It seemed that it just over a month ago that the Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup and it was! Well, the NHL and the NBC Sports Group have announced the 2015-16 schedule. It’s a combined 105 game schedule between NBC and NBCSN, 12 of which will air on the NBC Television Network and the rest of the 93 games will be shown on NBCSN.
It all begins with the defending Stanley Cup Champions Blackhawks raising their banner on Wednesday, October 7 at 8 p.m. ET, taking on Original Six rival New York Rangers.
Following that game will be the Los Angeles Kings hosting their arch-rivals San Jose Sharks at 10:30 p.m.
NBC’s first game will be on Black Friday, November 27 as the Boston Bruins host the Rangers at 1 p.m. ET. NBCSN gets in on the Black Friday action with Blackhawks taking on the Anaheim Ducks at 5 p.m.
NBC will air all of the Outdoor games including the Winter Classic on New Year’s Day as the Bruins will be the home team at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA. They’ll play their arch-rival the Montreal Canadiens at 1 p.m. ET.
Then the NHL Stadium Series games will be held 1n February as the Blackhawks face the Minnesota Wild at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis (2/21) and then six days later (2/27), the Colorado Avalanche will host the Detroit Red Wings at Coors Field in Denver.
NBCSN will have exclusive coverage of the NHL All-Star Weekend from Nashville, TN from January 29-31.
We have NBC Sports Group’s extensive 2,850-word press release below:
NBC SPORTS GROUP TO AIR 105 NHL REGULAR-SEASON GAMES IN 2015-16
NBCSN Opens Season with Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks Hosting New York Rangers in Wednesday Night Rivalry Matchup on Oct. 7 at 8 p.m. ET
2016 NHL Winter Classic Features Montreal Canadiens at Boston Bruins from Gillette Stadium on Jan. 1 at 1 p.m. ET on NBC
NBC Presents Exclusive Coverage of 2016 NHL Stadium Series: Blackhawks-Wild from TDF Bank Stadium on Feb. 21; Red Wings-Avalanche from Coors Field on Feb. 27 in Primetime
NBCSN Presents Coverage of 2016 NHL All-Star from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Jan. 29-31
Sunday Night Hockey Returns to NBCSN with 12 Matchups
NBC Sports Live Extra to Stream All 105 Regular-Season Games Airing on NBC and NBCSNSTAMFORD, Conn. — July 27, 2015 – Coming off the second-most watched Stanley Cup Final on record, and the third-most watched NHL postseason in the last 18 years, NBC Sports Group will deliver coverage of 105 NHL regular-season games during the 2015-16 season, featuring 12 games on NBC and 93 games on NBCSN. The 105 regular-season games are the most ever scheduled across NBC Sports Group heading into a season. All games will be streamed live via NBC Sports Live Extra.
Schedule highlights include:
- Opening Night doubleheaders on Oct. 7 on NBCSN, beginning with a Wednesday Night Rivalry Original Six matchup between the defending Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks and New York Rangers at 8 p.m. ET, as the Blackhawks raise their 2015 Stanley Cup Championship banner to the United Center rafters. Opening Night coverage continues with a Wednesday Nightcap at 10:30 p.m. ET, when the Los Angeles Kings host the rival San Jose Sharks.
- NBC will present the 2016 NHL Winter Classic between the Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins from Gillette Stadium, home of the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, on Jan. 1 at 1 p.m. ET.
- NBC will air exclusive coverage of the 2016 NHL Stadium Series, featuring the Blackhawks and Minnesota Wild on Sunday, Feb. 21 from TCF Bank Stadium at the University of Minnesota, and the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche at Coors Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies, on Saturday, Feb. 27 in primetime.
- NBCSN will present coverage of the NHL All-Star Game from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., home of the Nashville Predators. NHL All-Star will take place Friday, Jan. 29 through Sunday, Jan. 31, and will include the NHL Fantasy Draft, NHL All-Star Skills Competition™ and the NHL All-Star Game.
- NBC airs the NHL Thanksgiving Showdown with a doubleheader on Black Friday, beginning at 1 p.m. ET when the Boston Bruins host the Rangers. Thanksgiving Showdown shifts to the west coast at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN with a rematch of the Western Conference Final, as the Anaheim Ducks host the Blackhawks.
- NBC and NBCSN will combine to showcase a tripleheader on Hockey Day In America on Sunday, February 21. The action starts on NBC at 12:30 p.m. ET, when the Buffalo Sabres host the Pittsburgh Penguins, followed by the NHL Stadium Series at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC, with the Wild and Blackhawks. Hockey Day In America shifts to NBCSN with an Original Six matchup to close out the tripleheader, as the Rangers host the Detroit Red Wings.
- The 2015-16 regular season on NBCSN will feature 24 Wednesday Night Rivalry telecasts, plus six Wednesday Nightcaps that will showcase Western Conference teams, including the Kings, Sharks and Avalanche.
- NBCSN will air 12 Sunday Night Hockey matchups on NBCSN, beginning on January 10. Matchups include Penguins-Capitals, Lightning-Bruins, Blues-Wild, and Maple Leafs-Red Wings, in which first-year Toronto head coach Mike Babcock returns to Detroit to face the team he led for the past decade.
- The Blackhawks, Rangers, Penguins, Red Wings, Wild, Avalanche and Blues will each make 12 appearances across NBC and NBCSN, followed by four teams that will appear 11 times. The Eastern Conference Champion Tampa Bay Lightning will make eight appearances across NBC and NBCSN.
- NBC and NBCSN will air rematches of the 2015 Eastern and Western Conference Finals. NBC will present Blackhawks-Ducks as part of the Thanksgiving Showdown doubleheader on Nov. 27 at 5 p.m. ET. NBCSN will present Rangers-Lightning on Wednesday, Nov. 30, and will also provide coverage of their matchup in New York on April 5, in what will be Tampa Bay’s first visit to Madison Square Garden since Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final.
- Rangers-Penguins, Blackhawks-Wild, Capitals-Flyers, Penguins-Capitals and Kings-Sharks are the most featured regular-season matchups, each appearing three times across NBC and NBCSN.
- NBCSN will provide coverage of the first NHL matchup on U.S. soil between 2015 top NHL draft picks Connor McDavid (No. 1, Edmonton) and Jack Eichel (No. 2, Buffalo), when the Buffalo Sabres host the Edmonton Oilers on March 1.
- 57 of NBC and NBCSN’s 105 telecasts feature at least one Western Conference team, and every U.S. team will appear on NBC or NBCSN in the regular season.
- Bonus games may be added to the schedule once the season is underway.
NHL on NBCSN
NBCSN will televise 93 NHL regular-season games this season, including the Opening Night doubleheader, 24 Wednesday Night Rivalry games, 6 Wednesday Nightcaps, 12 Sunday Night Hockey contests, and NHL All-Star coverage.
NBCSN coverage begins on Wednesday, Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. ET with NHL Live, NBCSN’s live pre- and post-game show, leading into coverage of Rangers-Blackhawks Wednesday Night Rivalry game from United Center in Chicago, Ill., at 8 p.m. ET. Coverage shifts to Los Angeles immediately following Rangers-Blackhawks for the Wednesday Nightcap, featuring the Sharks and Kings.
NHL ON NBC
NHL on NBC coverage begins on Friday, November 27 at 1 p.m. ET, with the Discover NHL Thanksgiving Showdown featuring the New York Rangers at Boston Bruins, marking the first of 12 games that will air on NBC during the regular season. Beginning on January 24, and continuing through the end of the regular season, NBC will present the NHL Game of the Week, generally occurring on Sunday afternoons.
NHL WINTER CLASSIC AND NHL STADIUM SERIES
The annual NHL Winter Classic will take place on January 1, 2016, at Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL’s New England Patriots, in Foxborough, Mass., and will feature the Montreal Canadiens visiting the Boston Bruins. The 2016 NHL Winter Classic will be broadcast on NBC at 1 p.m. ET. Created in 2008, the NHL Winter Classic has produced the five most-watched NHL regular-season games in the past 39 years.
In addition, NBC will present exclusive coverage of the NHL Stadium Series, featuring a pair of games this season. The first Stadium Series game will take place on Sunday, Feb. 21 as part of NBC Sports Group’s Hockey Day In America tripleheader, when the Chicago Blackhawks face the Minnesota Wild at TCF Bank Stadium on the campus of the University of Minnesota. The second Stadium Series game will be played at Coors Field, home of MLB’s Colorado Rockies, in Denver, Colo., on Saturday, Feb. 27, featuring the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT RIVALRY
NBCSN’s exclusive Wednesday Night Rivalry coverage will return for a third season and will feature some of the biggest rivalries in the NHL, including Flyers-Bruins, Blues-Blackhawks, Rangers-Islanders and Penguins-Capitals. The network will air exclusive coverage on Wednesday nights for 24 weeks, with games usually starting at 8 p.m. ET. WNR begins Wednesday, October 7 with Opening Night coverage between the Rangers and Blackhawks.
Last year’s Wednesday Night Rivalry coverage averaged 565,000 viewers, including NBCSN’s opening night presentation of Bruins-Flyers, which averaged 956,000 viewers to mark the most-watched cable season opener on record. Seven of last year’s 10 most-watched NHL regular-season games on NBCSN were Wednesday Night Rivalry matchups.
NBCSN 2015-16 NHL Wednesday Night Rivalry schedule (subject to change):
Date Away Home Time (ET) October 7 N.Y. Rangers Chicago 8 p.m. October 14 Chicago Philadelphia 8 p.m. October 21 Philadelphia Boston 8 p.m. October 28 Pittsburgh Washington 8 p.m. November 4 St. Louis Chicago 8 p.m. November 11 Montreal Pittsburgh 7:30 p.m. November 18 Washington Detroit 8 p.m. December 2 N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Islanders 8 p.m. December 9 Boston Montreal 7:30 p.m. December 16 Pittsburgh Boston 8 p.m. January 6 Pittsburgh Chicago 8 p.m. January 13 Boston Philadelphia 8 p.m. January 20 St. Louis Detroit 8 p.m. January 27 Philadelphia Washington 8 p.m. February 3 Detroit Tampa Bay 8 p.m. February 10 N.Y. Rangers Pittsburgh 8 p.m. February 17 Chicago N.Y. Rangers 8 p.m. February 24 Pittsburgh Boston 7:30 p.m. March 2 Chicago Detroit 8 p.m. March 9 Chicago St. Louis 8 p.m. March 16 Philadelphia Chicago 8 p.m. March 23 Boston N.Y. Rangers 8 p.m. March 30 Washington Philadelphia 8 p.m. April 6 Philadelphia Detroit 8 p.m. WEDNESDAY NIGHTCAP
In addition, NBCSN will present six games on Wednesday nights that will immediately follow Wednesday Night Rivalry matchups. These nightcaps will showcase one or two Western Conference teams. The first of these games will take place on Opening Night, when San Jose visits Los Angeles following Rangers-Blackhawks Wednesday Night Rivalry coverage. Following are the six Wednesday Nightcap games:
Date Away Home Time (ET) October 7 San Jose Los Angeles 10 p.m. October 28 Nashville San Jose 10:30 p.m. December 9 Pittsburgh Colorado 10 p.m. January 20 Minnesota Anaheim 10:30 p.m. January 27 Colorado Los Angeles 10:30 p.m. February 24 San Jose Colorado 10 p.m. SUNDAY NIGHT HOCKEY ON NBCSN
Beginning on January 10, NBCSN will present 12 Sunday Night Hockey matchups. These contests include Red Wings-Rangers, Lightning-Bruins, Blues-Wild and Capitals-Penguins. The Rangers and Wild lead the league with three Sunday Night Hockey appearances apiece. Following is NBCSN’s Sunday Night Hockey schedule:
Date Away Home Time (ET) January 10 New Jersey Minnesota 8 p.m. January 17 Philadelphia Detroit 7:30 p.m. February 14 Philadelphia N.Y. Rangers 7:30 p.m. February 21 Detroit N.Y. Rangers 7 p.m. February 28 Tampa Bay Boston 6 p.m. February 28 Los Angeles Anaheim 9 p.m. March 6 St. Louis Minnesota 8 p.m. March 13 Toronto Detroit 7:30 p.m. March 20 Washington Pittsburgh 6 p.m. March 20 Minnesota Chicago 8:30 p.m. March 27 N.Y. Rangers Pittsburgh 7:30 p.m. April 3 St. Louis Colorado 8 p.m. NHL ALL-STAR– JAN. 29-31 – BRIDGESTONE ARENA, NASHVILLE, TENN.
NBCSN will present extensive coverage of the 2016 NHL All-Star from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., home of the Nashville Predators. NHL All-Star will take place January 29-31, 2016, and will include the NHL Fantasy Draft on Friday, January 29, NHL All-Star Skills Competition™ on Saturday, January 30, and the NHL All-Star Game on Sunday, January 31.
NBC SPORTS GROUP’S STATE-OF-THE ART STUDIOS
NHL studio programming throughout much of the 2015-16 season will originate from NBC Sports Group’s state-of-the-art International Broadcast Center, located in Stamford, Conn.
NHL Live, NBCSN’s live pre- and post-game show with highlights and analysis of NHL matchups, will air before and after most games. A 60-minute edition of NHL Live will air prior to most games, while a 30-minute post-game show, NHL Overtime, will air immediately following most games.
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 comprehensive coverage of the 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. The NBC Sports Live Extra app is available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store and Apple TV.
NBC Sports Group 2015-16 NHL regular-season schedule (subject to change):
Date Away Home Network Time (ET) Wed., Oct. 7 N.Y. Rangers Chicago NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Oct. 7 San Jose Los Angeles NBCSN 10 p.m. Thur., Oct. 8 Minnesota Colorado NBCSN 9 p.m. Tues., Oct. 13 Tampa Bay Detroit NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Oct. 14 Chicago Philadelphia NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Oct. 20 Dallas Philadelphia NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Oct. 21 Philadelphia Boston NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Oct. 27 Tampa Bay St. Louis NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Oct. 28 Pittsburgh Washington NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Oct. 28 Nashville San Jose NBCSN 10:30 p.m. Tues., Nov. 3 Los Angeles St. Louis NBCSN 8:30 p.m. Wed., Nov. 4 St. Louis Chicago NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Nov. 10 Buffalo Tampa Bay NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Nov. 11 Montreal Pittsburgh NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Tues., Nov. 17 Minnesota Pittsburgh NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Nov. 18 Washington Detroit NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Nov. 25 Philadelphia N.Y. Islanders NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Nov. 25 Chicago San Jose NBCSN 10 p.m. Fri., Nov 27 N.Y. Rangers Boston NBC 1 p.m. Fri., Nov. 27 Chicago Anaheim NBCSN 5 p.m. Tues., Dec. 1 Minnesota Chicago NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Dec. 1 Pittsburgh San Jose NBCSN 10:30 p.m. Wed., Dec. 2 N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Islanders NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Dec. 8 Detroit Washington NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Dec. 9 Boston Montreal NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Dec. 9 Pittsburgh Colorado NBCSN 10 p.m. Tues., Dec. 15 Colorado Chicago NBCSN 8:30 p.m. Wed., Dec. 16 Pittsburgh Boston NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Dec. 22 Montreal Minnesota NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Dec. 22 San Jose Los Angeles NBCSN 10:30 p.m. Tues., Dec. 29 Nashville St. Louis NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Dec. 30 N.Y. Rangers Tampa Bay NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Dec. 30 Philadelphia San Jose NBCSN 10:30 p.m. Fri., Jan. 1 Montreal Boston NBC 1 p.m. Mon., Jan. 4 Los Angeles Colorado NBCSN 9 p.m. Tues., Jan. 5 Montreal Philadelphia NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Jan. 6 Pittsburgh Chicago NBCSN 8 p.m. Thur., Jan. 7 Philadelphia Minnesota NBCSN 8 p.m. Sun., Jan. 10 New Jersey Minnesota NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Jan. 12 Tampa Bay Colorado NBCSN 9 p.m. Wed., Jan. 13 Boston Philadelphia NBCSN 8 p.m. Thur., Jan. 14 Chicago Montreal NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Sun., Jan. 17 Philadelphia Detroit NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Mon., Jan. 18 Pittsburgh St. Louis NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Jan. 19 Chicago Nashville NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Jan. 20 St. Louis Detroit NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Jan. 20 Minnesota Anaheim NBCSN 10:30 p.m. Sun., Jan. 24 Pittsburgh Washington NBC 12:30 p.m. Mon., Jan. 25 Buffalo N.Y. Rangers NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Tues., Jan 26 Chicago Carolina NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Tues., Jan 26 Colorado San Jose NBCSN 10 p.m. Wed., Jan. 27 Philadelphia Washington NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Jan. 27 Colorado Los Angeles NBCSN 10:30 p.m. Tues., Feb. 2 Florida Washington NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Feb. 3 Detroit Tampa Bay NBCSN 8 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 4 N.Y. Islanders Washington NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 4 Anaheim Los Angeles NBCSN 10 p.m. Sun., Feb. 7 Philadelphia Washington NBC 12 p.m. Tues., Feb. 9 Dallas Minnesota NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Feb. 10 N.Y. Rangers Pittsburgh NBCSN 8 p.m. Sun., Feb. 14 Boston Detroit NBC 3 p.m. Sun., Feb. 14 Philadelphia N.Y. Rangers NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Tues., Feb. 16 Dallas St. Louis NBCSN 8 p.m. Wed., Feb. 17 Chicago N.Y. Rangers NBCSN 8 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 18 Detroit Pittsburgh NBCSN 7 p.m. Sun., Feb. 21 Pittsburgh Buffalo NBC 12:30 p.m. Sun., Feb. 21 Chicago Minnesota NBC 3:30 p.m. Sun., Feb. 21 Detroit N.Y. Rangers NBCSN 7 p.m. Mon., Feb. 22 San Jose St. Louis NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., Feb. 23 Columbus Detroit NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Feb. 24 Pittsburgh Boston NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., Feb. 24 San Jose Colorado NBCSN 10 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 25 Nashville Chicago NBCSN 8 p.m. Sat., Feb. 27 Detroit Colorado NBC 8 p.m. Sun., Feb. 28 Washington Chicago NBC 12:30 p.m. Sun., Feb. 28 Tampa Bay Boston NBCSN 6:30 p.m. Sun., Feb 28 Los Angeles Anaheim NBCSN 9 p.m. Tues., March 1 Edmonton Buffalo NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., March 2 Chicago Detroit NBCSN 8 p.m. Sun., March 6 St. Louis Minnesota NBCSN 8 p.m. Mon., March 7 Arizona Colorado NBCSN 9 p.m. Tues., March 8 Pittsburgh N.Y. Islanders NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., March 9 Chicago St. Louis NBCSN 8 p.m. Sun., March 13 Pittsburgh N.Y. Rangers NBC 12:30 p.m. Sun., March 13 Toronto Detroit NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Mon., March 14 Los Angeles Chicago NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., March 15 Detroit Philadelphia NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Tues., March 15 Boston San Jose NBCSN 10 p.m. Wed., March 16 Philadelphia Chicago NBCSN 8 p.m. Sun., March 20 Washington Pittsburgh NBCSN 6 p.m. Sun., March 20 Minnesota Chicago NBCSN 8:30 p.m. Mon., March 21 Philadelphia N.Y. Islanders NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Tues., March 22 Los Angeles Minnesota NBCSN 8:30 p.m. Wed., March 23 Boston N.Y. Rangers NBCSN 8 p.m. Sun., March 27 N.Y. Rangers Pittsburgh NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Mon., March 28 Buffalo Detroit NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Mon., March 28 Los Angeles San Jose NBCSN 10 p.m. Tues., March 29 Colorado St. Louis NBCSN 8:30 p.m. Wed., March 30 Washington Philadelphia NBCSN 8 p.m. Sun., April 3 Boston Chicago NBC 12:30 p.m. Sun., April 3 St. Louis Colorado NBCSN 8 p.m. Tues., April 5 Tampa Bay N.Y. Rangers NBCSN 7:30 p.m. Wed., April 6 Philadelphia Detroit NBCSN 8 p.m. Sat., April 9 Pittsburgh Philadelphia NBC 3 p.m. Sat., April 9 TBD TBD NBCSN TBD
And that will do it.
