Versus Beefing Up NHL Coverage In Final Year Of Contract

By Fred Dreier, Staff Writer, SportsBusiness Journal

Versus will open its sixth season of NHL coverage by televising nine games in the first week of the '10-11 season, kicking off its coverage with a tripleheader today. The network’s coverage began with the Hurricanes-Wild game from Helsinki, Finland, at 12:00pm ET. That contest will be followed by Flyers-Penguins at 7:00pm and Blackhawks-Avalanche at 10:00pm. The week begins a season of increased NHL coverage on Versus, which sees its contract expire at the end of the season. The net will televise 79 regular-season games this year, 14 more than in '09-10, including 53 exclusive games, 26 bonus games and the Heritage Classic on Feb. 20. Versus is adding pregame shows before 30 game telecasts and is bringing in former players Dave Maloney and Mike Milbury to its “Hockey Central” studio show, alongside guest analysts Darren McCarty and Aaron Ward. “We’re taking our coverage to a level we’ve never seen before,” said Exec Producer Leon Schweir. “It’s a combination of knowing people are watching and knowing how we can better serve them.”