FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, September 28th, 2017

2017-18 NHL REGULAR SEASON BEGINS NEXT WEDNESDAY ON NBCSN WHEN TWO-TIME DEFENDING STANLEY CUP CHAMPION PITTSBURGH PENGUINS HOST ST. LOUIS BLUES

Opening Night Doubleheader on Wednesday, Oct. 4 on NBCSN – Blues-Penguins at 8 p.m. ET, Followed by Flyers-Sharks at 10:30 p.m. ET

Opening Night Coverage Begins with Special Two-Hour Edition of NHL Live at 6 p.m. ET, Followed by Penguins Stanley Cup Banner Raising Ceremony

Red Wings Open Little Caesars Arena in Detroit vs. Wild on Thursday, Oct. 5, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, Followed by Flyers-Kings at 10 p.m. ET

Mike Milbury to Join Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick and Pierre McGuire as Game Analyst Beginning in Pittsburgh on Opening Night

STAMFORD, Conn. – Sept. 28, 2017 – The 2017-18 NHL regular season next Wednesday, Oct. 4, with an opening night doubleheader on NBCSN starting at 8 p.m. ET, when Sidney Crosby and the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins host Vladimir Tarasenko and the St. Louis Blues. Coverage shifts west at 10:30 p.m. ET, when Claude Giroux and the Philadelphia Flyers visit Joe Pavelski and the San Jose Sharks.

Opening night coverage on NBCSN begins with a special two-hour edition of NHL Live at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN, as Liam McHugh, Jeremy Roenick, Keith Jones and NHL Insider Bob McKenzie discuss the major storylines heading into the season. Pre-game coverage will also feature the banner raising ceremony at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, as the Penguins celebrate their second consecutive Stanley Cup title, before officially beginning the 2017-18 campaign.

NBCSN presents a second doubleheader in as many nights to open the season on Thursday, Oct. 5, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET, when Henrik Zetterberg and the Detroit Red Wings play their first-ever regular-season game at Little Caesars Arena – following nearly 40 years at historic Joe Louis Arena – when they host Ryan Suter and the Minnesota Wild. Next Thursday’s coverage continues at 10 p.m. ET, when Jonathan Quick and the Kings host the Flyers. Pre-game coverage begins with NHL Live at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Following is NBCSN’s NHL schedule for the opening week of the season:

Date Coverage Network Time (ET)
Wed., October 4 NHL Live NBCSN 6 p.m.
Opening NightSt. Louis at Pittsburgh NBCSN 8 p.m.
Opening Night – Philadelphia at San Jose NBCSN 10:30 p.m.
NHL Overtime NBCSN 1 a.m.*
Thurs., October 5 NHL Live NBCSN 6:30 p.m.
Minnesota at Detroit^ NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
Philadelphia at Los Angeles NBCSN 10 p.m.
NHL Overtime NBCSN 12:30 p.m.*

^first-ever regular-season game at Little Caesars Arena
*immediately following game coverage

MIKE MILBURY TO JOIN MIKE ‘DOC’ EMRICK AND PIERRE MCGUIRE AS GAME ANALYST BEGINNING IN PITTSBURGH ON OPENING NIGHT

NHL on NBC studio analyst and former NHL player, coach, and general manager Mike Milbury will join five-time Emmy Award-winner Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick and Emmy Award-winning ‘Inside-the-Glass’ analyst Pierre McGuire as a game analyst, beginning with NBCSN’s opening night telecast featuring the Blues and Penguins. Milbury moves into booth while long-time NHL on NBC analyst and U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame member Eddie Olczyk undergoes treatment for colon cancer. Milbury will serve as a game analyst for NBCSN’s Wednesday Night Rivalry telecasts, as well as the Thanksgiving Showdown and 2018 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on NBC.

Kenny Albert, John Forslund, Gord Miller, Brendan Burke, Chris Cuthbert, and Alex Faust will also handle play-by-play duties for NHL games on NBC and NBCSN throughout the year. In addition to McGuire, Brian Boucher returns as an ‘Inside-the-Glass’ analyst throughout the season.

Forslund and Boucher handle commentary of Flyers-Sharks from San Jose following Blues-Pens on Wednesday. Emrick and McGuire will have the call of the inaugural regular-season game at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Thursday, while Forslund and Jim Fox call Flyers-Kings in Los Angeles.

NBC Sports Group’s NHL studio team returns for the 2017-18 season, with hosts Liam McHugh, Kathryn Tappen and Paul Burmeister, as well as analysts Keith Jones, Jeremy Roenick,  Anson Carter, and Boucher. In addition, this year’s studio coverage will feature current and recently retired players, which will be announced in the coming weeks. Hockey Insiders Bob McKenzie and Darren Dreger return for their fourth seasons with NBC Sports Group, providing team reports and league news throughout the season.

McHugh anchors opening night coverage with Jones, Roenick, and McKenzie, while Tappen hosts next Thursday’s studio coverage with Jones and Roenick.


2017-18 REGULAR SEASON COVERAGE ON NBC & NBCSN

NBC Sports Group will deliver coverage nearly 100 NHL regular-season games during the 2017-18 season on NBC and NBCSN. All games will be streamed live via NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app. Click here for more information on NBC Sports Group’s comprehensive NHL coverage this season.

 

THE NHL ON NBCSPORTS.COM AND THE NBC SPORTS APP: NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will provide live streaming coverage of the 2016-17 NHL regular season 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.

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app are powered by Playmaker Media and available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire.


PROHOCKEYTALK ON NBCSPORTS.COM

NBCSports.com’s ProHockeyTalk provides up-to-the-minute news and information about the NHL with the top stories each day around the league, as well as video highlights and goals of the week. PHT Morning Skate provides fans with a recap of the night’s events, as well as a preview of the big matchups to come. Click here for more information.


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 2017-18 NHL season with in-depth news, analysis and original programming on the teams that matter most.

-NBC SPORTS GROUP-