NHL On NBC Flex Schedule

[Stevedude530]

Note: One game will be chosen to air on each of these dates.

NBC Flex Schedule

Jan. 1, 1:00 PM
Penguins vs. Sabres

Jan. 20, 1:30 PM
Ducks vs. Stars
Bruins vs. Rangers

Feb. 3, 2:00 PM
Rangers vs. Canadiens

Feb. 10, 3:30 PM
Flyers vs. Penguins
Rangers vs. Capitals
Ducks vs. Red Wings

Feb. 17, 3:30 PM
Avalanche vs. Blackhawks
Red Wings vs. Stars
Penguins vs. Sabres
Sharks vs. Rangers

Mar. 2, 12:30 PM
Red Wings vs. Sabres
Flyers vs. Rangers
Thrashers vs. Penguins

Mar. 9, 12:30 PM
Bruins vs. Rangers
Penguins vs. Capitals
Predators vs. Red Wings

Mar. 16, 12 Noon
Flyers vs. Penguins
Bruins vs. Capitals
Red Wings vs. Blue Jackets

Mar. 30, 12:30 PM
Bruins vs. Sabres
Rangers vs. Penguins
Predators vs. Red Wings

Apr. 6, 12:30 PM
Rangers vs. Devils
Penguins vs. Flyers
Blackhawks vs. Red Wings

 

[Bear of Bad News]

Thanks, Steve! Some good matchups amongst the possibilities.

 

[Hunter Gathers]

What if the game you WANT to see isn't selected? Will they revert to their normal local channels? Or is this simply regional?

 

[jkrdevil]

What if the game you WANT to see isn't selected? Will they revert to their normal local channels? Or is this simply regional?

I'm sure they will all be originally scheduled for the local regional channel and the game NBC picks up will move to the NBC slot (which is a different time).

 

[Stevedude530]

They'll be changing the times of each game they don't choose, East Coast games will move to 12/1230, west ones will move to 6/630, etc.

Based on last year's teams, here are the games I would pick:

1/1 1:00 PIT vs. BUF
1/20 1:30 ANA vs. DAL
2/10 1:00 PHI vs. PIT
2/17 1:00 SJ vs. NYR
3/2 3:00 DET vs. BUF
3/9 3:00 PIT vs. WSH
3/16 3:00 DET vs. CLB
3/30 3:00 PIT vs. NYR
4/6 3:00 SJ vs. DAL

 

[RyanMcD29]

Panthers-Islanders? Geez couldn't they at least have an option for one of our games against the Rangers?

 

[Shoalzie]

So there are no longer regional coverage? Is it just one game per weekend...the 'A' broadcast team for the "game of the week"?

To me, I'll be able to watch all of the games as it is with having Center Ice...this change doesn't matter to me really.

 

[State of Hockey]

I'm not a fan of the "one-game" deal with NBC. I like the old "feature" and "regional" games. It also amazes me that Columbus has three possible games, but Minnesota only has one. HELLO??

 

[ru4reals]

NBC freakin sucks. No matter how good the games will be they'll probably cut right in the middle of the game and go to some stupid sporting event like, MODIFIED SHOVEL RACING! Bettman you ********** suck. Get us a better TV deal.

 

[Clarence Beeks]

So there are no longer regional coverage? Is it just one game per weekend...the 'A' broadcast team for the "game of the week"?

To me, I'll be able to watch all of the games as it is with having Center Ice...this change doesn't matter to me really.

Yeah, same here. I'll see the Wings and Pens no matter what, but the thing that sucks is that there is a lot of potential NBC games for both teams, and I personally hate NBC's coverage with a passion.

I really would have to think that the time change is going to piss off a lot of fans that are going to the games. Does anyone know what type of notice will be given for a change from "normal" to "NBC"? It really does matter too, because I know people that are Pens' STH's that live elsewhere and fly in or drive in for weekend games; it makes a big difference in scheduling flights/drives. I hope that they considered that sort of thing.

 

[Clarence Beeks]

NBC freakin sucks. No matter how good the games will be they'll probably cut right in the middle of the game and go to some stupid sporting event like, MODIFIED SHOVEL RACING! Bettman you ********** suck. Get us a better TV deal.

I personally wish they'd just get rid of the national NBC deal altogether.

 

[njdevsfn95]

Feb 10 - Capitals vs Rangers would be RIDICULOUS for HD. Bright RED, WHITE and BLUE colors. No black. No crappy dark-blue, NJ-property-Liberty jerseys.

Apr 6 - Rangers @ Devils. Final game in a new stadium. The crowd will be ridiculous regardless of playoff implications (if any).

Those, other than the probably outdoor game on Jan 1, are games I will guarantee my ass on the couch, watching the game.

 

[Namso]

i bet nbc shows the penguins every week, except bruins/rangers jan 20.

 

[GKJ]

No regional coverage at all?

NBC freakin sucks. No matter how good the games will be they'll probably cut right in the middle of the game and go to some stupid sporting event like, MODIFIED SHOVEL RACING! Bettman you ********** suck. Get us a better TV deal.

Sometimes, in life, you don't get options. And the NHL going to NBC wasn't an option, it was NBC or nothing.

 

[Chileiceman]

lol not a single Canadian team in the options

 

[JacksonGalaxy]

lol not a single Canadian team in the options

Yeah, cause there's always American vs. American teams playing on CBC..

They're trying to market the game to market the game in America, Americans will have more interest in American teams.

 

[Stevedude530]

That's a good think in my opinion.

If I were thinking like NBC, this would be my selection:

Jan. 1 - Penguins vs. Sabres, 1:00 PM
Jan. 20 - Bruins vs. Rangers, 1:30 PM
Feb. 10 - Ducks vs. Red Wings, 1:00 PM
Feb. 17 - Sharks vs. Rangers, 1:00 PM
Mar. 2 - Red Wings vs. Sabres, 3:00 PM
Mar. 9 - Penguins vs. Capitals, 3:00 PM
Mar. 16 - Flyers vs. Penguins, 3:00 PM
Mar. 30 - Bruins vs. Sabres, 3:00 PM
Apr. 6 - Rangers vs. Devils, 3:00 PM

 

[Clarence Beeks]

No regional coverage at all?



Sometimes, in life, you don't get options. And the NHL going to NBC wasn't an option, it was NBC or nothing.

Then I would choose nothing, which in reality equals the normal broadcast on FSN. Fine by me.

 

[Clarence Beeks]

Feb 10 - Capitals vs Rangers would be RIDICULOUS for HD. Bright RED, WHITE and BLUE colors. No black. No crappy dark-blue, NJ-property-Liberty jerseys.

Apr 6 - Rangers @ Devils. Final game in a new stadium. The crowd will be ridiculous regardless of playoff implications (if any).

Those, other than the probably outdoor game on Jan 1, are games I will guarantee my ass on the couch, watching the game.

I think this is a spot on assessment of the "problem" with national broadcasts. People will tune in to watch their team. If their team isn't on, they're not watching (with a few exceptions). I really don't know why the NHL seems to think that the average fan, and even more so the casual fan, would want to watch other teams that they have no connection to.

 

[danno2530]

I don't like the "no regional games" although maybe it isn't too bad. I was up in Boston in march and had to miss Rangers/Islanders because of a bloodbath that was Bruins/Penguins. They did cut to the end of the Rangers game once that ended thankfully.

Here would be my picks:
Jan. 1
1:00 Penguins vs. Sabres

Jan. 20
1:30 Ducks vs. Stars

Feb. 10
1:00 Rangers vs. Capitals

Feb. 17
1:00 Sharks vs. Rangers

Mar. 2
3:00 Flyers vs. Rangers
(I would have picked BUF/DET since they don't play very often, but I dunno how you can't feature a NYR/PHI game besides this one)

Mar. 9
3:00 Penguins vs. Capitals

Mar. 16
3:00 Flyers vs. Penguins

Mar. 30
3:00 Rangers vs. Penguins

Apr. 6
3:00 Rangers vs. Devils

Alot of the same teams here (NYR, PIT, PHI) so I wish they could include a few doubleheaders or something.

 

[Buffaloed]

I personally wish they'd just get rid of the national NBC deal altogether.

I agree. The NHL would be better off buying air time and producing its own broadcasts. In places where the NHL gets lousy ratings, local affiliates can preempt the game with something more profitable like an infomertial or Gilligan's Island rerun. By buying the air time, the NHL game is just like an infomertial and guarantees the affiliate will make money. They'd get more exposure than with NBC and with total control of the broadcast could do much more to promote the sport. The league can try to recover its expenses by selling commercials. The NHL doesn't make a dime off the NBC deal until NBC recovers its costs, and above and beyond that advertising revenues are shared. As far as I know the NHL hasn't realized any revenues from NBC. If the owners and NHLPA can tie up bundles of cash in lockout funds they ought to show that same commitment to providing a decent national broadcast in the USA for the entire season to expose and promote their sport. If NBC is the best they can do, the NHL should go it alone and produce their own content.

 

[Chileiceman]

I agree. The NHL would be better off buying air time and producing its own broadcasts. In places where the NHL gets lousy ratings, local affiliates can preempt the game with something more profitable like an infomertial or Gilligan's Island rerun. By buying the air time, the NHL game is just like an infomertial and guarantees the affiliate will make money. They'd get more exposure than with NBC and with total control of the broadcast could do much more to promote the sport. The league can try to recover its expenses by selling commercials. The NHL doesn't make a dime off the NBC deal until NBC recovers its costs, and above and beyond that advertising revenues are shared. As far as I know the NHL hasn't realized any revenues from NBC. If the owners and NHLPA can tie up bundles of cash in lockout funds they ought to show that same commitment to providing a decent national broadcast in the USA for the entire season to expose and promote their sport. If NBC is the best they can do, the NHL should go it alone and produce their own content.

They can do that? What channel would it be on?

 

[Egil]

Yeah, cause there's always American vs. American teams playing on CBC..

They're trying to market the game to market the game in America, Americans will have more interest in American teams.

I would suggest that a team like the Toronto Maple Leafs would have more fans in the USA than teams like Florida, Phoenix, Nashville etc, and that showing a TML game would get them to watch. It would be interesting to see the ratings of such a game.

 

[Clarence Beeks]

I don't like the "no regional games" although maybe it isn't too bad. I was up in Boston in march and had to miss Rangers/Islanders because of a bloodbath that was Bruins/Penguins. They did cut to the end of the Rangers game once that ended thankfully.

Which is great, and what they should do, unless you're a Penguins or Bruins fan outside of the local market, in which case you can't watch the end of your team's game. Especially frustrating for those of us who pony up the cash for Center Ice for the sole purpose of watching our team when we live out of market and then end up not being able to watch it because of a preemption. Trust me, that's infuriating.

 

[Clarence Beeks]

I agree. The NHL would be better off buying air time and producing its own broadcasts. In places where the NHL gets lousy ratings, local affiliates can preempt the game with something more profitable like an infomertial or Gilligan's Island rerun. By buying the air time, the NHL game is just like an infomertial and guarantees the affiliate will make money. They'd get more exposure than with NBC and with total control of the broadcast could do much more to promote the sport. The league can try to recover its expenses by selling commercials. The NHL doesn't make a dime off the NBC deal until NBC recovers its costs, and above and beyond that advertising revenues are shared. As far as I know the NHL hasn't realized any revenues from NBC. If the owners and NHLPA can tie up bundles of cash in lockout funds they ought to show that same commitment to providing a decent national broadcast in the USA for the entire season to expose and promote their sport. If NBC is the best they can do, the NHL should go it alone and produce their own content.

I think that's an interesting idea. The NHL would be better served by being able to somewhat control the content. As of now, when the game is on NBC, you get a dumbed down, highly corporate broadcast, which serves the interests of basically no one. Real hockey fans hate and and casual fans just don't care. I stand by my previous assumption that using national broadcasts to cater to casual fans is just plain stupid, because the vast majority (I would bet) could care less about the game if the team isn't local(ish) to where they live. It's dumb not to do it like the NFL where you get your local team's game.

Just a thought, but why not have all of the games on Saturday start at the same time, have NBC (or who ever) work a deal with the regional affiliates, and broadcast the local team, with the local broadcast teams, on NBC (or who ever)? Better yet, make them start at two separate times and have a double header where you get one local game and one national game. Just like the NFL, with a different twist on the broadcast teams.

My money is still on the idea that the casual fan could just care less about teams that aren't local to them. It's hard to build common interests among fans they way they do it now.