 | Washington | 3 |
February 13, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 2 | Detroit | 4 |
February 20, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 2 | Buffalo | 1 |
Philadelphia | 4 | N.Y. Rangers | 2 | ||
Detroit | 2 (SO) | Minnesota | 1 | ||
3:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 2 | Chicago | 3 (SO) | |
March 6, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 0 | NY Rangers | 7 |
March 13, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | Chicago | 3 | Washington | 4 |
March 20, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | NY Rangers | 5 | Pittsburgh | 2 |
April 3, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | NY Rangers | 3 (SO) | Philadelphia | 2 |
April 10, 2011 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 4 | Chicago | 3 |
The Pittsburgh Penguins had an overall five network TV appearances during this season, making it the first NHL team in Pennsylvania and the first NHL team to have overall five network appearances in a regular season.
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 14, 2012 | 12:30 P.M. | Chicago | 2 | Detroit | 3 (OT) |
January 22, 2012 | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 3 | Pittsburgh | 4 (OT) |
February 12, 2012 | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 2 | NY Rangers | 3 |
February 19, 2012 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 2 | Buffalo | 6 |
San Jose | 2 | Detroit | 3 | ||
St. Louis | 1 | Chicago | 3 | ||
3:30 P.M. | Boston | 0 | Minnesota | 2 | |
March 4, 2012 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 3 | NY Rangers | 4 |
March 11, 2012 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 2 | Pittsburgh | 5 |
March 18, 2012 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 2 | Philadelphia | 3 (OT) |
April 1, 2012 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 6 | Pittsburgh | 4 |
April 7, 2012 | 1 P.M. | Chicago | 3 (SO) | Detroit | 2 |
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 19, 2013 | 3 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 3 | Philadelphia | 1 |
Chicago | 5 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||
January 20, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 2 | Buffalo | 5 |
February 3, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 6 | Washington | 3 |
February 10, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | Los Angeles | 2 | Detroit | 3 |
February 17, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 4 | Buffalo | 3 |
3:30 P.M. | Los Angeles | 2 | Chicago | 3 | |
March 3, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | Chicago | 2 (SO) | Detroit | 1 |
March 10, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | NY Rangers | 4 | Washington | 1 |
March 17, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 1 | Pittsburgh | 2 |
March 31, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | Chicago | 7 | Detroit | 1 |
April 7, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | St. Louis | 1 | Detroit | 0 |
April 14, 2013 | 12:30 P.M. | Chicago | 2 | St. Louis | 0 |
April 21, 2013 | 3 P.M. | New Jersey | 1 | NY Rangers | 4 |
April 27, 2013 | 3 P.M. | 0 | 4 |
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 19, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 2 | Chicago | 3 (SO) |
January 26, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | NY Rangers | 7 | New Jersey | 3 |
February 2, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 5 | Washington | 6 (OT) |
March 1, 2014 | 8 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 1 | Chicago | 5 |
March 2, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 5 (OT) | Washington | 4 |
March 9, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 0 | NY Rangers | 3 |
March 16, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 4 | Pittsburgh | 3 |
March 30, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 4 (SO) | Philadelphia | 3 |
April 6, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | St. Louis | 2 | Chicago | 4 |
April 12, 2014 | 3 P.M. | Philadelphia | 4 (OT) | Pittsburgh | 3 |
April 13, 2014 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 3 | St. Louis | 0 |
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 18, 2015 | 12:30 P.M. | NY Rangers | 5 | Pittsburgh | 2 |
February 8, 2015 | 12:30 P.M. | Chicago | 4 | St. Louis | 2 |
February 15, 2015 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 1 | Chicago | 2 (SO) |
February 22, 2015 | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 2 | Philadelphia | 3 |
3:30 P.M. | Boston | 6 | Chicago | 2 | |
February 28, 2015 | 8 P.M. | NY Rangers | 2 | Philadelphia | 4 |
March 8, 2015 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 3 | Boston | 5 |
March 15, 2015 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 5 | Pittsburgh | 1 |
March 22, 2015 | 12 P.M. | St. Louis | 1 | Detroit | 2 (OT) |
April 5, 2015 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 1 | Philadelphia | 4 |
April 11, 2015 | 3 P.M. | Minnesota | 2 | St. Louis | 4 |
San Jose | 1 | Los Angeles | 4 |
[14] NBC was supposed to air the Pittsburgh-Washington match-up on January 24, but however, the game was postponed due to hazardous weather, so the network instead selecting St. Louis-Chicago game as their match-up and it aired in the Primetime slot.
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 24, 2016 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | Washington | PPD | |
January 24, 2016 | 7 P.M. | St. Louis | 0 | Chicago | 2 |
February 7, 2016 | 12 P.M. | Philadelphia | 2 | Washington | 3 |
February 14, 2016 | 3:30 P.M. | Boston | 5 | Detroit | 6 |
February 21, 2016 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 4 | Buffalo | 3 |
3:30 P.M. | Chicago | 1 | Minnesota | 6 | |
February 27, 2016 | 8 P.M. | Detroit | 5 | Colorado | 3 |
February 28, 2016 | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 2 | Chicago | 3 |
March 13, 2016 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 5 | NY Rangers | 3 |
April 3, 2016 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 4 | Chicago | 6 |
April 9, 2016 | 3 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 1 | Philadelphia | 3 |
During the season, NBC's Star Sunday concept was added to the Game of the Week package. [15] The first game under the new brand took place on January 22, 2017, in a game between the New York Rangers and the Detroit Red Wings. [1]
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 15, 2017 | 1:00 P.M. | Philadelphia | 0 | Washington | 5 |
January 22, 2017* [nb 1] | 12:30 P.M. | N.Y. Rangers | 1 | Detroit | 0 |
February 5, 2017* [nb 2] | 12 P.M. | Los Angeles | 0 | Washington | 5 |
February 12, 2017* [nb 3] | 3 P.M. | Detroit | 3 | Minnesota | 6 |
February 19, 2017 | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 1 | N.Y. Rangers | 2 |
3:30 P.M. | Detroit | 5 | Pittsburgh | 2 | |
February 25, 2017 | 8 P.M. | Philadelphia | 2 | Pittsburgh | 4 |
February 26, 2017* [nb 4] | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 6 | Dallas | 3 |
March 12, 2017* [nb 5] | 12:30 P.M. | Minnesota | 2 | Chicago | 4 |
March 26, 2017* [nb 6] | 12:30 P.M. | Minnesota | 2 | Detroit | 3(OT) |
April 2, 2017* [nb 7] | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 3 | Chicago | 2 |
April 8, 2017 | 3 P.M. | Washington | 3 | Boston | 1 |
(*) Designated as a Star Sunday game.
During this season, the Philadelphia Flyers had an overall five network TV appearances, making it the final NHL team in Pennsylvania and the second NHL team to have overall five network appearances (the first was Pittsburgh Penguins in 2011–12 season). [16] NBC initially announced that no NHL games would be aired on the network during the 2018 Winter Olympics, however they changed course and added three Sunday afternoon games in February as a lead-in to the Winter Olympics, allowing Mike Emrick and Eddie Olczyk to stay home and call 3 NHL games. [17] [18] [19] [20] NBC correctly switched the final minutes of the 2018 NHL Stadium Series to its sister network NBCSN (except for viewers in the Washington D.C. market) at 11 p.m. Eastern Time after play stoppage due to the power outage delay. [21] Star Sunday returned on March 11, 2018, both as part of the Game of the Week and Sunday Night Hockey package.
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 14, 2018 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 4 | Chicago | 0 |
January 21, 2018 | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 2 (OT) | Washington | 1 |
February 11, 2018 | 12:20 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 4 | St. Louis | 1 |
February 18, 2018 | 12:20 P.M. | Philadelphia | 7 | N.Y. Rangers | 5 |
February 25, 2018 | 12:20 P.M. | St. Louis | 0 | Nashville | 4 |
March 3, 2018 | 8 P.M. | Toronto | 2 | Washington | 5 |
March 11, 2018* [nb 8] | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 1 | Chicago | 3 |
March 25, 2018* [nb 9] | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 4 | Pittsburgh | 5 (OT) |
April 1, 2018* [nb 10] | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 3 | Philadelphia | 4 (OT) |
April 7, 2018 | 3 P.M. | N.Y. Rangers | 0 | Philadelphia | 5 |
(*) Designated as a Star Sunday game.
[22] For the first time, NBC selected two regional games which to aired it in primetime on February 2, 2019. Star Sunday returned on February 3, 2019, both as part of the Game of the Week and Sunday Night Hockey package. This marked the first and only season of Star Sunday to have its presenting sponsor; AT&T was the first presenting sponsor and they branded themselves as Star Sunday presented by AT&T.
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 20, 2019 | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 5 | Chicago | 8 |
February 2, 2019 | 8 P.M. | Tampa Bay | 3 | N.Y. Rangers | 2 |
Chicago | 4 (OT) | Minnesota | 3 | ||
February 3, 2019* [nb 11] | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 1 | Washington | 0 |
February 10, 2019* [nb 12] | 12:30 P.M. | St. Louis | 5(OT) | Nashville | 4 |
February 17, 2019 | 12:30 P.M. | N.Y. Rangers | 5 | Pittsburgh | 6 |
3:30 P.M. | St. Louis | 4 | Minnesota | 0 | |
February 23, 2019 | 8 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 3 | Philadelphia | 4 (OT) |
March 3, 2019* [nb 13] | 12:30 P.M. | Washington | 3 (SO) | N.Y. Rangers | 2 |
March 24, 2019* [nb 14] | 12:30 P.M. | Philadelphia | 1 | Washington | 3 |
March 31, 2019* [nb 15] | 12:30 P.M. | N.Y. Rangers | 3 | Philadelphia | 0 |
(*) Designated as a Star Sunday game.
For this season only, Brian Boucher replaced Pierre McGuire on the lead broadcast team with Mike Emrick and Eddie Olczyk. McGuire would be reassigned to work with NBC's other broadcast teams. The Pittsburgh Penguins originally had six network television appearances during that season (for the first time since the 2011–12 season), however, due to the cancellation of their final two network TV appearances (the Washington-Pittsburgh match-up on March 22 and the Pittsburgh-Philadelphia match-up on March 29) because of the coronavirus pandemic, they reduced to four [23] [24] as the games are postponed due to the pandemic, in which the rest of the regular season was paused indefinitely due to the pandemic. [25] [26] [27] [28] All players and hockey staff were asked to self-quarantine in their home cities until further notice. [29] [30] [31] [32] On May 26, 2020, Gary Bettman, the NHL commissioner, was announced that the rest of the regular season was cancelled. [33] [34] [35] [36] [37] [38] [39]
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 19, 2020 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 3 | Pittsburgh | 4 |
February 2, 2020 | 12:30 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 4 | Washington | 3 |
February 9, 2020 | 12:30 P.M. | Boston | 1 | Detroit | 3 |
February 15, 2020 | 8 P.M. | Los Angeles | 3 | Colorado | 1 |
February 16, 2020 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 1 | Pittsburgh | 5 |
3:30 P.M. | Boston | 3 | N.Y. Rangers | 1 | |
February 23, 2020 | 12 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 3 | Washington | 5 |
March 1, 2020 | 12 P.M. | Philadelphia | 5 | N.Y. Rangers | 3 |
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the start of the 2020–21 NHL season has been delayed to January 13, 2021, and all teams would play a 56-game division-only schedule with the NHL temporarily realigning divisions to minimize travel as much as possible, with all seven Canadian teams playing one division due to COVID-19 cross-border travel restrictions imposed by the Government of Canada.
NBC Sports broadcast 16 NHL regular season games, which is the most ever NHL regular season games broadcast on NBC. The NHL on NBC schedule featured a number of rivalries, including the Capitals–Penguins rivalry, the Blackhawks–Red Wings rivalry, the Bruins-Rangers rivalry, and the Avalanche-Blues rivalry. Meanwhile, the Washington Capitals had five network television appearances this season, the third NHL team to have largest appearances during the regular season. The final NHL on NBC game was on May 8, 2021, with two games aired regionally, all but New York metro and Boston markets, who got the Penguins-Sabres game, got the Bruins-Rangers rivalry game, and the regional games were shared with the teams' respective broadcasters in their aforementioned markets. [40] [41] It also marked as the final season for the games to aired on NBC after 16 years, as 10 games were regained by over-the-air ABC beginning next season. [42]
Date | Time | Away team | Score | Home team | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 17, 2021 | 12 P.M. | Washington | 3 | Pittsburgh | 4 (SO) |
January 24, 2021 | 12:30 P.M. | Detroit | 2 | Chicago | 6 |
February 7, 2021 | 12 P.M. | Philadelphia | 7 | Washington | 4 |
February 14, 2021 | 3 P.M. | Washington | 3 | Pittsburgh | 6 |
February 20, 2021 | 3 P.M. [nb 16] | Vegas | 2 | Colorado | 3 |
February 21, 2021 | 3 P.M. [nb 17] | New Jersey | 3 | Washington | 4 |
February 28, 2021 | 12 P.M. | Boston | 4 | N.Y. Rangers | 1 |
March 7, 2021 | 12 P.M. | Buffalo | 2 | N.Y. Islanders | 5 |
March 28, 2021 | 12 P.M. | N.Y. Rangers | 4 | Washington | 5 |
April 4, 2021 | 12 P.M. | Detroit | 5 | Tampa Bay | 1 |
April 17, 2021 | 3 P.M. | Pittsburgh | 3 | Buffalo | 2 |
April 18, 2021 | 12 P.M. | Washington | 3 | Boston | 6 |
April 24, 2021 | 3 P.M. | Colorado | 3 | St. Louis | 5 |
April 25, 2021 | 3 P.M. | Boston | 0 | Pittsburgh | 1 |
May 2, 2021 | 3 P.M. | Tampa Bay | 2 | Detroit | 1 |
May 8, 2021 [nb 18] | 3 P.M. | N.Y. Rangers | 5 | Boston | 4 |
Buffalo | 0 | Pittsburgh | 1 |
This season, ABC took over as the national over-the-air broadcaster for the NHL as part of a seven-year multiplatform deal with ESPN. They kicked off their coverage with the Thanksgiving Showdown on November 26th. All games were simulcast on ESPN+, and featured a stats-based IceCast alternate broadcast, excluding the Thanksgiving Showdown.
Date | Teams | Start times (All times Eastern) | Play-by-play | Color commentator(s) | Inside the Glass analyst | Ice level reporter | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
November 26 | New York Rangers vs. Boston Bruins | 1 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | A. J. Mleczko | N/A | Bruins-Rangers rivalry 2021 NHL Thanksgiving Showdown Originally Blues-Blackhawks, which filled the vacant 3:30 ET slot on ESPN+, which Rangers-Bruins had occupied |
February 26 | New York Rangers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Penguins-Rangers rivalry Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced and broadcast on ESPN+ | |
March 5 | Chicago Blackhawks vs. Philadelphia Flyers | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | 2010 Stanley Cup Finals rematch Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced and broadcast on ESPN+ | |
March 12 | Philadelphia Flyers vs. Carolina Hurricanes | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced, and broadcast on ESPN+ | |
March 19 | New York Rangers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning | 8:00 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | First ever NHL regular season game on ABC to air in primetime Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced and broadcast on ESPN+ | |
March 26 | Chicago Blackhawks vs. Vegas Golden Knights | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced and broadcast on ESPN+ | |
April 2 | Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Colorado Avalanche | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced and broadcast on ESPN+ | |
April 9 | Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Capitals–Penguins rivalry Sidney Crosby vs. Alex Ovechkin Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced and broadcast on ESPN+ | |
April 16 | Minnesota Wild vs. St. Louis Blues | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | 2022 Winter Classic rematch Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced and broadcast on ESPN+ | |
April 23 | New York Rangers vs. Boston Bruins | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Bruins-Rangers rivalry Special “IceCast” alternate broadcast was also produced and broadcast on ESPN+ |
ABC lost the rights to the Thanksgiving Showdown to TNT, but gained the rights to the NHL Stadium Series in return. ABC also introduced doubleheaders on select Saturdays, as well as a tripleheader during the last Saturday of the season. Like last season, all games were simulcast on ESPN+, and featured a separate Star Watch, Puck Possesser, or All-12 alternate broadcast.
Date | Teams | Start times (All times Eastern) | Play-by-play | Color commentator(s) | Ice-level analyst(s) | Rinkside reporter(s) | Rules analyst | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
February 11 | Tampa Bay at Dallas | 1 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | Brian Boucher | — | Leah Hextall | Dave Jackson | 2020 Stanley Cup Finals rematch |
Washington at Boston | 3:30 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | ||||
February 18 | Washington at Carolina | 8 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan, Kevin Weekes , and Marty Smith | 2023 NHL Stadium Series Game was originally scheduled to air on ESPN | ||
February 25 | New York Rangers at Washington | 1 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Capitals–Rangers rivalry | ||
Pittsburgh at St. Louis | 3:30 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | Brian Boucher | — | Leah Hextall | |||
March 4 | New York Rangers at Boston | 1 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Bruins–Rangers rivalry | ||
Colorado at Dallas | 3:30 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | Brian Boucher | — | Leah Hextall | |||
March 11 | Detroit at Boston | 1 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | |||
Philadelphia at Pittsburgh | 3:30 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | Brian Boucher | — | Leah Hextall | Flyers–Penguins rivalry | ||
March 18 | Pittsburgh at New York Rangers | 8 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Penguins–Rangers rivalry 2022 First Round rematch | ||
March 25 | Washington at Pittsburgh | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Capitals–Penguins rivalry Sidney Crosby vs. Alex Ovechkin | |||
April 1 | Boston at Pittsburgh | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | 2023 NHL Winter Classic rematch | ||
April 8 | Pittsburgh at Detroit | 1 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | Brian Boucher | — | Leah Hextall | Originally Blues-Wild 2008 and 2009 Stanley Cup Finals rematch | |
Vegas at Dallas | 3:30 p.m. | Mike Monaco | A. J. Mleczko | — | ||||
New Jersey at Boston | 8 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Originally Penguins-Red Wings, which filled the 1 ET void left by Blues-Wild being flexed out Bruins can tie NHL team record for most wins in a regular season. |
ABC had four doubleheader weeks this season, as well as the Stadium Series, and two tripleheaders, one on the same day as the first game of the Stadium Series, the other on the last Saturday of the season. All games will once again be simulcast on ESPN+.
Date | Teams | Start times (All times Eastern) | Play-by-play | Color commentator(s) | Ice-level analyst(s) | Rinkside reporter(s) | Rules analyst | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 13 | New York Rangers at Washington | 1 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Dave Jackson | Capitals–Rangers rivalry | |
February 10 | St. Louis at Buffalo | 1 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | A. J. Mleczko | — | — | ||
Washington at Boston | 3:30 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | ||||
February 17 | Los Angeles at Boston | 12:30 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | Ryan Callahan | — | Leah Hextall | Added to replace the Oilers-Bruins matchup for March 5th on ESPN+ and Hulu | |
Edmonton at Dallas | 3 p.m. | Mike Monaco | A. J. Mleczko | — | First game on ABC to feature Canadian team since 2004 Stanley Cup Finals | |||
Philadelphia at New Jersey | 8 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan and Kevin Weekes | Devils–Flyers rivalry 2024 NHL Stadium Series | |||
February 18 | New York Rangers at New York Islanders | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan and Kevin Weekes | Islanders–Rangers rivalry 2024 NHL Stadium Series | ||
February 24 | St. Louis at Detroit | noon. | Bob Wischusen | Kevin Weekes | — | Leah Hextall | ||
New York Rangers vs. Philadelphia | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Flyers-Rangers rivalry Originally scheduled to air on ESPN+ and Hulu | |||
March 2 | Florida at Detroit | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Originally Wild-Blues | ||
March 9 | Carolina at New Jersey | 12:30 p.m. | John Buccigross | Ryan Callahan | — | 2023 Conference Semifinals rematch Added to replace the Oilers-Sabres matchup scheduled to air on ESPN+ and Hulu that same day | ||
Pittsburgh at Boston | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Alternate NHL Big City Greens Classic broadcast aired alongside ABC feed on Disney Channel, Disney XD, Disney+, and ESPN+ | |||
March 16 | New York Rangers at Pittsburgh | 3 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | Penguins-Rangers rivalry | ||
March 23 | Florida at New York Rangers | 8 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | |||
April 6 | Tampa Bay at Pittsburgh | 1 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | Ryan Callahan | — | Leah Hextall | ||
Florida at Boston | 3:30 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan | 2023 First Round rematch | |||
April 13 | New York Islanders at New York Rangers | 12:30 p.m. | Bob Wischusen | Ryan Callahan | — | Leah Hextall | Islanders-Rangers rivalry 2024 Stadium Series rematch | |
Seattle at Dallas | 3 p.m. | Mike Monaco | A. J. Mleczko | — | Blake Bolden | 2023 Conference Semifinals rematch | ||
Boston at Pittsburgh | 8 p.m. | Sean McDonough | Ray Ferraro | Emily Kaplan |
The 1993–94 NHL season was the 77th regular season of the National Hockey League. The league expanded to 26 teams with the addition of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and the Florida Panthers. The New York Rangers defeated the Vancouver Canucks in seven games to become the Stanley Cup champions. It was the Rangers' fourth championship overall, and their first in 54 seasons, since 1939–40.
The NHL on NBC is an American presentation of National Hockey League (NHL) games produced by NBC Sports, and televised on NBC properties, including MSNBC, CNBC, Golf Channel, USA Network and NBCSN in the United States.
The NHL on ABC is an American presentation of National Hockey League (NHL) games produced by ESPN, and televised on ABC in the United States.
The broadcasts of National Hockey League (NHL) games produced by ESPN have been shown on its various platforms in the United States, including ESPN itself, ABC, ESPN+, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPNU, and Hulu. Since 2021, games have been broadcast under the ESPN Hockey Night branding, while those on ESPN+ have used the ESPN+ Hockey Night branding.
In the United States, sports are televised on various broadcast networks, national and specialty sports cable channels, and regional sports networks. U.S. sports rights are estimated to be worth a total of $22.42 billion in 2019, about 44 percent of the total worldwide sports media market. U.S. networks are willing to pay a significant amount of money for television sports contracts because it attracts large amounts of viewership; live sport broadcasts accounted for 44 of the 50 list of most watched television broadcasts in the United States in 2016.
The National Hockey League has never fared as well on American television in comparison to the National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, or the National Football League, although that has begun to change, with NBC's broadcasts of the final games of the 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2013 Stanley Cup Finals scoring some of the best ratings ever enjoyed by the sport on American television.
Hockey Weekend Across America is an annual event devised by USA Hockey to promote the game of ice hockey in the United States. The weekend is capped by "Hockey Day in America", with broadcasts of National Hockey League games on the national networks of NBC (2011–2021) and TNT (2024–present).
The National Hockey League (NHL) is shown on national television in the United States and Canada. With 25 teams in the U.S. and 7 in Canada, the NHL is the only one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada that maintains separate national broadcasters in each country, each producing separate telecasts of a slate of regular season games, playoff games, and the Stanley Cup Finals.
Wednesday Night Rivalry and Wednesday Night Hockey was the branding used for National Hockey League games that aired on NBCSN on Wednesday nights during the regular season from January 2013 to May 2021.
Sunday Night Hockey was a weekly presentation of National Hockey League games that air on NBCSN on Sundays during the regular season. Sunday Night Hockey usually debuts during the second Sunday of January.
From 1965 through 1975, in addition to the Saturday night game on CBC, Hockey Night in Canada also produced and broadcast a Wednesday night game on CTV, CBC's privately owned competitor; beginning in the 1975–76 NHL season, these midweek games began to broadcast by local stations. In 1970–71, the Vancouver Canucks joined the NHL, meaning that there were now three possible venues for an HNIC telecast.
After Wayne Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings in 1988, CBC began showing occasional double-headers when Canadian teams visited Los Angeles to showcase the sport's most popular player. These games were often joined in progress, as the regular start time for Hockey Night in Canada was still 8 p.m. Eastern Time and the Kings home games began at 7:30 p.m. Pacific Time. Beginning in the 1995 season, weekly double-headers became permanent, with games starting at 7:30 Eastern and 7:30 Pacific, respectively. In 1998, the start times were moved ahead to 7 p.m. ET and PT.
Since 2000, the CBC has aired an annual special Hockey Day in Canada broadcast to celebrate the game in Canada. The broadcast includes hockey-related features all afternoon, leading up to a tripleheader of NHL action featuring the seven Canadian teams. One exception was the 2008 edition that featured four games including two American teams along with the six Canadian teams; this was due to the NHL's schedule format at the time, as there was no inter-conference games between Canadian teams. Lead commentators, Don Cherry and Ron MacLean broadcast from a remote area. The broadcast includes live broadcast segments from smaller communities right across the country and features panel discussions on issues facing "Canada's game" at both the minor and pro levels. The day is usually in mid-February, but was broadcast in early January in 2002 and 2006 due to the 2002 Winter Olympics and 2006 Winter Olympics, respectively; the 2007 event was also held in January, though no sporting events key to Canada were scheduled.
On April 19, 2011, after ESPN, Turner Sports, and Fox Sports placed bids, NBC Sports announced it had reached a ten-year extension to its U.S. television contract with the NHL worth nearly $2 billion over the tenure of the contract. The contract would cover games on both NBC and sister cable channel Versus, which became part of the NBC Sports family as the result of Versus parent Comcast's controlling purchase of NBC Universal earlier in 2011.
The NHL on TNT is an American presentation of National Hockey League (NHL) games produced by TNT Sports, and televised on TNT and streamed on Max in the United States.
NBC Sports's deal with the National Hockey League for U.S. television rights ran through the 2020–21 season, and was replaced in 2021–22 by seven-year agreements with ESPN and TNT to split coverage.
When the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, all major professional and collegiate organizations responded by suspending operations indefinitely. This effect was passed down to the world of sports broadcasting, which includes live coverage of thousands of events on an annual basis through stations and network available over the air, through cable, satellite, and IPTV companies, and via streaming and over-the-top services.
The National Hockey League (NHL) is shown on national television in the United States and Canada. With 25 teams in the U.S. and 7 in Canada, the NHL is the only one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada that maintains separate national broadcasters in each country, each producing separate telecasts of a slate of regular season games, playoff games, and the Stanley Cup Finals.