NESN will deliver live and exclusive high definition coverage of up to 72 Boston Bruins games during the 2010/11 season, the network's 26th season covering Bruins hockey. The season gets started in historic fashion as the Bruins travel to Prague in the Czech Republic with two games against the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday, October 9th and Sunday, October 10th. NESN's coverage will begin with WB Mason Bruins Face-Off Live at 11:30 AM on Saturday and at 9:30 AM on Sunday.
"Over 25,000 Bruins fans showed up at TD Garden in September to get an early glimpse of Tyler Seguin and the Bruins rookies," said Joel Feld, NESN's executive vice president of programming and executive producer. "NESN knows there is a level of fan passion and excitement this year that will make our coverage more exciting than ever. With the return of our veteran broadcast team and the debut of The Big Bad Bruins Show with Kathryn Tappen, NESN is the definitive source for all Bruins action, news and information."
Former ESPN anchor Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley return for their sixth season together in the NESN broadcast booth. They will be joined by reporter Naoko Funayama who enters her third season with the network. Kathryn Tappen will once again lead NESN’s studio team as host of WB Mason Bruins Face-Off Live, NESN’s intermission coverage and Bruins Overtime Live presented by Ace Ticket. She will once again be joined by former Bruins favorites Mike Milbury, Barry Pederson, and Gord Kluzak.
In a financially motivated decision, Edwards and Brickley will not be in Prague with the Bruins for their season opening games with the Coyotes, calling both games from NESN's studios to save on expenses. However, Funayama will be on-site in Prague. Edwards told Chad Finn of the Boston Globe that the decision, while disappointing is understandable.
Brickley will set the stage for the regular season on Thursday, October 14 at 7:00 PM with The Bricks: 2010/11 Bruins Season Preview; a half-hour special that will look ahead to the coming season and introduce Bruins fans to the team’s exciting off-season additions. Brickley will also make his pre-season predictions about the Bruins and the rest of the league and look back at the team’s season opening trip to Prague.
NESN will launch a new weekly show called The Big Bad Bruins Show on Saturday, October 23 at 6:00 PM. Hosted by Kathryn Tappen, the Original NESN Entertainment production will feature in-depth one-on-one conversations with Bruins players, a regular segment with Bruins President Cam Neely, and weekly reports from reporter Funayama.
The Instigators with Milbury will return for its third season on Thursday, October 28 at 10:30 PM. Milbury holds back nothing when sharing his opinions on the hottest issues and latest controversies in the NHL. Edwards and Brickley will once again mix it up with Milbury on a regular basis along with other special guest commentators including another episode this winter featuring former Bruins coach and hockey icon Don Cherry.
NESN’s in-depth coverage of the Bruins also extends online with NESN.com’s Bruins beat writer Doug Flynn providing daily Bruins news and analysis along with a live blog during every game. Edwards, Brickley, Tappen and Funayama will also contribute regularly over the course of the season. NESN.com offers the network’s best Bruins highlights and interviews in addition to interactive fan forums, polls, photo galleries, quizzes and Top 10 Bruins prospect lists.
NESN’s Bruins coverage also extends to fans outside New England who subscribe to a sports package that includes NESN National, the network’s national television service. NESN’s pre and post-game shows, Bruins in 2 replays, Bruins Classic games, The Bricks, The Big Bad Bruins Show and The Instigators are all available to NESN National subscribers throughout the season. NESN’s Bruins game broadcasts can also be enjoyed outside New England by purchasing the NHL Center Ice package.
Source: NESN
Joe Tetreault is Managing Editor of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He can be contacted here through The Biz of Baseball
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NBC Sports’ coverage of Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final earned the best overnight rating (4.1 rating and 7 share) for a Game 2 on record (NHL overnight data prior to 1975 is unavailable) and was up 21 percent over last year (3.4, Game 2, Detroit vs. Pittsburgh). The broadcast peaked at a 4.7/8 from 10:30-11 p.m. ET. The Chicago market delivered a 25.1/39, while Philadelphia earned an 18.5/29.
The Stanley Cup Final on NBC again won the night, as it did Saturday for Game 1, finishing No. 1 in primetime (2.4, Adults 18-49).
“These historic viewership numbers are the result of compelling stories and great play on the ice, two markets on fire for their teams, terrific coverage by our North American television partners, and a season’s worth of unprecedented fan engagement on multiple platforms across North America,” said NHL COO John Collins.
Last night’s milestone comes on the heels of healthy ratings for Game 1, which earned the best overnight rating for a Game 1 in 11 years. The 2.8 overnight rating and 6 share was the highest since 1999 (Buffalo vs. Dallas, 3.7 on Fox).
Canada also scored big during Game 1 of the Final with CBC achieving an average audience of 3.16 million, an 83-percent increase from Game 1 in 2009. NBC’s two-game average overnight rating is a 3.5, the best for the first two games of a Stanley Cup Final in 11 years (3.8 on Fox in 1999, Buffalo vs. Dallas) and up 17 percent over last year (3.0).
Top 10 Markets for First Two Games on NBC
1. Chicago – 21.0
2. Philadelphia – 15.9
3. Buffalo – 8.8
4. Pittsburgh – 4.5
5. Indianapolis – 4.0
6. Detroit – 3.8
7. Ft. Myers – 3.5
8. Las Vegas – 3.3
T9. Orlando – 3.2
T9. Columbus – 3.2
T9. St. Louis – 3.2
NON-NHL MARKETS SHOWING HUGE INCREASES
Three non-NHL markets have shown triple digit rating increases for the first two games of the Final led by Seattle, which has seen a remarkable 213 percent rise. Kansas City (+140%) and Memphis (+120) have also earned substantial gains.
DIGITAL STRATEGY PAYS DIVIDENDS
The NHL is engaging and connecting with more fans than ever on its digital platforms and the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs has continued that trend. Some highlights:
• For the first three days of the Stanley Cup Final, page views are up 77 percent over last year and video starts are up 185 percent
• For the first 48 days of the playoffs, video starts on NHL.com are up 148 percent over last year
• Unique visitors to NHL.com are up 28 percent
• Page views are up 50 percent
• Mobile page views are up 182 percent
• April was the most trafficked month in the history of NHL.com in terms of unique visitors surpassing 17 million
• NHL.com ranked as the number two site in terms of percentage change in unique
visitors from March to April according to comScore.
TV MILESTONES IN THE 2010 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS
• VERSUS' coverage of the first two rounds of 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs was the mostwatched first two rounds on cable on record with an average of 775,000 viewers for the 54 telecasts (Stanley Cup Playoff cable viewership became available by Nielsen for the 1994 playoffs)
• NBC and VERSUS have combined for the most-watched first two rounds since 1997 (ABC, ESPN, ESPN2)
• Game 1 of the Blackhawks-Sharks series on NBC earned an 11.2 rating in Chicago, beating the Cubs, White Sox and Boston-Orlando broadcasts combined
• On Thursday April 22, the Blackhawks, with 278,000 viewers in Chicago, prevailed over some tough local competition: Bulls (255,000 viewers, playoff game against Cleveland and LeBron James), NFL Draft (138,000) and the Chicago Cubs vs. NY Mets (137,000 viewers)
• The Flyers Game 7 victory over the Bruins was the most watched Flyers game in Comcast SportsNet history with an 11.7 rating and 345,000 households, topping the previous record set two days earlier.
• CBC’s coverage of Game 7 between the Montreal Canadiens and Pittsburgh Penguins drew an average audience of 4.24 million viewers, ranking as the sixth largest Stanley Cup Playoff audience in CBC history.
• On French language RDS, the Canadiens-Penguins Game 7 was the most-viewed NHL telecast in the network’s history with 2.69 million viewers.
• The game also scored on FSN Pittsburgh averaging a 26.4 HH rating, the highest-rated game ever on the network. At one point 43 percent of all households in the Pittsburgh DMA were tuned into FSN.
• There were three major Boston-area sports events televised on May 7 and Game 4 of the Bruins-Flyers series scored the best numbers, earning an 8.3 local Nielsen rating (328,000 viewers) on Versus in the Boston metered market besting the Yankees-Red Sox matchup on NESN, which earned a 6.3 local rating (223,000 viewers) to finish in second, while Game Three of the Cavaliers-Celtics NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals earned a 4.1 local rating (142,000 viewers) on ESPN.
• TSN's audience of 2.8 million for the Washington-Montreal Game 7 was the highest audience ever recorded for an NHL game on TSN and was the most-watched program on Canadian television Wednesday night in all key demographics.
• The Montreal-Washington series ranks as the most-watched playoff series ever on TSN (any round) with an average audience of 1.8 million viewers over seven games.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE NHL’S RECORD-BREAKING BUSINESS SUCCESS IN 2009-10
• Corporate sponsorship was up 20 percent
• New League partners this season include Geico, Starwood Hotels, Enterprise Rent-ACar, LG Electronics and Hershey’s Canada
• Ad spending on NHL® media increased by 37 percent over last season
• NHL.com ad revenue is up 50 percent over last year
• Revenue from big event platforms, led by the Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic®, are up 22 percent over last season
• Unique visitors to NHL.com surpassed last year’s record by 32 percent
• NHL Game Center Live™ subscriptions were up 25 percent
• NHL Network subscribers have increased by 104 percent
• Sales at SHOP.NHL.com were up 12 percent from last year’s record
• Viewership for NBC’s Game of the Week telecasts were up 13 percent
• Ratings for exclusive telecasts on Versus were up 20 percent
• NHL Mobile™ reached 1.6 million page views, an increase of 233 percent over last season
Source: Nielsen Media Research US and Nielsen Media Research Canada / BBM
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(THE BIZ OF BASEBALL)
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, as well as a contributor to the Forbes SportsMoney blog. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).
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New England Sports Network (NESN) earned a 10.3 household rating in the Boston DMA for last night’s Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinal against the Philadelphia Flyers. This is the third highest Bruins game rating in NESN’s 26 year history covering the team behind only last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinal Game 7 (14.2) and the 2004 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal Game 7 (11.2)NESN’s ratings in the key demographic categories are also impressive, including a 10.8 for Men 25-54 and an 8.0 for Adults 25-54. The Men 25-54 demo rating was #1 in the Boston DMA on Tuesday night while the Adults 25-54 demo rating was second in the market only to American Idol.
NESN will deliver regionally exclusive coverage of game 7 from TD Garden on Friday, May 14 at 7:00 PM. Jack Edwards (play-by-play) and Andy Brickley (color analyst) will handle the call with Naoko Funayama serving as NESN’s rinkside reporter. NESN’s coverage begins at 6:30 PM with a WB Mason Bruins Face-Off LIVE hosted by Kathryn Tappen who will be joined by Bruins studio analyst Gord Kluzak.
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).
USA Today is reporting that U.S. viewership of the 2010 NHL playoffs is up a whopping 24 percent, making the number the largest average audience in the past 10 years. In addition, the NHL noted that corporate sponsorship is up 20 percent and that ad spending on NHL media increased by 37 percent over last season.
The first round of the 2010 playoffs have seen some compelling games and apparently the viewers across North American have taken notice. “The first round of the playoffs was dramatic and exciting, and our passionate fans consumed the game on television, online and in arena in a big way,” said NHL Chief Operating Officer John Collins. “Fans are enjoying the playoffs and we are now uniquely positioned to engage and serve them in ways we never have before, especially through our digital platforms.”
TSN viewership exhibited the greatest gains in comparison to last year, averaging 1.07 million viewers for the first round of the playoffs. This is an 89 percent increase over 2009. The positive news was not limited to television. Over 17 million unique visitors logged onto NHL.com in April, thus becoming the most-trafficked month in the history of NHL.com.
Although these robust ratings and revenues are encouraging, the NHL is hoping that the early departure of the Washington Capitals and the Phoenix Coyotes from the 2010 playoffs will not slow down this year’s encouraging ratings.
The loss of the Caps hurts. Washington D.C. is reasserting itself as a major hockey television market due to the exciting play of young players like Alexander Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and Semyon Varlamov.
The Coyotes are the feel-good story of the 2009-2010 season. The franchise, a symbol of the NHL’s attempts at growing the game by bringing hockey to non-traditional markets, has seldom been competitive since relocating from Winnipeg to Arizona. The team’s turnaround this year was unforeseeable, as almost one year ago the franchise was concluding another subpar season and on the brink of filing for bankruptcy protection. Now the team has a new owner, the NHL, and is poised to challenge the Western Conference elite for supremacy.
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Last night’s Bruins-Penguins game garnered a 6.2 household rating which is the highest rated regular season game in NESN’s history.
NESN’s highest rated Bruins game ever was a 14.2 rating for game 7 of last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinal against the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Bruins next two games are against the two teams that are trailing them in the Eastern Conference standings with a game against the New York Rangers on Sunday on NBC and a game against the Atlanta Thrashers on Tuesday night, with coverage beginning at 6:30 PM on NESN.
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network.
DirecTV and VERSUS have settled
their dispute that lastest from
August till today
THIS IS BREAKING NEWS...
DIRECTV and Comcast have reached an agreement to return VERSUS to the DIRECTV programming lineup today. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
As of publication, the channel had return to DirecTV's channel listing on 603.
VERSUS will return to the same DIRECTV programming packages it was in at the end of August 2009 showing cycling content.
"We are pleased that both sides were able to work out a satisfactory deal to bring this programming back to our customers," said Derek Chang, executive vice president, Content Strategy and Development, DIRECTV.
"We're excited that we were able to come to a fair agreement that puts VERSUS back in millions of homes with DIRECTV in time for our busy spring programming schedule," said Jamie Davis, president of VERSUS. "We look forward to super-serving these fans with NHL regular-season and playoff coverage, our first live UFC event and much more."
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).
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About a year ago, SportsBusiness Journal reported that the Chicago Blackhawks local TV ratings were up 72.6 percent from the previous year. In 2008-’09, the Blackhawks averaged a 1.07 rating. So far this season, they have already set NHL viewing records on Comcast SportsNet Chicago. December 9, the Blackhawks overtime victory against the New York Rangers drew a 3.03, setting the record. December 23, they broke it again posting a 3.27 in a 3-0 victory against the Boston Bruins.
Comcast SportsNet isn’t the only place the Blackhawks are setting records. WGN-TV announced Dec. 21 that Chicago’s 3-0 victory against the Detroit Red Wings brought in a 4.1 household rating, surpassing their previous 3.3 high. WGN reported its ratings are up 47 percent overall from last season and up 111 percent in adults 25-54.
If you are wondering, the top local TV rating last season was the Buffalo Sabres, blowing away the rest of the league with an 8.87. The next highest was the Penguins with a 6.14. This season, two teams who scored in the 2’s in ratings in 2008-’09 will be facing off in the Winter Classic. Last season the Winter Classic drew 4.4 million viewers, making it the most-viewed NHL regular season game in history.
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Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
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VERSUS announced the Washington Capitals vs. Philadelphia Flyers game Tuesday night drew its highest ratings since the NHL joined the network in 2005. The 0.6 edged the previous high which was opening night of this season when the Capitals vs. Boston Bruins got a 0.5. VERSUS says ratings are up 33 percent from last season. The high ratings come despite DirecTV no longer carrying VERSUS due to a contract dispute.
VERSUS deal includes 54 or more NHL games each season as well as coverage of Stanley Cup Playoff games. The network will carry games 2 and 3 of the Stanley Cup this season. In January of 2008, the NHL and VERSUS reached an extension of their contract to keep the NHL on VERSUS at least through 2011. This season, the network paid $72.5 million and will pay inflationary costs in the future.
See more on the ongoing battle between DirecTV and VERSUS see the following:
VERSUS Network President Takes Battle with DirecTV to the Airwaves
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The battle between DirecTV
and VERSUScontinues, even
as ratings for the NHL are
up on the network
President of the Versus network Jamie Davis said on the NHL Live radio show that ratings are up 30 percent. But, Davis wasn’t on the show to talk about a ratings boost, he was on to talk about a dispute between Versus and DirecTV.
Davis claimed that DirecTV was insisting on a clause to take Versus away from 6 million existing subscribers, then offer the Versus network for an additional fee. DirecTV accused Versus of asking for a 20 percent increase.
"We have an offer to them on the table which is for not one extra penny than what they were paying before, and we're not asking for any extra money or extra distribution," Davis said. "We just wanted to continue on a status-quo deal with no strings attached and they have rejected that."
Davis’s claim that Versus didn’t want more money may contradict a statement by Comcast, who owns Versus. Comcast said in a statement, “Versus offered DirecTV a fair and reasonable offer to carry the network at the market price. We hope DirecTV will make the right decision for their customers and put Versus back on the air."
That’s not what DirecTV says. A statement released by DirecTV after dropping Versus said “Comcast, which owns Versus, has forced us to take down the channel because we will not submit to their unfair and outrageous demands.”
Davis implied in his interview that the two sides could still come to an agreement. "The two sides are talking, that's good news," he said. "If there was no dialogue, that would be really, really bad."
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]]>
NESN earned a 3.9 HH rating in the Boston DMA for Saturday’s Bruins – Hurricanes game, the network’s highest rated Bruins season opening broadcast in 25 years of covering the team. NESN’s 3.9 rating was also the highest average household rating recorded in the Boston DMA during the game’s 7:00 PM to10:00 PM window, besting all other broadcast and cable networks.
“Bruins fans have picked up right where they left off after a record setting 2008-2009 season,” said Sean McGrail , NESN President and CEO. “We are delighted to start the season with another strong rating, demonstrating that Bruins fans are excited that hockey is back in season here in Boston .”
NESN’s Bruins pre-game show WB Mason Bruins Faceoff LIVE also reached a major benchmark on Saturday. The season-opening edition generated a 1.1 HH rating in Boston and was seen in 28,000 homes, more than any Bruins pre-game show during the 2008-2009 season.
The network’s previous high rating for a season opening broadcast came on January 23, 1995 when the network earned a 3.8 rating for its first broadcast of that lockout shortened season.
Source: NESN
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network.
The following is the NHL Network's U.S. 2009-10 Live NHL regular-season schedule, as released by the National Hockey League
|
Day
|
Date
|
Away
|
Home
|
Time (ET)
|
|
Fri.
|
Oct. 2
|
NY Rangers
|
Pittsburgh
|
7:30 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Oct. 3
|
Chicago
|
Florida
|
Noon
|
|
Sat.
|
Oct. 3
|
St. Louis
|
Detroit
|
3 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Oct. 3
|
Toronto
|
Washington
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Oct. 3
|
Calgary
|
Edmonton
|
10 p.m.
|
|
Wed.
|
Oct. 7
|
Phoenix
|
Pittsburgh
|
7:30 p.m.
|
|
Thurs.
|
Oct. 8
|
Chicago
|
Detroit
|
7:30 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Oct. 10
|
Pittsburgh
|
Toronto
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Wed.
|
Oct. 14
|
Pittsburgh
|
Carolina
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Thurs.
|
Oct. 15
|
San Jose
|
Washington
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Oct. 17
|
NY Rangers
|
Toronto
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Wed.
|
Oct. 21
|
Vancouver
|
Chicago
|
8:30 p.m.
|
|
Thurs.
|
Oct. 22
|
Boston
|
Philadelphia
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Oct. 24
|
NY Rangers
|
Montreal
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Wed.
|
Oct. 28
|
Los Angeles
|
San Jose
|
10:30 p.m.
|
|
Thurs.
|
Oct. 29
|
Washington
|
Atlanta
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Oct. 31
|
Toronto
|
Montreal
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Wed.
|
Nov. 4
|
San Jose
|
Columbus
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Thurs.
|
Nov. 5
|
Nashville
|
Anaheim
|
10 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Nov. 7
|
Detroit
|
Toronto
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Wed.
|
Nov. 11
|
NY Islanders
|
Washington
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Thurs.
|
Nov. 12
|
New Jersey
|
Pittsburgh
|
7:30 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Nov. 14
|
Calgary
|
Toronto
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Wed.
|
Nov. 18
|
Dallas
|
Detroit
|
7:30 p.m.
|
|
Fri.
|
Nov. 20
|
Philadelphia
|
San Jose
|
10 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Nov. 21
|
Washington
|
Toronto
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Sat.
|
Nov. 28
|
Washington
|
Montreal
|
7 p.m.
|
|
Wed.
|
Dec. 2
|
Vancouver
|
New Jersey
|
7 p.m. |
Source: National Hockey League
OTHER NEWS FROM THE BUSINESS OF SPORTS NETWORK
(THE BIZ OF BASEBALL)
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- This Time It Counts: MLB Postseason TV Ratings
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(THE BIZ OF FOOTBALL)
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(THE BIZ OF BASKETBALL)
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network.
A new National Hockey League (NHL) season begins on Thursday 1st October live at midnight on ESPN America and for the first time in the UK in high definition on new channel ESPN HD when the Montreal Canadiens visit the Toronto Maple Leafs.
This is the first of over 300 live and as-live NHL games to feature on ESPN’s UK television channels during the 2009/10 season, including the four-game CompuWare NHL Premiere games in Stockholm and Helsinki. ESPN America, ESPN and ESPN HD will show the best of the regular season, play-offs and Stanley Cup Final games, as part of their most comprehensive coverage of the world’s premier ice hockey league in the UK ever. In addition, over 1,000 games a season – around 40 games a week – will be available to watch online via subscription at ESPN360.com, either live or on-demand.
This season’s CompuWare NHL Premiere games in Europe come from Stockholm with Detroit Red Wings facing St Louis Blues and Helsinki with Chicago Blackhawks against Florida Panthers. ESPN America will broadcast live double headers on both Friday 2nd October and Saturday 3rd October from 5pm. After the games end in Europe, the NHL heads back to North America where every team will aim to make it to the play-offs and a chance of winning the championship.
Earlier this year, the Pittsburgh Penguins lifted the Stanley Cup for the third time in their history after a tense series that ended 4-3 against the Detroit Red Wings and both those teams are expected to be there or thereabouts come the end of the season. With at least seven games a week shown on ESPN America, ESPN, ESPN HD and ESPN360.com throughout the season, there will be more than enough NHL to satisfy even the most hungry hockey fans. The live action will be accompanied by nightly coverage with NHL On The Fly on ESPN America, the NHL Network’s signature show bringing fans NHL highlights from all the games that night insuring viewers will always be up-to-date on all the latest action from around the league.
Jeroen Oerlemans, ESPN, Vice President, TV Channels Europe, Middle East and Africa commented: “We are very proud to broadcast the NHL Premiere games live from the Globe Arena in Sweden and Hartwall Areena in Helsinki, the home country of several high profile NHL players. With a big expat community in the UK, we know that fans will also appreciate our authentic coverage for the 300 other games which come directly from the arenas in the US and Canada. We also hope that once sports fans see the quality of our programming from the NHL and other North-American leagues, they will regularly tune into ESPN America, ESPN (HD) and ESPN360.com.”
Select Read More to see ESPN's NHL schedule in the US and International channels such as Sky and Virgin Media
]]>
The Washington Capitals will have all of their 82 regular-season games televised during the 2009-10 season, the team announced today in conjunction with its broadcast partner, Comcast SportsNet. Comcast SportsNet will televise 75 games, with 49 games available in high definition.
Coverage plans include 62 games on Comcast SportsNet and 12 games on CSN+. Comcast SportsNet will open its coverage with Washington’s first home game of the year on Saturday, Oct. 3 against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Verizon Center at 7 p.m. The game will be complimented by extensive pre- and postgame coverage on the network.
Joe Beninati and former Capital Craig Laughlin return to provide play-by-play and color commentary, respectively, on the local broadcasts, with Al Koken reporting rinkside. Lisa Hillary will also join the broadcast as a reporter.
CSN+ is widely carried by cable and satellite carriers throughout the Comcast SportsNet viewing area. The channel position for CSN+ varies by provider, but all channels are listed on www.csnwashington.com. One game will be carried on The Comcast Network, which is also available to cable and satellite providers in the area.
Versus will broadcast seven games nationally, including Washington’s season opening game on Thursday, Oct. 1 against the Boston Bruins. Versus will also broadcast on Oct. 6 and Oct. 27 vs. Philadelphia, Nov. 17 at N.Y. Rangers, March 8 vs. Dallas and April 5 vs. Boston. On April 6 when Washington plays at Pittsburgh, Versus will broadcast nationally, while CSN will broadcast locally.
(NOTE: Versus is currently not being carried by DirecTV. See here for more details)
Select Read More to see the complete Capitals broadcast schedule for 2009-10 season
DirecTV is threatening to drop VERSUS
from the channel line-up on Sept 1 (Tues)
when their contract exprires.
VERSUS, who has the exclusive cable rights to the National Hockey League, as well as the IndyCar Series and collegiate sports featuring teams from conferences such as the Pac-10, Big 12, Mountain West and Ivy League, is in danger of being dropped by satcaster DirecTV, the largest satellite television provider in the US, when their contract expires this coming Tuesday, Sept. 1. The channel is looking for an increase in rate fees, while DirecTV is looking to keep rates where they currently are. DirecTV has been running a ticker on VERSUS letting viewers know of the provider's intent to drop VERSUS should a deal not be brokered by the deadline.
“Since our last deal with DirecTV, VERSUS has added many marquee properties and has become the fastest growing sports cable network in the country,” VERSUS said in a statement. “Despite this tremendous momentum, we are offering DirecTV the ability to carry VERSUS the same way it does today at the market price for the network. We continue to talk and are hopeful that we will reach an agreement.”
VERSUS is owned by Comcast, the nation’s largest cable provider.
Reached for comment, DirecTV spokesman Robert Mercer noted that efforts continue to reach a deal before the Tuesday deadline, but made it clear, a rate increase is not favored.
“We are continuing to try and negotiate a fair deal, but we intend to hold the line on our programming costs and protect our customers against unwarranted price increases that may result from Comcast’s demands that we believe are discriminatory and unrealistic given current market realities.”
VERSUS enters the 2009/10 NHL regular season claiming that they are seeing double-digit ratings and viewership growth last year. VERSUS reports that the network saw a 27-percent growth in viewership for the playoffs overall after seeing viewership jump more than 20-percent during the regular season as compared to the year prior. Games 3 and 4 of the 2009 Stanley Cup Final were the highest-rated and most-watched telecasts in network history. VERSUS also noted that those games were the most watched Final round on cable since 2002. Additionally, VERSUS aired the highest-rated Conference Semifinal and Conference Final rounds on cable in more than a decade.
DirecTV counters that those ratings are not as significant as they seem.
“Versus' overall ratings are poor and have not increased nearly enough to justify what we're paying now, let alone the significant fee hike Comcast is demanding,” said Mercer. “And ratings increases, such as they are, off a low base are not necessarily that meaningful.”
DirecTV cites Nielsen Media Research data showing VERSUS is only averaging 3,000 more viewers at any given time in 2008-2009 compared to 2006-2007, when they rebranded from Outdoor Life Network (OLN). For DirecTV’s selection of channels, DTV claims VERUS ranked 61st among 74 English ad supported cable nets in the DirecTV universe.
For fans of the NHL, they may not see a need to panic, should negotiations not yield a new agreement for carriage of VERUS on DirecTV by Tuesday. The first scheduled game for the network is opening night on Oct 1 with the Capitals visiting the Bruins. All told, VERSUS has a slate of 54 regular season games, as well as Stanley Cup playoff games, and Games 3 and 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
The real pain inflicted for sports fans may be those that are interested in college football games carried on VERSUS. The network has confirmed several Mountain West and Ivy League conference games including Texas at Wyoming on Sept. 12 (3:30 PM ET), Florida State at BYU on Sept. 19 (7:00 PM ET), and Cornell at Yale on Sept 26 (12:00 PM).
As to whether a deal will be brokered in time, sources indicate that tensions are high in the negotiations. But, as one close to the activity said, they believed a deal would be reached by the 11th hour. “VERSUS has made considerable in-roads over the last year,” the source said. “But, at the end of the day, VERSUS needs to continue to grow their footprint, and cannot do so without DirecTV.”
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(THE BIZ OF BASEBALL)
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).
CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA has announced a 76-game regular season broadcast schedule for the 2009-10 season, headlined by 25 all-Canadian matchups.
CBC’s 57th regular season makes its debut Thursday, Oct. 1, with an Original Six matchup between the Montreal Canadiens at the Toronto Maple Leafs, at 7 p.m. ET, followed by the Calgary Flames hosting the Vancouver Canucks, at 10 p.m. The action continues on Saturday, Oct. 3, as Scotiabank Hockey Tonight makes its regular season debut, at 6:30 p.m. ET, followed by four more big matchups: Toronto at Washington, Montreal at Buffalo and Ottawa at NY Rangers, at 7 p.m. ET (distribution TBD), with Calgary taking on Edmonton, at 10 p.m. ET.
The 2009 Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins make their first of four appearances on CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA when they face-off against the Maple Leafs in Toronto, on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 7 p.m. ET, followed by a Western Conference matchup, at 10 p.m. ET, between Montreal and Edmonton.
Other highlights from CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA 2009-10 broadcast schedule include: the Scotiabank Hockey Tonight pre-game show with host Ron MacLean, Saturday night doubleheaders all season long and marquee games, including the 2009 Hall of Fame Game, on Nov. 7, the Canadiens 100th Anniversary Game versus the Bruins, the NHL Winter Classic from Fenway Park and the 10th annual TIM HORTONS HOCKEY DAY IN CANADA from Stratford, Ont. The season culminates with the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs and exclusive coverage of the 2010 Stanley Cup Final. Additional games may be added to CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA broadcast schedule closer to the start of the season.
Viewers of CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA regular season coverage will again be able to watch the CBC game of their choice with live and on-demand online video streaming of all games, including Scotiabank Hockey Tonight and CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada I-Desk—all available at CBCSports.ca.
Hockey fans can visit CBCSports.ca 24 hours a day, seven days a week for live and on-demand video streaming of all games as well as comprehensive NHL coverage, including weekly columns and insider Twitter updates from CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA personalities, breaking news, in-depth reports, broadcast schedules and more.
Complete broadcast details for the upcoming season of CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA will be available in the coming weeks.
Select Read More to see the 2009 CBC HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA broadcast schedule
]]>
The National Hockey League and NBC Sports today announced an extension through the 2010-11 season of their successful revenue-sharing partnership -- one that has achieved viewership milestones, programming and production innovations, awards and critical acclaim. The joint announcement was made by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and Ken Schanzer, President, NBC Sports.
"The NHL/NBC partnership has been terrific. Our association has led to such technical innovations as the 'Inside the Glass' reporting and to such programming advancements as the extremely popular Winter Classic," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final was broadcast television's most-watched hockey game in 36 years, which makes clear the NHL and NBC are building an audience, are building momentum and are perfectly positioned to continue growing the game."
Schanzer said: "We're thrilled to be able to continue our relationship with the NHL and build on all the positive momentum on and off the ice. Together, we have attained viewership milestones not seen in more than three decades. And the Winter Classic, in just two years, has become one of the highlights of the sports calendar. We strongly believe this is a league that is poised for continued growth."
NBC Sports' 2010 NHL coverage begins on New Year's Day with the third annual NHL Winter Classic. They will also continue to broadcast games throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs and up to five Stanley Cup Final games.
The revenue-sharing partnership between NBC and the NHL was announced in May 2004, launched in January 2006 and previously extended in 2007 and 2008.
Source: National Hockey League, NBC Sports
Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network.
Follow Maury Brown and the Business of Sports Network on Twitter
Friday night's deciding Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final on NBC Sports was the most-watched NHL game in 36 years with an average of 8 million viewers (5/10/73, Stanley Cup Final Game 6 on NBC, Montreal-Chicago, 9.4 million). Overall, the series averaged 5.6 million viewers for the five games on NBC, the best since 2002 on ABC (three telecasts, Detroit-Carolina, 5.8 million). Friday's Game 7 earned a 4.3 rating and an 8 share, the best for a series-ending game in six years (6/9/03, Game 7, Anaheim-New Jersey, 4.6/8).
NBC Sports' Game 7 broadcast finished No. 1 for the night in every category including viewership and household ratings.
Competitive Notes:
- NBC won Friday night by a margin of 191 percent in Adults 18-49 (3.2 vs. 1.1 for second-place CBS) and by 41 percent in total viewers (7.7 million vs. CBS's 5.5 million).
- The broadcast of Game 7 beat the ABC-CBS-Fox competition combined in Adults 18-49, Adults 18-34, Men 18-34, Women 18-34, Men 18-49 and Men 25-54.
- The 3.2 rating in Adults 18-49 makes this NBC's top-rated Friday night since the Beijing Olympics last August.
Source: NBC
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network
Follow Maury Brown and the Business of Sports Network on Twitter
The Pittsburgh Penguins scored a major victory in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals to capture their third championship, but NBC and the NHL were big winners, as well.According to Nielsen Media Research, Game 7 in primetime saw an average of 7.51 million viewers and a 3.0 rating/11 share from 8-11 p.m (EDT) on the Peacock network. To add to the impressive average number, the final half-hour of the game saw its highest ratings garnering a 9.07 million HH and a 3.7 rating with a 12 share.
The game had NBC winning all slots in primetime.
Here is the break down by the half hour for the game, as reported by Marc Bernan of Mediaweek:
The Stanley Cup Finals, Game 7 (NBC)
8:00 p.m.: Viewers: 5.78 million (#1), A18-49: 2.2/ 9 (#1)
8:30 p.m.: Viewers: 6.37 million (#1), A18-49: 2.5/10 (#1)
9:00 p.m.: Viewers: 7.27 million (#1), A18-49: 2.9/11 (#1)
9:30 p.m.: Viewers: 7.55 million (#1), A18-49: 3.1/10 (#1)
10:00 p.m.: Viewers: 9.01 million (#1), A18-49: 3.7/12 (#1)
10:30 p.m.: Viewers: 9.07 million (#1), A18-49: 3.7/12 (#1)
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network
Follow Maury Brown and the Business of Sports Network on Twitter
If you’re a fan of hockey, you can’t help but say that the Stanley Cup Finals have been outstanding. With each game, ratings have continued to climb, albeit modestly, and given the excitement of Game 4 which saw the Pens knot of the Series 2-2 with the Red Wings, chances are good that they will continue that way, even if it did go up against Game 1 of the NBA Finals. The increased interest has not been lost on NBC, according to Bruce Dowbiggin of the Globe and Mail:
Now, NBC and the NHL are set to announce an extension to their relationship for another two years, past the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics and Stanley Cup playoffs.
It will likely be a continuation of the no-money-down/split-revenues-after-costs arrangement that has existed since the two sides fell into each other’s arms after the NHL lockout in 2004-05.
Games 1 and 2 of the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals on NBC earned a 3.0 overnight rating over the weekend, or 5.33 million average viewers households in the US, up 11 percent from the 2.7 for NBC’s first two Stanley Cup telecasts last year.
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network
Follow Maury Brown and the Business of Sports Network on Twitter
NHL Network and Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK), today announced a long-term agreement with the NHL Network to add the network to its Digital Classic level of service by the start of the 2009-10 NHL season. Under the terms of the agreement, the NHL Network will reach nearly two-thirds of the Comcast’s total digital customer base. Financial terms were not released
“We’re excited to extend our relationship with Comcast and its customers by providing more NHL programming to more fans, as this is another important step in NHL Network’s ongoing pursuit of broader distribution,” said John Collins, NHL COO. “We are pleased that Comcast has seen value in the NHL Network to expand its commitment and are confident that there will be more expansion deals for the Network to come.”
“Comcast is a major destination for sports fans, and our relationship with the NHL is an important part of our sports strategy,” said Matt Bond, Executive Vice President, Content Acquisition. “The NHL is seeing intense popularity these days, and as one of the largest distributors of NHL games we’re happy to bring more fans into the living-room arena through our popular Digital Classic service.”
In addition to live NHL games aired on NHL Network, Comcast’s Digital Classic customers now will have access to special event programming on-location at NHL Winter Classic, NHL All-Star, NHL Entry Draft and Stanley Cup Final, post-game press conferences, IIHF World Junior hockey, documentaries and profiles, the signature daily live highlight show – NHL on the Fly – which airs nightly throughout the hockey season and much more. Additionally, fans will have access to more NHL On Demand programming including condensed games, player profiles, historic games and more.
Source: Comcast
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network
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Sunday's Game 2 of the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals which saw the Detroit Red Wings go up 2-0 over the Pittsburgh Penguins won the Sunday night Nielsen ratings battle in all demos pulling 5.33 million average viewers, which was a higher average than average for the entire Stanley Cup Finals series last year. The game pulled the following
8:00PM
18-49 Rating - 2.1
18-49 Share - 6
18-34 Rating - 2.0
18-34 Share - 6
Viewers Live+SD (000) - 5.093
9:00PM
18-49 Rating - 2.5
18-49 Share - 7
18-34 Rating - 2.4
18-34 Share - 7
Viewers Live+SD (000) - 5.563
10:00PM
18-49 Rating - 2.4
18-49 Share - 6
18-34 Rating - 2.3
18-34 Share - 6
Viewers Live+SD (000) - 5.471
Full Data for NHL Stanley Cup Finals Ratings, 1995-2008
| Year | Net | Games | HH Rating | HH Share | Avg. HHs (million) | Avg. Viewers (million) | Teams |
| 2008 | NBC/VS | 6 | 2.6 | 5 | 2.929 | 4.479 | Pittsburgh vs. Detroit |
| 2007 | NBC/VS | 5 | 1.2 | 2 | 1.307 | 1.764 | Ottawa vs. Anaheim |
| 2006 | NBC/OLN** | 7 | 1.8 | 3 | 1.994 | 2.834 | Carolina vs, Edmonton |
| 2005 | | NHL Season Cancelled | |||||
| 2004 | *ABC/ESPN | 7 | 2.2 | 4 | 2.366 | 3.286 | Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Calgary Flames |
| 2003 | *ABC/ESPN | 7 | 2.4 | 4 | 2.557 | 3.627 | New Jersey Devils vs. Anaheim Ducks |
| 2002 | ABC | 3 | 3.6 | 7 | 3.815 | 5.768 | Detroit Red Wings vs. Carolina Hurricanes |
| 2001 | ABC | 5 | 3.3 | 6 | 3.371 | 5.058 | Colorado Avalanche vs. New Jersey Devils |
| 2000 | ABC | 4 | 3.7 | 8 | 3.734 | 5.511 | New Jersey Devils vs. Dallas Stars |
| 1999 | FOX | 3 | 3.4 | 6 | 3.379 | 4.873 | Dallas Stars vs. Buffalo Sabres |
| 1998 | FOX | 1 | 3.3 | 6 | 3.230 | 4.830 | Detroit Red Wings vs. Washington Capitals |
| 1997 | FOX | 1 | 4.0 | 8 | 3.930 | 6.370 | Detroit Red Wings vs. Philadelphia Flyers |
| 1996 | FOX | 2 | 3.6 | 7 | 3.430 | 5.090 | Colorado Avalanche vs. Florida Panthers |
| 1995 | FOX | 2 | 3.4 | 8 | 3.254 | 5.210 | New Jersey Devils vs. Detroit Red Wings |
*ABC had 5 telecasts & ESPN had 2 telecasts so this is the combined average of both networks.
**NBC had 5 telecasts & OLN had 2 telecasts so this is the combined average of both networks.
Data for 2006-8 is Live+SD, all previous years is Live viewing.
Source: Nielsen Media Research
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network
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ESPNU, ESPN2, ESPN and ESPN360.com will combine for expanded live coverage of all 15 games from the 2009 NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Championships, March 27-April 11. ESPNU will telecast eight regional games exclusively, while ESPN2, ESPN Classic and ESPN360.com, ESPN’s signature broadband service, also will offer live coverage of regional semifinals and finals. The Frozen Four, live from the Verizon Center in Washington, DC, will be presented in high definition on ESPN and ESPN2, while ESPN360.com also will provide extensive live coverage. Coverage of the tournament begins Sunday, March 22, at 11:30 a.m. ET, with the NCAA Hockey Selection Show on ESPN2 HD and ESPN360.com, hosted by John Buccigross, who will be joined by analysts Barry Melrose and former University of Michigan hockey standout Sean Ritchlin.
ESPNU will provide extensive coverage of the tournament, from the regional semifinals Friday, March 27, through the regional finals Sunday, March 29. Also, on Friday, April 10, at 7 p.m., the network will present the Hobey Baker Award live in high definition from the Verizon Center in Washington, DC. The presentation honors college ice hockey’s top men’s player and will be hosted by Clay Matvick and Ben Holden.
ESPN HD, ESPN2 HD and ESPN360.com will showcase the Frozen Four, live from Washington, DC, with the national semifinal games Thursday, April 9, at 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on ESPN2 HD and ESPN360.com. The national championship will be live Saturday, April 11, at 7 p.m. on ESPN HD and ESPN360.com.
The Frozen Four telecasts will feature Gary Thorne (play-by-play), Barry Melrose (analyst), Clay Matvick (ice-level reporter) calling all the action from Washington, DC, and John Buccigross will host the intermissions. At regional semifinals and finals, commentators include Justin Kutcher (play-by-play), Damian DiGuilian (analyst) and Ken Hodge (ice-level reporter) in the East Regional, Bridgeport, Conn.; Matvick and Jim Paradise in the West Regional, Minneapolis; Buccigross and Melrose in the Northeast Regional, Manchester, N.H.; with Ben Holden and Sean Ritchlin calling the action in the Midwest Regional, Grand Rapids, Mich. Also during coverage of the regional round, the ESPNU studio will be anchored by Lowell Galindo and Bob Norton.
ESPN360.com is available at no cost to millions of U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel. Users accessing ESPN360.com from an on-campus “.edu” or “.mil” network domain in the United States receive free, seamless access to the NCAA Div. I Men’s Ice Hockey Championships and hundreds of other live college and professional sporting events each month. ESPN360.com is also available via affiliated ISPs nationwide, including AT&T, Verizon, RCN, Insight, Frontier, Cavalier, Charter, Mediacom, Conway, Grande Communications and many more.
Schedule (all times Eastern)
NCAA Selection Show
Sun., Mar 22 | 11:30 a.m. | ESPN2 HD / ESPN360.com |
NCAA Div. I Men’s Ice Hockey Championships
Date | Time | Regional | Site | Network |
Fri., Mar 27 | 3 p.m. | East Regional Semifinal #1 | Bridgeport, Conn. | ESPNU HD |
| 5:30 p.m. | West Regional Semifinal #1 | Minneapolis | ESPN2 HD / ESPN360.com |
| 6:30 p.m. | East Regional Semifinal #2 | Bridgeport | ESPNU HD |
| 9 p.m. | West Regional Semifinal #2 | Minneapolis | ESPNU HD |
Sat., Mar 28 | 2 p.m. | Northeast Regional Semifinal #1 | Manchester, N.H. | ESPN2 / ESPN360.com |
| 4 p.m. | Midwest Regional Semifinal #1 | Grand Rapids, Mich. | ESPNU |
| 5:30 p.m. | Northeast Regional Semifinal #2 | Manchester | ESPN2 / ESPN36.com |
| 6:30 p.m. | East Final | Bridgeport | ESPNU HD |
| 7:30 p.m. | Midwest Regional Semifinal #2 | Grand Rapids | ESPN Classic / ESPN360.com |
| 9 p.m. | West Final | Minneapolis | ESPNU HD |
Sun., Mar 29 | 5:30 p.m. | Northeast Final | Manchester | ESPNU |
| 8 p.m. | Midwest Final | Grand Rapids | ESPNU |
Frozen Four
Verizon Center, Washington, DC
Date | Time | Event | Network |
Thur., Apr 9 | 5 p.m. | National Semifinal #1 | ESPN2 HD / ESPN360.com |
| 8:30 p.m. | National Semifinal #2 | ESPN2 HD / ESPN360.com |
Fri., Apr 10 | 7 p.m. | Hobey Baker Award | ESPNU HD |
Sat., Apr 11 | 7 p.m. | NCAA Championship Finals | ESPN HD / ESPN360.com |
Source: ESPN
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network.
Today at 3:00 p.m. ET marks the deadline for teams to bolster their rosters for their 2009 playoff runs. Beginning at noon that day, the League’s three media platforms will simulcast six hours of trade deadline-focused programming that will keep fans informed while providing exclusive access to the League’s movers and shakers and, for the first time, a behind-the-scenes look at how a trade officially goes down.The coverage begins with Don LaGreca, Bill Clement, Billy Jaffe and Jim Fox hosting a special, three hour edition of NHL Live from NHL Radio, which can be heard on XM 204 and Sirius 208 (in the U.S.). The SIRIUS XM Radio call-in show originates every weekday from The NHL Store Powered by Reebok in New York City. Breaking trade news, in-depth analysis and interviews with players and Club management will bring the news of the day to listeners as well as those viewing the HD broadcast on NHL Network and the live stream on NHL.com.
Immediately following NHL Live, NHL Network will begin a three-hour NHL Trade Deadline Special. Hosts Brian Duff, Gary Green and Craig Button, along with Clement and Eric Duhatschek, will keep fans abreast of the flurry of closing-minutes activity that traditionally beats the deadline buzzer. With NHL.com still streaming the video and NHL Radio broadcasting the audio over SIRIUS XM Radio, the Trade Deadline Special will provide interviews with traded players and the general managers who made the major moves.
The show will be the first ever to provide a glimpse into the NHL’s Central Registry trade office. Viewers will be able to watch a transaction become finalized through a trade call among the participating general managers and the League officials charged with ensuring that the move complies with all trade and Salary Cap regulations.
What’s more, all day long, NHL Network and NHL.com will run a ticker alerting viewers to all of the deals being reported -- with notification as soon as those trades are deemed official by the League. NHL.com also will maintain a trade tracker of those reported deals, so the League’s official website will be the one-stop online destination for fans to get caught up on all the news of the day.
Source: National Hockey League
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network.
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NHL Winter Classic 2009, broadcast New Year's Day on NBC, was the most-viewed NHL regular season game in almost 34 years. An average of more than 4.4 million Americans watched the Detroit Red Wings defeat the Chicago Blackhawks 6-4 from historic Wrigley Field, a 17 percent increase over last year's inaugural Winter Classic (3.75 million) and the biggest audience since Feb. 23, 1975 (5.4 million, Philadelphia-New York Rangers on NBC), according to Nielsen Media Research. The game earned a 2.5 national rating and a 5 share (1-4:15 p.m. ET), a 14 percent increase over last year's inaugural event (2.2/4, 1-4:45 p.m. ET).
"GAME OF THE WEEK" RETURNS TO NBC ON SUNDAY: The "Game of the Week" makes its 2009 debut on NBC this Sunday with Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins hosting the New York Rangers, 12:30 p.m. ET.
For the first time, "Game of the Week" broadcasts have a consistent start time – 12:30 p.m. ET on Sundays (except for April 12, 2 p.m. start time). For the second straight season, the NHL and NBC will utilize flex scheduling and will be able to select from up to three games on Sunday afternoons. Thirteen days prior to the scheduled games (on Mondays), NBC, in conjunction with the NHL, will select one of those games as the "Game of the Week" to be broadcast during the NBC window. The other games will remain available to the teams' regional carrier but will not be televised during NBC's broadcast window.
Source: NBC Sports
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network.
Don't forget to register and log in on The Biz of Hockey site to get updates via your in-box, and see information only logged in members can see
The NHL announced today that they have reached an agreement with AT&T U-verse. NHL Network and NHL Network HD are now available to AT&T U-verse TV customers, for those that purchase the carrier’s sports tier package. NHL Network is available to all U-verse TV customers who subscribe to the U400 programming package or The Sports Package. U-verse TV customers can also watch NHL Network in spectacular High Definition (HD) with an HD service subscription. NHL Network is on channel 638 in Standard Definition and channel 1638 in HD.
“NHL Network is an exciting addition to our U-verse TV channel lineup,” said Chris Lauricella, assistant vice president of programming, AT&T Operations, Inc. “Year-round hockey fans can catch in-depth coverage of their favorite sport and also enjoy live games in HD. This is just one more way we’re delivering the content our customers want.”
“We are thrilled to have secured distribution of NHL Network through AT&T — a leader in the communications field,” said Jody Shapiro, senior vice president of distribution, NHL Network. “This agreement is an important step in expanding NHL Network’s reach, while providing AT&T U-verse TV customers access to comprehensive hockey coverage 24-hours a day.”
Source: National Hockey League
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Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer.
Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network.
Don't forget to register and log in on The Biz of Hockey site to get updates via your in-box, and see information only logged in members can see