The NHL heads back to ESPN.

[Don in CT]

NHL back on ESPN with 7-year multiplatform deal

The NHL will once again be broadcast on ESPN after the league agreed to a seven-year multiplatform deal.

www.espn.com

Barry Melrose will have more to do now.

 

[Howard Simmons]

NHL back on ESPN with 7-year multiplatform deal

The NHL will once again be broadcast on ESPN after the league agreed to a seven-year multiplatform deal.

www.espn.com

Barry Melrose will have more to do now.

Yes on the Barry Melrose! The only thing is that it going to ESPN+.

 

[Don in CT]

Yes on the Barry Melrose! The only thing is that it going to ESPN+.

25 games a season on the network..

ESPN and the NHL announced a seven-year deal on Wednesday, returning hockey to ESPN for the first time since 2004. Included will be 25 regular-season games on ESPN or ABC, early-round playoff series and one conference final each year, four Stanley Cup Final series on ABC and more than 1,000 games per season streaming on ESPN+. ESPN+ and Hulu will be home to 75 ESPN-produced exclusive telecasts per season.

The deal also includes opening-night games, the NHL All-Star Game and Skills Challenge and other special events. The NHL's out-of-market streaming package (NHL.TV) is also moving to ESPN+ as part of its subscription offerings.

 

[cosmo_kramer]

Yes on the Barry Melrose! The only thing is that it going to ESPN+.

Not all of it. The postseason will be ABC/ESPN. But, they had to do something to try and make ESPN+ relevant.....

 

[Jimbo]

So, the majority of the espn hockey will be Streaming ... that sux.

 

[SamCdbs]

The streaming aspect of this deal is little changed from the current deal. A relative few out of market games. ESPN is taking over the marketing of what is now called nhl.tv, which is a separate thing.

In the linear space, which is what really matters, ESPN bought about half of the package now seen on NBC and NBCSN. Someone else will buy the other half. You local team will remain on your local RSN. The amount of hockey on linear TV will remain the same as today, just spread out between ESPN linear and someone else linear.

The big news is that, for better or worse, ESPN linear is going to carry the NHL, which means ESPN's talking heads will cease to ignore the NHL. Of course talking about the NHL requires thought and knowledge, and it continues to be much easier to call for somebody to "get paid" and argue about who "is the man" and other such NBA nonsense.

 

[TV Junkie]

Here we are with the puck drop and

 

[MrMars]

The streaming aspect of this deal is little changed from the current deal. A relative few out of market games. ESPN is taking over the marketing of what is now called nhl.tv, which is a separate thing.

In the linear space, which is what really matters, ESPN bought about half of the package now seen on NBC and NBCSN. Someone else will buy the other half. You local team will remain on your local RSN. The amount of hockey on linear TV will remain the same as today, just spread out between ESPN linear and someone else linear.

The big news is that, for better or worse, ESPN linear is going to carry the NHL, which means ESPN's talking heads will cease to ignore the NHL. Of course talking about the NHL requires thought and knowledge, and it continues to be much easier to call for somebody to "get paid" and argue about who "is the man" and other such NBA nonsense.

Actually there is a big difference, those 75 exclusive ESPN+ games include IN market rights and will not be shown on the local RSN. So the only way to watch those games even in market will be with a ESPN+ (or Hulu) subscription. It won't be a ton of games and is capped at 8 per team for the 100 games ABC/ESPN/ESPN+ picks up.

 

[WolfJT]

I really can't stand ESPN. I like what NBC has been doing with Hockey.

 

[SamCdbs]

Sources: Turner Sports gets rights to second NHL package - Las Vegas Sun Newspaper

And in a shocker, Comcast (NBC) passes on the other half of the deal and it goes to AT&T (TBS/TNT).

Interesting.

Relative to Comcast, are they really serious about making USA Network into some sort of hybrid rerun/live sports channel like TNT? All they have left is some eurosoccer, lesser NASCAR events (that contract runs out after the 24 season), and a handful of mid-major college basketball games.

Relative to Turner, they have six months to get an entire hockey infrastructure up and running. AFAIK nobody there knows a darn thing about hockey.

Also, I think this is significant, as the "general rerun" channel is becoming a thing of the past. Anybody who wanted to watch a 25 year old cop show has probably caught it on the first 10000 showings, and most of the material is now available for free on free streamers like Pluto or STIRR, and on OTA diginets. TBS/TNT differentiate themselves from the pack with rights to NBA, NHL, MLB, and NCAA basketball.

 

[Yespage]

Relative to Comcast, are they really serious about making USA Network into some sort of hybrid rerun/live sports channel like TNT? All they have left is some eurosoccer, lesser NASCAR events (that contract runs out after the 24 season), and a handful of mid-major college basketball games.

European Football, not soccer... it is soccer in the US, and they dropped that like a hot potato. They had almost no infrastructure for the Champions and Europa Leagues. And it was all put behind a paywall.

Hockey will be interesting, but they don't actually have many games, it'll be more playoffs I think, every other year. Maybe crossover the calling for AEW into the NHL.

 

[SamCdbs]

Hockey will be interesting, but they don't actually have many games, it'll be more playoffs I think, every other year. Maybe crossover the calling for AEW into the NHL.

72 regular season games
Winter Classic outdoor game
One-half of playoff rounds 1 & 2
One conference championship (which is playoff round 3)
Alternate with ESPN for Stanley Cup Finals

 

[Don in CT]

TNT will pillage the hockey people from NBC. They have a sports division already so it won't be to hard to add hockey.

I guess we know why they killed off NBCSN, no content.