NBC Sports Group has unveiled their 2015-16 NHL schedule and already fans are digging through all of the times, dates and teams for the 105 games the network will cover. The full schedule, which you can view here, reveals the network’s plans for the regular season including the 2016 Winter Classic, the 2016 All-Star Game, Wednesday Night Rivalry and much more.
Here are five of the biggest takeaways from NBC’s NHL schedule:
1) No Love for Calgary, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Ottawa
NBC’s schedule doesn’t show much love for Canadian teams. The traditional belief is that the American markets won’t tune in for Canadian teams, but Calgary, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Ottawa are the only teams without a game scheduled to appear on NBC or NBCSN in 2015-16. That’s a bit disappointing as all four teams were in the playoffs last season.
2) Jack Eichel Beats Connor McDavid
McDavid was the top selection in the 2015 NHL Draft and has been projected to be the next Wayne Gretzky. Those points aside, it’s the number two selection from the draft – Jack Eichel – who has more games scheduled for NBC and NBCSN.
Eichel and the Buffalo Sabres will have five games televised, while Connor McDavid’s Edmonton Oilers will only have one game – which happens to be against Eichel and the Sabres.
It’s no surprise to see plenty of Sabres games given Buffalo traditionally tops the local ratings, but why not show off the league’s most exciting young talent?
3) Rivalry Night a Mixed Bag
Ever since NBC started their Wednesday Night Rivalry concept, fans have seen some winners and losers. The nuances of a long schedule doesn’t always allow for the most prestigious of matchups, but sometimes the broadcast tries a bit too hard to craft a rivalry where one doesn’t exist. For every Blackhawks-Blues game or Rangers-Islanders game, there’s a Red Wings-Capitals game or some other forced, fabricated rivalry. Wednesday Night Rivalry has done plenty of good ratings for NBCSN though and become a solid franchise for the network, so it’s not going anywhere.
4) Eyes on Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Detroit and Chicago
While some cities are being completely ignored (sorry Canada), other big U.S. markets will have an abundance of coverage. The Blackhawks will be featured 21 times (!) following their Stanley Cup win last season while the Penguins (18), Flyers (18) and Detroit (16) will also be regulars on NBC and NBCSN.
Like every other sport not named the NFL, hockey is driven by big cities and big brands, so expect to see a lot of the teams you always see a lot of once again this year.
5) Outdoor Games = Ratings
As the NHL has learned, moving games outdoors leads to big revenue and huge ratings. That formula won’t last forever, but for the time being, NBC is joining in the cash grab and will feature the league’s Winter Classic and Stadium Series games.
Montreal and Boston will compete in the 2016 Winter Classic in Foxboro while Chicago-Minnesota and Detroit-Colorado will compete in Stadium Series games out in the elements. One story to follow this year will be to see whether this upcoming season’s outdoor games deliver the same monster ratings as past contests.
