Second Round of Stanley Cup Playoffs Continues This Weekend on NBC

News

April 27, 2018

SECOND ROUND OF STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS CONTINUES THIS WEEKEND WITH FIVE GAMES ON NBC AND NBCSN

Coverage Begins Tonight on NBCSN at 8 p.m. ET with Game 1 of Jets-Predators

Saturday on NBC – Game 1 of Bruins-Lightning at 3 p.m. ET, Followed by Game 2 of Sharks-Golden Knights in Primetime at 8 p.m. ET

Ovechkin and Capitals Host Crosby and Penguins in Game 2 Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBC, Followed by Game 2 of Jets-Predators at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN

NBC Sports Presents Coverage of 2018 NHL Draft Lottery Saturday Night on NBC and NBCSN

NBC Sports’ Coverage of First Round of 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs is Best in Six Years

Last Night’s Doubleheader on NBCSN Up 32% vs. 2017; Vegas Golden Knights’ Game 1 Win Delivers Local Rating Record

STAMFORD, Conn. – April 27, 2018 – NBC Sports’ exclusive coverage of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs continues this weekend with five games across NBC and NBCSN, beginning tonight at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN, when P.K. Subban and the defending Western Conference champion Nashville Predators host Patrik Laine and the Winnipeg Jets in Game 1 of their Second Round series.

Saturday’s coverage features a pair of matchups on NBC, beginning at 3 p.m. ET, when Brad Marchand and the Boston Bruins visit Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 1 of their Second Round series. The action shifts to the desert with the expansion Vegas Golden Knights’ first-ever appearance on NBC in primetime at 8 p.m. ET, when Marc-Andre Fleury and Golden Knights host Joe Pavelski and the San Jose Sharks, with Vegas leading the series 1-0.

Sunday’s Second Round action features Game 2 of Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals at 3 p.m. ET on NBC, with Pittsburgh leading the series 1-0, followed by Game 2 of Jets-Predators at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

NBC Sports.com and the NBC Sports app – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming platforms for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will provide live streaming coverage of all remaining Stanley Cup Playoff games.

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“NHL Playoff Pass” on NBC Sports Group Press Box provides a quick daily overview of Stanley Cup Playoff coverage, plus information and highlights. The Pass will be published weekdays to preview that evening’s games. Friday editions will include weekend information.

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THE PASS – FRIDAY, APRIL 27 – SUNDAY, APRIL 29 (All times ET)

FRIDAY, APRIL 27
Time	Coverage	Network	Commentators
7 p.m.	NHL Live	NBCSN	Liam McHugh, Keith Jones, Anson Carter
8 p.m.	Game 1 – (2) Winnipeg at (1) Nashville	NBCSN	Chris Cuthbert, AJ Mleczko, Brian Boucher
SATURDAY, APRIL 28
3 p.m.	Game 1 – (2) Boston at (1) Tampa Bay	NBC	Gord Miller, Mike Milbury, Brian Boucher
7:30 p.m.	NHL Live	NBCSN	Liam McHugh, Keith Jones, Patrick Sharp
	NHL Live (Intermission Reports)	NBC	Liam McHugh, Keith Jones, Patrick Sharp
8 p.m.	Game 2 – (3) San Jose at (1) Vegas	NBC	John Forslund, Eddie Olczyk, Joe Micheletti, Jeremy Roenick
SUNDAY, APRIL 29
3 p.m.	Game 2 – (2) Pittsburgh at (1) Washington	NBC	Mike “Doc” Emrick, Mike Milbury, Pierre McGuire
	NHL Live (Intermission Reports)	NBC	Liam McHugh, Keith Jones, Patrick Sharp
6 p.m.	NHL Live	NBCSN	Kathryn Tappen, Jeremy Roenick, Anson Carter
7 p.m.	Game 2 – (2) Winnipeg at (1) Nashville	NBCSN	Chris Cuthbert, AJ Mleczko, Brian Boucher

For more information on NBC Sports Group’s overall Stanley Cup Playoff coverage, please click here.NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and Connected TVs – will live stream all games airing on NBC, NBCSN, USA Network, CNBC, and Golf Channel, all via “TV Everywhere” throughout the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

NBC SPORTS’ COVERAGE OF FIRST ROUND OF 2018 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS IS BEST IN SIX YEARS

NBC Sports’ coverage of the First Round of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs across the networks of NBCUniversal averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 769,000 viewers, its best First Round viewership in six years. Wednesday’s Game 7 between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins averaged a TAD of 1.484 million viewers, making it the best First Round game ever on NBCSN.

Total Audience Delivery (TAD) for 42 games across NBC, NBCSN, CNBC, Golf Channel, USA Network, NBCSports.com, and the NBC Sports app averaged 769,000 viewers. It is NBC Sports’ best First Round average viewership since 2012 (936,000 viewers), is up 4% from last year (743,000), and up 8% vs. 2016 (714,000). Click here for more information.

Additionally, last night’s Second Round Game 1 doubleheader on NBCSN, featuring Penguins-Capitals and Sharks-Golden Knights averaged a 0.86 overnight rating, up 32% vs. the Game 1 doubleheader last year (Wed., 4/26/17; 0.65).

Locally, the Las Vegas market delivered an 11.1 local market rating for the Golden Knights’ 7-0 victory against the Sharks, the best-ever for the market on NBCSN or a local carrier. The game did a 19 share in the Las Vegas market, meaning nearly one-in-every-five televisions that were in use were watching the Golden Knights game on NBCSN.

NBC SPORTS PRESENTS COVERAGE OF 2018 NHL DRAFT LOTTERY SATURDAY NIGHT ON NBC AND NBCSN

The draft order of the top three selections of the 2018 NHL Draft will be decided on Saturday night at the 2018 NHL Draft Lottery on NBC and NBCSN. Coverage will begin on NBCSN at 7:30 p.m. ET, where picks 4-15 will be announced. The top three selections will be revealed during the second intermission of Game 2 of the Sharks-Golden Knights game on NBC. Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin of Sweden is projected to be the first overall selection this year’s draft.

TONIGHT – APRIL 27

The Jets and Predators meet in the Second Round after finishing the regular season with the two best records in the NHL. Nashville advanced to the Second Round after defeating Colorado in six games, while Winnipeg dispatched Minnesota in five games.

The Predators won three of five meetings (3-1-1) against the Jets this season, and at least eight combined goals were scored in four of the five games. Two of this year’s three Vezina Trophy finalists go head-to-head in this series – Nashville’s Pekka Rinne is a four-time finalist for the award and led the NHL with eight shutouts, while Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck tied for the NHL lead with 44 wins.

SATURDAY – APRIL 28

Coverage begins at 3 p.m. ET with Game 1 between Boston and Tampa Bay, the second all-time postseason meeting between the two teams. The Bruins and Lightning met in the 2011 Eastern Conference Final, which Boston won in seven games en route to winning the Stanley Cup.

The Lightning lost three of four meetings against the Bruins this season, but won the most recent matchup, 4-0, on April 3 in Tampa, which helped Tampa win the Atlantic Division and secure home-ice advantage in this series. Tampa Bay defeated the Devils in a five-game first-round series, led by Nikita Kucherov, who recorded 10 points (5g/5a). Boston defeated Toronto in a deciding Game 7 on Wednesday to advance, led by two goals by rookie Jake DeBrusk in a 7-4 come-from-behind victory.

Game coverage shifts to Vegas for Game 2 of the Golden Knights’ series vs. the Sharks in primetime on NBC, following Vegas’ dominant 7-0 shutout victory in Game 1 on Thursday night. Seven different skaters scored for the Golden Knights, and Marc-Andre Fleury became the first goaltender to record three shutouts in his team’s first five games of a postseason since 2004 (Nikolai Khabibulin; TB, Ed Belfour; TOR).

Three-time Stanley Cup champion Patrick Sharp will once again join the NHL on NBC studio as a guest analyst for games on Saturday and Sunday on NBC. Sharp was a guest analyst during the First Round, and boasts three career Stanley Cup titles with the Chicago Blackhawks. Additionally, NHL on NBC analyst Jeremy Roenick will be on-site in Vegas for NBC’s Game 2 coverage on Saturday night. Roenick will rove throughout the night at T-Mobile Arena, showcasing the unique elements of hockey in Vegas and illustrating the passion of the Vegas fanbase that has continued to grow through the Golden Knights’ inaugural season.

SUNDAY – APRIL 29

Coverage begins at 3 p.m. ET on NBC with Game 2 of the highly-anticipated Pens-Caps series, following Pittsburgh’s 3-2 come-from-behind win in Game 1 on Thursday night. Trailing 2-0 early in the third period, the Penguins scored three goals in a span of 4:49 to stun the crowd in Washington. Sidney Crosby netted the tying goal and assisted on Jake Guentzel’s game-winner. Alex Ovechkin assisted on the opening goal of the game and scored his sixth goal of the postseason in the loss. NHL Live will begin at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN and will set the table for Game 2 of Jets-Predators at 7 p.m. ET.

This is the fourth time that Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin will clash in the playoffs (2009, 2016 & 2017), with Crosby and the Pens winning all three series. Crosby has 24 points (11g/13a) in 20 career postseason games against Washington, while Ovechkin has 28 points (13g/15a) in 21 career postseason games vs. Pittsburgh.

Following is NBC Sports Group’s Stanley Cup Playoffs second-round schedule through Friday, May 4.

Date	Coverage	Network	Time (ET)
Fri., April 27	Game 1 – (2) Winnipeg at (1) Nashville	NBCSN	8 p.m.
Sat., April 28	Game 1 – (2) Boston at (1) Tampa Bay	NBC	3 p.m.
	Game 2 – (3) San Jose at (1) Vegas	NBC	8 p.m.
Sun., April 29	Game 2 – (2) Pittsburgh at (1) Washington	NBC	3 p.m.
	Game 2 – (2) Winnipeg at (1) Nashville	NBCSN	7 p.m.
Mon., April 30	Game 2 – (2) Boston at (1) Tampa Bay	NBCSN	7 p.m.
	Game 3 – (1) Vegas at (3) San Jose	NBCSN	10 p.m.
Tues., May 1	Game 3 – (1) Washington at (2) Pittsburgh	NBCSN	7:30 p.m.
	Game 3 – (1) Nashville at (2) Winnipeg	CNBC	8 p.m.
Wed., May 2	Game 3 – (1) Tampa Bay at (2) Boston	NBCSN	7 p.m.
	Game 4 – (1) Vegas at (3) San Jose	NBCSN	10 p.m.
Thur., May 3	Game 4 – (1) Washington at (2) Pittsburgh	NBCSN	7 p.m.
	Game 4 – (1) Nashville at (2) Winnipeg	NBCSN	9:30 p.m.
Fri., May 4	Game 4 – (1) Tampa Bay at (2) Boston	NBCSN	7 p.m.
	Game 5 – (3) San Jose at (1) Vegas*	NBCSN	10 p.m.

*if necessary

COMPREHENSIVE LOCAL COVERAGE

Through the NBC Sports Regional Networks, comprehensive coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs will be provided daily via NBC Sports Regional Networks, available in more than 35 million U.S. households. NBC Sports Regional Networks serve the hometown fans of the Philadelphia Flyers, San Jose Sharks, Boston Bruins and the Washington Capitals, with first-round game coverage, pre- and post-game shows, and extensive on-line coverage via NBC Sports’ team of NHL Insiders.

For teams that advance past the first round, NBC Sports Regional Networks will deliver extensive pre- and post-game coverage as well as breaking news and analysis throughout each team’s playoff run.

ABOUT NBC SPORTS RADIO

NBC Sports Radio is a joint venture between NBC Sports Group and Westwood One and will broadcast select games throughout the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs. It provides sports talk programming to radio stations nationwide and is distributed by Westwood One. Content includes hourly sports news updates, daily features, and long-form shows. On social media, join the NBC Sports Radio community on Twitter at twitter.com/nbcsportsradio. To listen live or on demand, or to find a station, visit www.nbcsportsradio.com.

STREAMING COVERAGE ON NBCSPORTS.COM AND THE NBC SPORTS APP

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming platforms for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will provide live streaming coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value to for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms.

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app are powered by Playmaker Media and available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Samsung Smart TVs, Xbox, and Chromecast.