FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, April 21st, 2016
DAY 9 – TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING AND ST. LOUIS BLUES CAN ADVANCE TO SECOND ROUND OF STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS TONIGHT ON NBCSN
Game 5 – (3) Detroit Red Wings at (2) Tampa Bay Lightning – 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN – Lightning Lead 3-1
Game 5 – (3) Chicago Blackhawks at (2) St. Louis Blues – 9:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN – Blues Lead 3-1
Game 4 – (2) Pittsburgh Penguins at (3) New York Rangers – 7 p.m. ET on CNBC – Penguins Lead 2-1
Game 4 – (1) Anaheim Ducks at (WC1) Nashville Predators – 8 p.m. ET on NHL Network – Predators Lead 2-1
Columbus Blue Jackets Forward Gregory Campbell Joins NHL Live as Guest Analyst Tonight
STAMFORD, Conn. – April 21, 2016 – The (2) Tampa Bay Lightning and (2) St. Louis Blues can punch their tickets to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with Game 5 victories tonight on NBCSN, highlighting tonight’s NHL quadrupleheader across NBCSN, CNBC and NHL Network.
Coverage begins in Tampa at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN with Game 5 between the Lightning and (3) Detroit Red Wings, as Tampa Bay looks to close out the series. NBCSN’s coverage continues at 9:30 p.m. ET, immediately following Lightning-Red Wings, with Game 5 between the Blues and (3) Chicago Blackhawks in St. Louis, as the Blues attempt to eliminate the defending Stanley Cup Champions with a win at home.
CNBC’s Stanley Cup Playoff coverage continues tonight at 7 p.m. ET with a pivotal Game 4 matchup between the (2) Pittsburgh Penguins and (3) New York Rangers from Madison Square Garden, as New York aims to even the series at two games apiece. NHL Network will present Game 4 of the (1) Anaheim Ducks and (WC1) Nashville Predators series at 8 p.m. ET, with Anaheim looking for a win to knot the series at 2-2.
Pre-game coverage of tonight’s matchups begins at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN with NHL Live, leading into Game 4 of Caps-Flyers. Liam McHugh anchors tonight’s studio coverage on NBCSN alongside Mike Milbury and guest analyst and current Columbus Blue Jackets forward Gregory Campbell. Campbell recently completed his 12th NHL season and was a member of the 2011 Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins. Dave Briggs will anchor CNBC’s studio coverage with Jeremy Roenick and Anson Carter.
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“NHL Playoff Pass” on NBC Sports Group Press Box provides a quick daily overview of Stanley Cup Playoff coverage, plus information and highlights. The Pass will be published weekdays to preview that evening’s games. Friday editions will include weekend information.
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THE PASS – THURSDAY, APRIL 21 (All times ET)
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THURSDAY, APRIL 21 |
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| Time | Coverage | Network | Commentators |
| 6 p.m. | NHL Live | NBCSN | Liam McHugh, Mike Milbury, Gregory Campbell |
| 7 p.m. | Game 5 – (3) Detroit at (2) Tampa Bay | NBCSN | John Forslund, Brian Boucher |
| 7 p.m. | Game 4 – (2) Pittsburgh at (3) N.Y. Rangers | CNBC | Chris Cuthbert, Pierre McGuire |
| NHL Live (Intermission Reports) | CNBC | Dave Briggs, Jeremy Roenick, Anson Carter |
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| 8 p.m. | Game 4 – (1) Anaheim at (WC1) Nashville | NHL Network | John Ahlers, Brian Hayward |
| 9:30 p.m. | Game 5 – (3) Chicago at (2) St. Louis | NBCSN | Pat Foley, Eddie Olczyk |
All Stanley Cup Playoff games will be presented on NBC, NBCSN, USA Network, CNBC and NHL Network. NBC Sports Live Extra – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets – will provide streaming coverage of games airing on NBC, NBCSN, USA Network and CNBC via “TV Everywhere.”
For more information on NBC Sports Group’s overall NHL Playoff coverage, please click here.
GAME 5 – (3) RED WINGS AT (2) LIGHTNING – 7 P.M. ET ON NBCSN – LIGHTNING LEAD 3-1
The Lightning can advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with a Game 5 win at home tonight against the Red Wings. Nikita Kucherov has been a difference-maker for Tampa Bay with five goals in the first four games of the series. Kucherov scored twice in Tampa Bay’s Game 4 win in Detroit, and is one goal shy of tying the franchise-record of six goals in a single playoff series. Lightning forward Jonathan Drouin assisted on all three of Tampa Bay’s goals in Game 4.
GAME 5 – (3) BLACKHAWKS AT (2) BLUES – 9:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN – BLUES LEAD 3-1
The Blues look to advance to the second round with a Game 5 win tonight against the rival Blackhawks in St. Louis. The Blues won Game 4 by a score of 4-3 on Tuesday night, as Vladimir Tarasenko scored twice and added an assist for St. Louis. Blackhawks forwards Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and Marian Hossa have yet to score in the series. Chicago is 1-12 all-time when trailing a series 3-1, with that lone win coming in 2013 against Detroit en route to a Stanley Cup title.
GAME 4 – (2) PENGUINS AT (3) RANGERS – 7 P.M. ET ON CNBC – PENGUINS LEAD 2-1
Pittsburgh took a 2-1 series lead on Tuesday with a 3-1 win, as goaltender Matt Murray returned to the lineup for the Penguins and made 16 saves to backstop his team to victory. Sidney Crosby scored his second goal of the playoffs, and Matt Cullen scored the eventual game-winner early in the third period. Including the regular season, Pittsburgh has won all three meetings at Madison Square Garden, outscoring the Rangers 11-6. New York has lost four straight playoff games at home, and has been outscored 13-3 in those contests.
GAME 4 – (1) DUCKS AT (WC1) PREDATORS – 8 P.M. ET ON NHL NETWORK – PREDATORS LEAD 2-1
The Ducks will aim for a Game 4 win tonight in Nashville to send their first-round series with the Predators back to Anaheim tied 2-2. Frederik Andersen led the Ducks to a 3-0 win in Game 3 on Tuesday night, making 27 saves to record the shutout in his 2016 postseason debut. Jamie McGinn, Rickard Rakell and Chris Stewart netted their first goals of the playoffs in the win for Anaheim. The road team has won all three games in this series.
**Note – all first-round games are subject to blackouts in local markets**
If tonight’s Red Wings-Lightning game on NBCSN runs past 9:45 p.m. ET into the start of Blackhawks-Blues, puck drop of Blackhawks-Blues can be found on NBC Sports Live Extra until Red Wings-Lightning has concluded. Blackhawks-Blues will return to NBCSN immediately following the conclusion of Red Wings-Lightning.
As a reminder, all games on NBC, NBCSN, USA Network and CNBC will be live streamed via NBC Sports Live Extra.
“WHERE IN THE WORLD IS PIERRE MCGUIRE?” EMMY-AWARD WINNING ‘INSIDE-THE-GLASS’ ANALYST CONTINUES MARATHON SCHEDULE
NBC Sports Group’s Emmy-Award winning ‘Inside-the-Glass’ analyst Pierre McGuire continues his marathon first-round broadcast schedule tonight in New York with Game 4 of the Penguins-Rangers series. McGuire is slated to serve as an analyst for 11 games in 11 days to begin the postseason, with more games likely added to that run as series continue. His schedule will be comprised of seven different cities, five different playoff series, and more than 13,000 miles in travel. *Note – schedule is subject to change*
| Date | Coverage | Travel |
| Wed., April 13 | Game 1 – (3) Chicago at (2) St. Louis | St. Louis > Sunrise, Fla. |
| Thurs., April 14 | Game 1 – (WC1) N.Y. Islanders at (1) Florida | Sunrise, Fla. > Tampa |
| Fri., April 15 | Game 2 – (3) Detroit at (2) Tampa Bay | Tampa > Pittsburgh |
| Sat., April 16 | Game 2 – (3) N.Y. Rangers at (2) Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh > Chicago |
| Sun., April 17 | Game 3 – (2) St. Louis at (3) Chicago | Chicago > Philadelphia |
| Mon., April 18 | Game 3 – (1) Washington at (WC2) Philadelphia | Philadelphia > New York |
| Tue., April 19 | Game 3 – (2) Pittsburgh at (3) N.Y. Rangers | New York |
| Wed., April 20 | Game 4 – (1) Florida at (WC1) N.Y. Islanders | New York |
| Thurs., April 21 | Game 4 – (2) Pittsburgh at (3) N.Y. Rangers | New York > Sunrise, Fla. |
| Fri., April 22 | Game 5 – (WC1) N.Y. Islanders at (1) Florida* | Sunrise, Fla. > Chicago |
| Sat., April 23 | Game 6 – (2) St. Louis at (3) Chicago* | TBA |
COMPREHENSIVE LOCAL COVERAGE
Through the NBC Sports Regional Networks, comprehensive coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs will be provided daily via NBC Sports Regional Networks, available in more than 43 million U.S. households. NBC Sports Regional Networks serve the hometown fans of the Chicago Blackhawks, Philadelphia Flyers, San Jose Sharks, and Washington Capitals. In-depth coverage for those teams advancing to the postseason includes exclusive regional coverage of first-round games, pre- and post-game shows, and extensive on-line coverage via CSN’s team of NHL Insiders.
For teams that advance past the first round, NBC Sports Regional Networks will deliver extensive pre- and post-game coverage as well as breaking news and analysis throughout each team’s playoff run.
NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA COVERAGE
NBC Sports Live Extra — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will stream 2016 Stanley Cup Playoff coverage via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value to for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms. The NBC Sports Live Extra app is available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire. For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra.
–NBC SPORTS GROUP–
