NBC Sports today announced they’re airing 103 of the 1,230 NHL games next season on NBC and NBCSN, and the Detroit Red Wings will be featured in up to 15 of them. Here’s the list:
October 15, 8 p.m. ET – Boston vs. Detroit
October 29, 7:30 p.m. ET – Detroit vs. Washington
November 5, 8 p.m. ET – Detroit vs. NY Rangers
November 26, 7:30 p.m. ET – Philadelphia vs. Detroit
December 10, 8 p.m. ET – Toronto vs. Detroit
December 29, 7 p.m. ET – Detroit vs. Boston
January 18, 8 p.m. ET – Buffalo vs. Detroit (NBC)*
February 5, 9 p.m. ET – Detroit vs. Colorado
February 11, 8 p.m. ET – Detroit vs. Pittsburgh
February 18, 7:30 p.m. ET – Detroit vs. Chicago
March 4, 8 p.m. ET – NY Rangers vs. Detroit
March 8, 12:30 p.m. ET – Detroit vs. Boston (NBC)*
March 15, 12:30 p.m. ET – Detroit vs. Pittsburgh (NBC)*
March 22, 12:30 p.m. ET – St. Louis vs. Detroit (NBC)*
April 2, 7:30 p.m. ET – Boston vs. Detroit
*Asterisks denote a flex game. From the press release:
For the eighth consecutive season, the NHL and NBC Sports Group will utilize flex scheduling, which provides the ability to select from up to four games on Sunday afternoons. At least 13 days prior to the scheduled games, the NHL and NBC Sports will announce which game will air.Looking at the calendar, one thing that immediately jumps out is that of the 12 NBCSN games, the Red Wings will feature prominently on Wednesday Night Rivalry, playing 7 matchups against teams like Chicago, Boston, and Toronto. (The Philadelphia game on November 26 isn’t listed in the press release as a WNR game despite falling on a Wednesday.)
Another major issue for those of us who prefer to listen to Fox Sports Detroit announcers will have to suffer through lots of Doc, Edzo, and Pierre. For the next decade. So long as the Red Wings have the pull they do nationally, and as long as “the streak” continues to thrust Detroit into the national conversation, they’ll be in double digits in terms of national games every year. On the other hand, for someone like me who lives somewhere other than Detroit, more national games means more easy access to more Red Wings games. Moarrrr hockey.
Finally, if it seems like we’re playing Boston a lot on NBC, you’d be correct. The four matchups on the schedule are tied for most featured matchup with Los Angeles vs. San Jose, Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia, and St. Louis vs. Chicago.
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