NHL, Turner Sports reach 7 year TV deal for games on TNT, TBS

[Fenway]

NHL, Turner Sports reach TV deal for games on TNT, TBS

The NHL and Turner Sports announced a seven-year media rights agreement Tuesday that will have regular-season, Stanley Cup Playoff and Stanley Cup Final games televised on TNT and TBS starting next season and running through 2027-28.

Turner Sports joins the Walt Disney Co. and ESPN as the NHL's national media rights partners in the United States for the next seven seasons. The NHL, the Walt Disney Co. and ESPN announced a multiplatform media rights deal March 10.

As part of the agreement, Turner Sports' networks will televise the NHL Winter Classic, the League's annual New Year's Day outdoor game, in all seven seasons of the deal. They will show all games in the Stanley Cup Final in 2023, 2025 and 2027, one conference final series each season and half of the first two rounds of the playoffs along with 72 regular-season games per season.

Bleacher Report, which is owned by Turner, will have rights to use NHL highlights on its digital platform.

The Stanley Cup Final will air on ABC in in 2022, 2024, 2026 and 2028 as part of the deal with the Walt Disney Co. and ESPN. They have the rights to air one conference final round per season, half of the first two rounds of the playoffs, 25 regular-season games on ABC or ESPN, and 75 additional national games that will stream on ESPN+ and Hulu.

They will also stream more than 1,000 out-of-market games each regular season on ESPN+, which will replace NHL.TV.

NBC has been the NHL's national media rights partner since 2005-06. Its 10-year agreement with the League expires after this season.

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[mas0764]

So what can we expect with ESPN+ replacing NHL.tv?

Will I still be able to get all my team's out of market games? Pick which stream I want? Etc?

 

[Fenway]

So what can we expect with ESPN+ replacing NHL.tv?

Will I still be able to get all my team's out of market games? Pick which stream I want? Etc?

 

[PurpleMouse]

Apologies if this is a dumb question and if it's been covered already (or if the information isn't available), but...

Does anyone know how many games NBC's contract covered in a normal year, and how many games EPSN and TNT will have in the new deal?

 

[Chileiceman]

I was hoping there would be more details on what HBO Max's role would be in all this. Will you be able to watch Turner games on HBO Max without subscribing to TNT or TBS on cable?

 

[BKIslandersFan]

Other sports leagues going cable exclusive would make me feel better about this.

 

[GKJ]

TNT gets ‘up to 72 national games’ plus the winter classic

 

[IU Hawks fan]

Apologies if this is a dumb question and if it's been covered already (or if the information isn't available), but...

Does anyone know how many games NBC's contract covered in a normal year, and how many games EPSN and TNT will have in the new deal?

Your 2019-20 NHL on NBC TV schedule | ProHockeyTalk | NBC Sports

NBC Sports will air 109 games during the 2019-20 NHL regular season

So 25 on ESPN/ABC plus 72 on Turner is a decrease of 12. However, 75 more games available to ESPN+/Hulu subscribers and then all out of market games on ESPN+.

 

[GKJ]

Those 12 less games are definitely coming out of those west coast games

 

[jkrdevil]

Unless my math is wrong, but 72 exclusive games would mean local rights holders are losing up to an extra 2 games per team to the national holders.

 

[IU Hawks fan]

Haven't seen the MAX piece confirmed elsewhere, so we'll see.

Would be nice since you can just pay for a month of it the years they have the Final.

 

[IU Hawks fan]

Scratch that, Turner confirms:

 

[jkrdevil]

Those 12 less games are definitely coming out of those west coast games

Depends on how this is structured. I can’t imagine TNT giving up to three nights a week to the NHL, so that means doubles headers. My guess based on the amount of games is a weekly double header throughout the season and an extra night in the second half. Similar to how the NBA on TNT is structured.

 

[OG6ix]

HBO Max! Nice... I can see Turner selling some games to Network Broadcasters if they want it (ABC/ESPN)

 

[NYRFAN218]

Yeah, I’m curious to see what the deal is with HBO Max. Are these games that are exclusive to the streaming service that can only be watched on that platform like the games on ESPN+? Because it seems like NHL.tv folding into ESPN+ already covers the “streaming” aspect of deals.

 

[Tawnos]

So what can we expect with ESPN+ replacing NHL.tv?

Will I still be able to get all my team's out of market games? Pick which stream I want? Etc?

Disney Streaming Services ran NHL.tv and runs ESPN+. I'd be surprised if this was anything other than an integration of NHL.tv into the ESPN+ platform.

 

[IU Hawks fan]

Yeah, I’m curious to see what the deal is with HBO Max. Are these games that are exclusive to the streaming service that can only be watched on that platform like the games on ESPN+? Because it seems like NHL.tv folding into ESPN+ already covers the “streaming” aspect of deals.

The games that Turner has won't be available on ESPN+. No different than how NBCSN games today aren't on NHL.tv.

So if you don't have cable, it sounds like you'll be able to buy HBO Max and still get those games.

 

[Tawnos]

If all 72 games are also on HBO Max, that's how I will probably be watching this package.

 

[Tawnos]

The games that Turner has won't be available on ESPN+. No different than how NBCSN games today aren't on NHL.tv.

So if you don't have cable, it sounds like you'll be able to buy HBO Max and still get those games.

I'd assume this is the case, but I haven't seen the word "exclusive" used to describe those games.

Edit: now I have.

 

[jkrdevil]

Yeah, I’m curious to see what the deal is with HBO Max. Are these games that are exclusive to the streaming service that can only be watched on that platform like the games on ESPN+? Because it seems like NHL.tv folding into ESPN+ already covers the “streaming” aspect of deals.

They left a slate of games for the B partner streaming. The Espn deal covered 1100 per year total. That left 212 games. 75 games goes to TNT/TBS, assume 80-90 games for NHL Network and you are left with 50-60 games that could go to HBOMax. I would guess these are non-exclusive since the release didn’t mention anything about HBOMax having exclusive games.

 

[GKJ]

Depends on how this is structured. I can’t imagine TNT giving up to three nights a week to the NHL, so that means doubles headers. My guess based on the amount of games is a weekly double header throughout the season and an extra night in the second half. Similar to how the NBA on TNT is structured.

It probably depends on what the plans are, NBCSN is doing them every week, right? What other special events are out there as well during the season? Do they get other stadium series games? Do they get Hockey Day in America? That’s a day where NBC/SN aired 4 games on the same day. Both are kind of an NBC-proper thing so that might go to ABC, I don’t recall that part being settled or reported.

 

[varsaku]

They left a slate of games for the B partner streaming. The Espn deal covered 1100 per year total. That left 212 games. 75 games goes to TNT/TBS, assume 80-90 games for NHL Network and you are left with 50-60 games that could go to HBOMax. I would guess these are non-exclusive since the release didn’t mention anything about HBOMax having exclusive games.

That's annoying if games are going to be split between ESPN+ and HBO Max. That will mean i will need two services to watch games that previously only required one.

 

[tarheelhockey]

The HBO Max piece of this is huge, and a really promising step in the right direction of accessing cord-cutters.

Noteworthy that HBO Max is included for free with any AT&T unlimited plan. That's a loooot of people who wouldn't ever stumble across the NHL on the cable platforms.

 

[jkrdevil]

That's annoying if games are going to be split between ESPN+ and HBO Max. That will mean i will need two services to watch games that previously only required one.

These games things aren’t always the most fan friendly. Though I think the two subs combined are about the same as the monthly NHL.tv cost.

 

[Kirk Van Houten]

So between network, cable and streaming next year there will be 172 exclusive games right? I have no idea how many exclusive games the NBA has to compare, MLB only has the FOX and SNB games so they are less for sure.