FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, April 16th, 2015
NBC SPORTS GROUP’S “NHL PLAYOFF PASS” – DAY 2
Game 1 – (4) Penguins-(1) Rangers – 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN
Game 1 – (3) Red Wings-(2) Lightning – 7:30 p.m. ET on CNBC
Game 1 – (4) Wild-(1) Blues – 9:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN
Game 1 – (4) Jets-(1) Ducks – 10:30 p.m. ET on CNBC
Live Pre-game Coverage Begins at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN with NHL Live
Two-Time Stanley Cup Winner Shawn Thornton Joins NHL Live as Guest Analyst Tonight and Tomorrow
Where in the World is Pierre McGuire? Inside-the-Glass Analyst Continues Run of Eight Games in Eight Days
STAMFORD, Conn. – April 16, 2015 – NBC Sports Group continues its complete first-round coverage of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs with a pair of Game 1 doubleheaders on NBCSN and CNBC, starting with NHL Live at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
Game coverage begins at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN when the (1) New York Rangers host the (4) Pittsburgh Penguins, and continues on CNBC at 7:30 p.m. ET when the (3) Detroit Red Wings visit the (2) Tampa Bay Lightning. The second game in NBCSN’s doubleheader features Game 1 between the (4) Minnesota Wild and the (1) St. Louis Blues. Coverage concludes on CNBC at 10:30 p.m. ET, when the (1) Anaheim Ducks host the (4) Winnipeg Jets.
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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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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.
THE PASS – THURSDAY, APRIL 16 (All times ET)
| Time | Coverage | Network | Commentators |
| 6 p.m. | NHL Live | NBCSN | Liam McHugh, Mike Milbury, Keith Jones |
| 7 p.m. | Game 1 – (4) Pittsburgh at (1) N.Y. Rangers | NBCSN | Mike “Doc” Emrick , Pierre McGuire |
| 7:30 p.m. | Game 1 – (3) Detroit at (2) Tampa Bay | CNBC | John Forslund, Andy Brickley |
| NHL Live (Intermission Reports) | CNBC | Russ Thaler, Jeremy Roenick, Anson Carter |
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| 9:30 p.m. | Game 1 – (4) Minnesota at (1) St. Louis | NBCSN | Dave Strader, Brian Engblom |
| 10:30 p.m. | Game 1 – (4) Winnipeg at (1) Anaheim | CNBC | Dave Randorf, Garry Galley, Cassie Campbell-Pascall |
TONIGHT – APRIL 16 – NHL LIVE BEGINS AT 6 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
NHL Live, hosted by Liam McHugh, Mike Milbury and Keith Jones, begins at 6:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Russ Thaler, Jeremy Roenick and Anson Carter will host CNBC’s studio coverage.
GAME 1 – (4) PENGUINS AT (1) RANGERS – 7 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
Sidney Crosby and the (4) Pittsburgh Penguins renew their rivalry with Henrik Lundqvist and the (1) New York Rangers in Game 1 of their first-round series tonight at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN. The Rangers earned their first Presidents’ Trophy since 1994 with a league-leading 113 points, a single-season franchise record. Pittsburgh defeated Buffalo 2-0 in the final game of the regular season to clinch the second Wild-Card spot.
Emmy Award-winning play-by-play commentator and Sports Illustrated 2014 Media Person of the Year Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick, and Inside-the-Glass analyst and Emmy Award-winner Pierre McGuire will have the call from Madison Square Garden in New York.
GAME 1 – (3) RED WINGS AT (2) LIGHTNING – 7:30 P.M. ET ON CNBC
CNBC’s playoff coverage begins tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET, when Steven Stamkos and the (2) Tampa Bay Lightning host Henrik Zetterberg and the (3) Detroit Red Wings. The Lightning have won three of four meetings between the two clubs, but Detroit earned a 4-0 win in their most recent meeting on March 28. This marks the first time the Red Wings and Lightning will meet in the postseason.
John Forslund (play-by-play) and Andy Brickley (Inside-the-Glass analyst) will have the call from Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla.
GAME 1 – (4) WILD AT (1) BLUES –AT 9:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
Zach Parise and the (4) Minnesota Wild begin their first-round series against T.J. Oshie and the (1) St. Louis Blues tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. The two teams met on the final day of the regular season in St. Louis, with the Blues earning a 4-2 victory, snapping the Wild’s franchise-record 12-game road winning streak. Minnesota’s second half push was led by goaltender Devan Dubnyk, who recorded a 27-9-2 record after joining the team in January. The Blues notched their second division title in the last four seasons, and tied Anaheim for the most points in the Western Conference (109).
Dave Strader (play-by-play) and Brian Engblom (Inside-the-Glass analyst) will call the action from Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo.
GAME 1 – (4) JETS AT (1) DUCKS – AT 10:30 P.M. ET ON CNBC
Game 1 coverage concludes tonight at 10:30 p.m. ET on CNBC, as Ryan Getzlaf and the (1) Anaheim Ducks welcome Dustin Byfuglien and the (4) Winnipeg Jets in Game 1 of their first-round series. Anaheim earned its third straight Pacific Division title this season, while the Jets earned the final Wild Card spot to mark their first postseason appearance since relocating from Atlanta in 2011.
Dave Randorf, Garry Galley and Cassie Campbell-Pascall will provide live game commentary from Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.
If tonight’s Penguins-Rangers game on NBCSN runs past 9:45 p.m. ET, into the start of Wild-Blues, puck drop of Wild-Blues will be shown live on NHL Network until Penguins-Rangers has concluded. Wild-Blues will return to NBCSN immediately following the conclusion of Penguins-Rangers.
If tonight’s Red Wings-Lightning game on CNBC runs past 10:41 p.m. ET, into the start of Jets-Ducks, puck drop of Jets-Ducks will be shown live on NHL Network until Red Wings-Lightning has concluded. Jets-Ducks will return to CNBC 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.
TWO-TIME STANLEY CUP WINNER SHAWN THORNTON JOINS NHL LIVE AS GUEST ANALYST TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
Two-time Stanley Cup winner and current Florida Panthers forward Shawn Thornton will join NHL Live as a guest analyst this Thursday and Friday. Thornton recently completed his 18th season of professional hockey and first season with the Panthers. The veteran forward earned his first Stanley Cup win as a member of the Anaheim Ducks during the 2006-07 season, and was a member of the Boston Bruins’ 2010-11 Stanley Cup-winning squad.
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS PIERRE MCGUIRE? INSIDE-THE-GLASS ANALYST CONTINUES RUN OF EIGHT GAMES IN EIGHT DAYS
NBC Sports Group’s Emmy Award-winning Inside-the-Glass analyst Pierre McGuire will handle analyst duties on tonight’s Penguins-Rangers telecast, marking the second of eight games in eight straight days of telecasts for McGuire. McGuire kicked off the 2015 playoffs last night on the call for Islanders-Capitals, and will return to Washington on Friday to call Game 2 of the Islanders-Capitals series. McGuire then returns to New York to provide commentary on NBC’s primetime broadcast of Game 2 of Penguins-Rangers on Saturday night, followed by Game 3 of Islanders-Capitals on Long Island on NBC on Sunday afternoon.
The remainder of McGuire’s first-round telecast schedule will be dependent upon series matchups and results. Last season, McGuire covered 20 Stanley Cup Playoff games in 20 days, spanning nearly 9,000 miles, to kick off the 2014 postseason.
Following is Pierre McGuire’s upcoming telecast schedule:
| Date | Coverage | Travel |
| Wed., April 15 | Game 1 – (3) N.Y. Islanders at (2) Washington | Washington D.C. > NYC |
| Thur., April 16 | Game 1 – (4) Pittsburgh at (1) N.Y. Rangers | NYC > Washington D.C. |
| Fri., April 17 | Game 2 – (3) N.Y. Islanders at Washington | Washington D.C. > NYC |
| Sat., April 18 | Game 2 – (4) Pittsburgh at (1) N.Y. Rangers | NYC > Long Island |
| Sun., April 19 | Game 3 – (2) Washington at (3) N.Y. Islanders | Long Island > Pittsburgh |
| Mon., April 20 | Game 3 – (1) N.Y. Rangers at (4) Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh > Long Island |
| Tue., April 21 | Game 4 – (2) Washington at (3) N.Y. Islanders | Long Island > Pittsburgh |
| Wed., April 22 | Game 4 – (1) N.Y. Rangers at (4) Pittsburgh | TBA |
COMPREHENSIVE LOCAL COVERAGE
Comprehensive coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs will be provided daily via NBC Sports Regional Networks, available in more than 50 million U.S. households. Comcast SportsNet Chicago and Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic will provide the hometown fans of the Chicago Blackhawks and Washington Capitals, respectively, with comprehensive coverage throughout their teams’ Stanley Cup Playoff runs, including exclusive regional coverage of first-round games, pre- and post-game shows and extensive on-line coverage via Comcast SportsNet’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, and tablets – will stream comprehensive coverage of games airing on NBC, NBCSN, USA Network and CNBC on NBC Sports Live Extra 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 and Windows Store.
For more information about NBC Sports Group shows and properties, including press releases, photos, talent and executive bios and headshots, please visit NBCSportsGroupPressBox.com.
— NBC Sports Group —
