FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, January 19th, 2016
PENGUINS VISIT LEAGUE-LEADING CAPITALS IN SEASON PREMIERE OF NBC “NHL GAME OF THE WEEK”; RED WINGS HOST BLUES ON NBCSN’S “WEDNESDAY NIGHT RIVALRY”
15 All-Stars Showcased on NBC and NBCSN This Week, Including Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Patrick Kane, Vladimir Tarasenko and Dylan Larkin
NHL Game of the Week – Penguins-Capitals – Sunday at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC
Wednesday Night Rivalry – Blues-Red Wings – 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN, Followed by Wild-Ducks on Wednesday Nightcap at 10:30 p.m. ET
Blackhawks Look For Franchise-Record 12th Straight Win Tonight at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN vs. Predators
STAMFORD, Conn. – Jan. 19, 2016 – NBC Sports’ NHL Game of the Week makes its 2015-16 debut this weekend, when Alex Ovechkin and the league-leading Washington Capitals host Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins this Sunday at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC. This week’s coverage on NBCSN features a matchup of two of the NHL’s young stars on Wednesday Night Rivalry, when Dylan Larkin and the Detroit Red Wings host Vladimir Tarasenko and the St. Louis Blues tomorrow at 8 p.m. ET.
NBCSN’s NHL coverage begins tonight at 8 p.m. ET, when Patrick Kane and the red-hot Chicago Blackhawks aim for a franchise-record 12th consecutive win when they visit Pekka Rinne and the Nashville Predators. This week also features a Wednesday Nightcap matchup on NBCSN following Blues-Red Wings on Wednesday Night Rivalry, when Corey Perry and the Anaheim Ducks host Zach Parise and the Minnesota Wild tomorrow at 10:30 p.m. ET.
NBC Sports Live Extra – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets and connected TVs – will stream this week’s NHL coverage on NBC and NBCSN.
Three-time Emmy Award-winning play-by-play commentator Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick, U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame member and analyst Eddie Olczyk, and Emmy Award-winning ‘Inside-the-Glass’ analyst Pierre McGuire will call both the Blues-Red Wings Wednesday Night Rivalry game from Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Mich., and the Penguins-Capitals NHL Game of the Week matchup from the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.
John Forslund (play-by-play) and McGuire will call tonight’s matchup between the Blackhawks and Predators from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., while Forslund (play-by-play) and Brian Boucher (‘Inside-the-Glass’) will call Wild-Ducks from the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.
Liam McHugh and Kathryn Tappen will combine to anchor this week’s studio coverage, alongside analysts and former players Mike Milbury, Keith Jones, and Jeremy Roenick. NHL insider Bob McKenzie will join NBCSN’s Wednesday Night Rivalry coverage to provide the latest in-depth news from around the league.
NHL GAME OF THE WEEK – PENGUINS-CAPITALS – 12:30 P.M. ET ON NBC
The Penguins and Capitals renew their rivalry this Sunday on NBC in the nation’s capital. Washington (34-8-3, 71 pts; 1st in Metropolitan Division) enter this week with an 18-3-1 record at home, and have won 12 straight games at home dating back to Nov. 21. Alex Ovechkin recently scored his 500th and 501st career goals in the Caps’ 7-1 win vs. Ottawa on Jan. 10, becoming the fifth-fastest player to reach the 500-goal milestone. His 27 goals this season, second in the NHL behind Patrick Kane (29), have been supplemented by the emergence of forward Evgeny Kuznetsov, who leads the club 44 points.
Pittsburgh is one of only fourteams that have defeated the Caps at Verizon Center this season, notching a 3-1 win in Washington on Wednesday Night Rivalry back on Oct. 28, led by 33 saves from Marc-Andre Fleury. The Penguins have recorded points in eight of their last 10 games (4-2-4) to move into fourth place in the Metropolitan Division
WEDNESDAY NIGHT RIVALRY – BLUES-RED WINGS – 8 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
Wednesday Night Rivalry features a matchup of old Central Division foes when the Blues visit the Red Wings. The two clubs were division rivals for more than 30 years until realignment in 2013-14, and Detroit is St. Louis’ second most-played opponent with 278 regular season contests (Chicago; 298). The Blues (27-15-7, 61 pts; 3rd in Central Division) are coming off a 5-2 win at home against Pittsburgh, highlighted by a four-point night by Paul Stastny, and are 4-1-0 in their last five games.
Detroit (23-14-8, 54 pts) sits currently in second place of a crowded Atlantic Division, where first-place Florida (57) and sixth-place Ottawa (50) are separated by just seven points. The Red Wings dropped their most recent matchup in a shootout by a score of 2-1 to the Flyers. 19-year-old rookie phenom Dylan Larkin is tied for the club lead in goals (14) and points (30). Larkin and Tarasenko both scored in the teams’ previous meeting this year, a 4-3 overtime victory for the Red Wings back on Nov. 21.
BLACKHAWKS-PREDATORS – TONIGHT AT 8 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
The red-hot Blackhawks go for their 12th consecutive win tonight in Nashville against the Predators. A win tonight for Chicago (31-13-4, 66 pts; 1st in Central Division) would surpass the franchise record set in 2013. Chicago has been dominant during its 11-game winning streak, outscoring opponents 43-21 dating back to Dec. 29. Nashville fell victim to Chicago during this streak, a 3-2 Blackhawks win on Jan. 12 at the United Center. Patrick Kane continues to lead the NHL in goals (29) and assists (40), while Jonathan Toews boasts 13 points in the last 11 games.
The Predators (20-17-8, 48 pts; 6th in Central Division) have received immediate dividends from newly acquired forward Ryan Johansen, with two goals and five assists in five games since joining the team from Columbus. Nashville is coming off a 3-0 win over the Wild on Saturday, highlighted by a 29-save shutout by Carter Hutton. Nashville will play host to the 2016 Bridgestone NHL All-Star Weekend on Jan. 29-31, with exclusive coverage airing on NBCSN.
WEDNESDAY NIGHTCAP – WILD-DUCKS – TOMORROW AT 10:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
The Anaheim Ducks (19-18-7, 45 pts; 5th in Pacific Division) hope to continue their ascent following a slow start to the 2015-16 season with a win tomorrow against Minnesota. Anaheim has gone 7-3-2 in its last 12 games to pull within four points of second-place San Jose in the division, and have been led by goaltender John Gibson, who leads the league with a stingy 1.90 goals against average.
Minnesota (22-15-8, 52 pts; 4th in Central Division) is in the midst of a four-game losing streak and has been shut out in back-to-back games. Tomorrow night’s matchup is the third and final meeting of the season between the Wild and Ducks; the two teams each won by three goals on home ice in October earlier this season.
Following is this week’s NHL and coverage on NBC and NBCSN:
| Date | Coverage | Network | Time (ET) |
| Tues., January 19 | NHL Top 10 – Traditions | NBCSN | 6:30 p.m. |
| NHL Live | NBCSN | 7 p.m. | |
| Chicago at Nashville** | NBCSN | 8 p.m. | |
| NHL Overtime* | NBCSN | 11:30 | |
| Wed., January 20 | NHL Top 10 – Top 10 Scorers | NBCSN | 6:30 p.m. |
| NHL Live | NBCSN | 7 p.m. | |
| Wednesday Night Rivalry – St. Louis at Detroit | NBCSN | 8 p.m. | |
| Wednesday Nightcap – Minnesota at Anaheim | NBCSN | 10:30 p.m. | |
| NHL Overtime* | NBCSN | 1 a.m. | |
| Sun., January 24 | NHL Game of the Week – Pittsburgh at Washington | NBC | 12:30 p.m. |
*immediately following game coverage
**subject to local blackout in Chicago
2015-16 REGULAR SEASON COVERAGE ON NBC & NBCSN
NBC Sports Group will deliver coverage of 105 NHL regular-season games during the 2015-16 season, featuring 12 games on NBC and 93 games on NBCSN. All games will be streamed live via NBC Sports Live Extra. This year’s coverage includes 24 Wednesday Night Rivalry games, 6 Wednesday Nightcaps, 12 Sunday Night Hockey contests, and NHL All-Star coverage.
Click here for more information on NBC Sports Group’s comprehensive NHL coverage this season.
NBC SPORTS REGIONAL NETWORKS
NBC Sports Regional Networks, which serve top NHL markets such as Boston (Bruins), Philadelphia (Flyers), Washington D.C. (Capitals), Chicago (Blackhawks) and the Bay Area (Sharks), will air more than 300 live NHL games and surround the 2015-16 NHL season with in-depth news, analysis and original programming on the teams that matter
