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NHL Will Attempt To Grow Playoff Audience By Broadcasting Every Game On U.S. TV Nets

While turning the Stanley Cup playoffs into a "must-watch television event lasting for weeks in the spring is no easy feat," the NHL's plan to "get more viewers is, in fact, to show more games," according to Tanzina Vega of the N.Y. TIMES. This season, "for the first time, the league will televise every game of the playoffs." NHL COO John Collins said, "We’ve spent the last five years talking about building national scale. If you can’t get the games on national television, you’re not going to be able to relate to it." Vega notes the league "seems to be learning" from the NCAA's basketball strategy. All playoff games, including first-round games, will be "seen on either NBC, NBC Sports Network, CNBC or the NHL Network." Viewers in the U.S. can "also watch some Stanley Cup Playoff games online at NBCSports.com and on mobile devices including the Verizon edition of the NHL GameCenter app." NBCU TV Group CMO John Miller said that CNBC, the newest addition to the group, will "offer a selection of first-round games and other games." He said that "adding the business-focused channel to the list of broadcast partners helped because it had a schedule that was more flexible than, say, MSNBC." Miller: "It’s a little bit easier for us to put a game in there without disrupting their brand" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/15).

KID N' PLAY: Penguins C Sidney Crosby will return to action tonight against the Rangers for the first time since Dec. 5, and the game will be televised on NBC Sports Network. The telecast is part of NBC Sports Group's schedule of 11 straight nights of live hockey games from this past Sunday through next Wednesday (NBC). The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Rob Rossi said of Crosby's return, “I hope everyone gets a chance to enjoy this. There’s nothing better than a comeback on Broadway.” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said, "You never want to see any of your players injured and out for a prolonged period of time. ... He was yearning to be back on the ice. I know it has to be exciting for him, his teammates and the people in Pittsburgh to finally get him back” (“NHL Live,” NHL Network, 3/14).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

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