NBCSN should be proud of its game list for Canadian teams in 2018-2019. The standard has been so low that up was the only possible option. The NHL Network showed that its usual second-half slump could get worse and it did. ESPN+ helped out with a quite a few Hockey Night in Canada games even if the HNIC feed wasn't always used.
Last season, the NHL Network carried 7 January games and 10 February games. This season, the NHL Network carried 5 games for January and February. Ouch.
The channel carried 2 all-Canadian games with the Maple Leafs against each Alberta team. The outlet finally carried a Toronto-Montréal game on the final day of the season.
Between the major U.S. outlets, U.S. fans were able to see all the Toronto games with Chicago and St. Louis as well as Edmonton-New Jersey.
Calgary made the playoffs with 4 combined appearances on U.S. television. Vancouver had a good run but disappeared for months on U.S. television.
NHL Network and NBCSN games in 2017-2018 season analysis
NHL Network games in 2016-2017 season analysis
NHL Network games in 2015-2016 season analysis
Toronto — The Toronto Maple Leafs had 15 telecasts, same as last season, with 12 HNIC appearances and 2 HH games. The lone weekday game was hosting Calgary on October 29. Of the 12 HNIC appearances, 6 were at home. The HH appearances were split with a home and road game. Boston led with 3 appearances against Toronto and the New York Rangers had 2.
Montréal — Montréal had a record low 7 appearances on U.S. television, 6 on the NHL Network. U.S. television didn’t carry a single game from La Belle Province until the final game of the season. The team got Hockey Night appearances in Pittsburgh, Boston, and Tampa Bay as well as home against Toronto. The channel had a Hometown Hockey game in Chicago. The team got a gift with a road game in Columbus very late in the season. The Habs had 11 appearances on the NHL Network last season.
Ottawa — The Ottawa Senators got 2 telecasts. There was the scheduled game on November 4, a home game on Hometown Hockey. The second was a very last-minute addition thanks to trading Matt Duchene to Columbus with that team in Ottawa. The Sens weren't good but deserved more than 2 telecasts.
Edmonton — Thanks to Connor McDavid, the Edmonton Oilers had 6 telecasts. Then again, 5 of those were away from Edmonton. Those numbers are 1 ahead of last season. The channel had to carry the road game with New Jersey in Gothenburg, Sweden. The Oilers were shown in Chicago, Philadelphia, and Buffalo. The channel showed an almost unheard of Edmonton HNIC appearance and at home in early March against Toronto.
Winnipeg — The Jets more than doubled their telecasts from 3 to 7 from last season. The channel wasn’t afraid to show Winnipeg home games with 4 at Bell MTS Place and a “home” game with Florida from Helsinki, Finland. The road games were in Detroit and Glendale. Home games in North America were against Carolina, St. Louis, and New Jersey. The drawback was 5 games by November 11 and the only 2019 appearance was the final game of the season.
Calgary — The Calgary Flames were a very good team not that the NHL Network noticed. The Flames, a top team all season, had 3 road appearances, including a rare all-Canadian matchup. The channel’s reluctance to show games in Alberta strays past the border on the absurd. The Flames were shown in Toronto, Chicago, and Philadelphia, none since January 5.
Vancouver — The Vancouver Canucks had a Rookie of the Year contender in Elias Petterson, yet the Canucks had 4 telecasts (1 more than playoff-bound Calgary). Vancouver had 2 home telecasts in 3 days around Halloween. Then they disappeared from U.S. airwaves until mid-March in Chicago and the final day in St. Louis.
NHL Network 2018-2019
October 6 Edmonton @ New Jersey, 1p (2018 NHL Global Series)
October 6 Montréal @ Pittsburgh, 7p (HNIC)
October 7 Toronto @ Chicago, 7p (HH)
October 13 Toronto @ Washington, 7p (HNIC)
October 14 Carolina @ Winnipeg, 7p (HH)
October 20 St. Louis @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)
October 22 St. Louis @ Winnipeg, 8p
October 26 Winnipeg @ Detroit, 7:30p
October 27 Montréal @ Boston, 7p (HNIC)
October 28 Edmonton @ Chicago, 6p
October 29 Calgary @ Toronto, 7p
October 31 Chicago @ Vancouver, 10p
November 2 Florida @ Winnipeg, 2p (2018 NHL Global Series)
November 2 Colorado @ Vancouver, 10p
November 3 Toronto @ Pittsburgh, 7p (HNIC)
November 4 Tampa Bay @ Ottawa, 7p (HH)
November 10 Toronto @ Boston, 7p (HNIC)
November 11 New Jersey @ Winnipeg, 7p (HH)
November 24 Philadelphia @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)
December 2 Calgary @ Chicago, 7p
December 7 St. Louis @ Winnipeg, 8p
December 8 Toronto @ Boston, 7p (HNIC)
December 9 Montréal @ Chicago, 6p (HH)
December 22 NY Rangers @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)
January 5 Calgary @ Philadelphia, 1p
January 12 Boston @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)
January 20 Arizona @ Toronto, 7p (HH)
February 2 Edmonton @ Philadelphia, 1p
February 16 Montréal @ Tampa Bay, 7p (HNIC)
February 22 Columbus @ Ottawa, 7p
March 2 Buffalo @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)
March 4 Edmonton @ Buffalo, 7p
March 9 Toronto @ Edmonton, 7p (HNIC)
March 18 Vancouver @ Chicago, 8:30p
March 23 NY Rangers @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)
March 28 Montréal @ Columbus, 7p
April 6 Vancouver @ St. Louis, 4p
April 6 Toronto @ Montréal, 7p (HNIC)
April 6 Winnipeg @ Arizona, 10p (HNIC)
Hometown Hockey
There were 6 Hometown Hockey games simulcast on the NHL Network. No telecast aired after the All-Star Game break.
October 7 Toronto @ Chicago, 7p
October 14 Carolina @ Winnipeg, 7p
November 4 Tampa Bay @ Ottawa, 7p
November 11 New Jersey @ Winnipeg, 7p
December 9 Montréal @ Chicago, 6p
January 20 Arizona @ Toronto, 7p
CanadianCrossing.com NHL coverage
HNIC
There were 16 Hockey Night in Canada games, including a rare late game on the last day of the season.
October 6 Montreal @ Pittsburgh, 7p
October 13 Toronto @ Washington, 7p
October 20 St. Louis @ Toronto, 7p
October 27 Montreal @ Boston, 7p
November 3 Toronto @ Pittsburgh, 7p
November 10 Toronto @ Boston, 7p
November 24 Philadelphia @ Toronto, 7p
December 8 Toronto @ Boston, 7p
December 22 NY Rangers @ Toronto, 7p
January 12 Boston @ Toronto, 7p
February 16 Montréal @ Tampa Bay, 7p
March 2 Buffalo @ Toronto, 7p
March 9 Toronto @ Edmonton, 7p
March 23 NY Rangers @ Toronto, 7p
April 6 Toronto @ Montréal, 7p
April 6 Winnipeg @ Arizona, 10p
NBCSN
NBCSN did not deviate from its announced schedule, except for cancelling a late-season Calgary game and adding a late-season Montréal game. This was the best year for the network by far though NBCSN has produced low expectations.
Auston Matthews and Connor McDavid were 2 of the main reasons why NBCSN showed more interest in Canadian teams than ever before. The high-flying Winnipeg Jets were also a factor.
Edmonton had 7 games, a huge jump from “there is a team in Edmonton?” An amazing 2 games were actually in Edmonton. U.S. television has been afraid to show games from the province of Alberta. Unfortunately, the Oilers play didn’t live up to the extra coverage. The first 2 Oilers games were essentially simulcasts of U.S. local feeds.
Toronto had 6 telecasts, a surprise given the times when NBCSN had no interest in the Maple Leafs. 2 of those appearances were in Canada’s largest city.
Winnipeg had 5 games with a single game in Winnipeg, only the second team the channel has been in Manitoba. One of those games was a “road” game in Helsinki, Finland.
Montréal, a surprise playoff contender, had 2 appearances, both outside Canada in Boston and a late addition in Washington.
Calgary, the team from Alberta that was good, had a single appearance early in the season at home. The late-season appearance was cancelled.
Despite showing promise, Vancouver once again was banned from NBCSN. Ottawa also was ignored by the network.
October 17 Boston @ Calgary, 9:30p
October 24 Toronto @ Winnipeg, 7p
November 1 Winnipeg @ Florida, 2p (in Helsinki, Finland)
November 6 Edmonton @ Tampa Bay, 7:30p
November 20 Edmonton @ San Jose, 10:30p
December 4 Toronto @ Buffalo, 7:30p
December 5 Edmonton @ St. Louis, 8p
January 10 Winnipeg @ Minnesota, 8p
January 14 Montréal @ Boston, 7:30p
January 22 Detroit @ Edmonton, 9p
January 23 Washington @ Toronto, 7:30p
January 28 Winnipeg @ Philadelphia, 7p
February 10 Toronto @ NY Rangers, 7p
February 13 Edmonton @ Pittsburgh, 8p
February 19 Toronto @ St. Louis, 8p
March 13 Chicago @ Toronto, 7p/New Jersey @ Edmonton, 9:30p
March 17 Edmonton @ Las Vegas, 10p
March 20 Winnipeg @ Anaheim, 10p
April 4 Montréal @ Washington, 7p
ESPN+
If you kept your ESPN+ subscription going after the CFL, you got quite a lot of NHL games. We loved seeing the Battle of Alberta though hated the service at times avoiding Hockey Night in Canada feeds unless there was an all-Canadian game.
ESPN wasn't afraid to carry Canadian teams such as Vancouver and Ottawa.
There were 9 games that involved all-Canadian matchups.
| Team | Overall | Home | Road |
| Toronto | 21 | 12 | 9 |
| Montréal | 11 | 7 | 4 |
| Ottawa | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| Winnipeg | 21 | 9 | 12 |
| Calgary | 24 | 12 | 12 |
| Edmonton | 13 | 8 | 5 |
| Vancouver | 18 | 12 | 6 |
October 6 Vancouver @ Calgary, 10p
October 8 Ottawa @ Boston, 1p
October 9 Calgary @ Nashville, 8p
October 11 Winnipeg @ Nashville, 8p
October 13 Edmonton @ NY Rangers, 1p
October 15 Los Angeles @ Toronto, 7:30p
October 18 Pittsburgh @ Toronto, 7p
October 20 Nashville @ Edmonton, 10p
October 21 Calgary @ NY Rangers, 7p
October 23 Pittsburgh @ Edmonton, 9p
October 24 Vancouver @ Las Vegas, 10p
October 25 Washington @ Edmonton, 9p
October 29 Minnesota @ Vancouver, 10p
November 1 Washington @ Montréal, 7:30p
November 1 Chicago @ Edmonton, 9p
November 6 Las Vegas @ Toronto, 7p
November 7 Calgary @ Anaheim, 10:30p
November 15 Toronto @ San Jose, 10:30p
November 17 Edmonton @ Calgary, 10p
November 26 Boston @ Toronto, 7p
November 27 Ottawa @ Philadelphia, 7p
November 28 Dallas @ Calgary, 9p
November 29 Las Vegas @ Vancouver, 10p
December 1 San Jose @ Ottawa, 2p
December 6 Minnesota @ Edmonton, 9p
December 9 Calgary @ Edmonton, 9p
December 11 Chicago @ Winnipeg, 8p
December 13 Toronto @ Tampa Bay, 7:30p
December 13 Vancouver @ Nashville, 8p
December 15 Philadelphia @ Vancouver, 10p
December 16 Edmonton @ Vancouver, 10p
December 17 Boston @ Montréal, 7:30p
December 20 St. Louis @ Vancouver, 10p
December 22 Tampa Bay @ Edmonton, 10p
December 28 Toronto @ Columbus, 7p
December 29 NY Islanders @ Toronto, 7p
January 3 Calgary @ Boston, 7p
January 4 Winnipeg @ Pittsburgh, 7p
January 5 Nashville @ Montréal, 7p
January 6 Dallas @ Winnipeg, 5p
January 7 Nashville @ Toronto, 7p
January 9 Colorado @ Calgary, 9:30p
January 14 Colorado @ Toronto, 7p
January 16 Buffalo @ Calgary, 9:30p
January 17 Toronto @ Tampa Bay, 7:30p
January 17 Winnipeg @ Nashville, 8p
January 18 Detroit @ Calgary, 9p
January 19 Philadelphia @ Montréal, 7p
January 20 Detroit @ Vancouver, 4p
January 23 Carolina @ Vancouver, 10:30p
January 29 Winnipeg @ Boston, 7p
January 31 Columbus @ Winnipeg, 8p
February 1 Calgary @ Washington, 7p
February 2 Pittsburgh @ Toronto, 7p
February 3 Edmonton @ Montréal, 2p
February 4 Vancouver @ Philadelphia, 7p
February 7 San Jose @ Calgary, 9p
February 10 Winnipeg @ Buffalo, 3p
February 11 San Jose @ Vancouver, 10p
February 12 Calgary @ Tampa Bay, 7:30p
February 13 Vancouver @ Anaheim, 10:30p
February 14 Toronto @ Las Vegas, 10p
February 16 Calgary @ Pittsburgh, 1p
February 18 Arizona @ Calgary, 4p
February 20 Winnipeg @ Colorado, 8:30p
February 21 Washington @ Toronto, 7p
February 22 Winnipeg @ Las Vegas, 10p
February 23 Montréal @ Toronto, 7p
February 25 Edmonton @ Nashville, 8p
February 28 Toronto @ NY Islanders, 7p
March 1 Nashville @ Winnipeg, 8p
March 2 Minnesota @ Calgary, 10p
March 3 Vancouver @ Las Vegas, 4p
March 4 Toronto @ Calgary, 9p
March 5 Winnipeg @ Tampa Bay, 7:30p
March 6 Calgary @ Las Vegas, 9p
March 7 Montréal @ San Jose, 10:30p
March 8 Montréal @ Anaheim, 10p
March 9 Las Vegas @ Vancouver, 10p
March 10 Winnipeg @ Washington, 7p
March 11 Tampa Bay @ Toronto, 7p
March 11 NY Rangers @ Edmonton, 9p
March 12 San Jose @ Winnipeg, 8p
March 13 NY Rangers @ Vancouver, 10p
March 14 Boston @ Winnipeg, 8p
March 15 NY Rangers @ Calgary, 9p
March 16 Calgary @ Winnipeg, 7p
March 19 Toronto @ Nashville, 8p
March 19 Columbus @ Calgary, 9p
March 21 Winnipeg @ Las Vegas, 10p
March 23 Nashville @ Winnipeg, 7p
March 23 Calgary @ Vancouver, 10p
March 24 Montréal @ Carolina, 7p
March 24 Columbus @ Vancouver, 10p
March 26 Florida @ Montréal, 7:30p
March 28 NY Islanders @ Winnipeg, 8p
March 31 Calgary @ San Jose, 8p
April 1 Toronto @ NY Islanders, 7p
April 1 Winnipeg @ Chicago, 8:30p
April 2 Carolina @ Toronto, 7:30p
April 2 Tampa Bay @ Montréal, 7:30p
April 3 Calgary @ Anaheim, 10:30p
April 4 Winnipeg @ Colorado, 9p
logo credits: NHL Network/NBCSN/ESPN+
Comments