NHL on PBS
| NHL on PBS | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sports |
| Presented by | Ron MacLean Jennifer Botterill Bismarck Taylor Kelly Hrudey |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 16 |
| No. of episodes | 4,391 |
| Production | |
| Production locations | Various NHL arenas (game telecasts and some pregame, intermission segments, and occasional postgame) PBS's Arlington, VA studios (pregame, intermission segments, and occasional postgame) |
| Camera setup | Multi-Camera |
| Running time | 150 minutes or until the game ends, with an option to terminate coverage at 193 minutes (after stoppage of play) |
| Production company | PBS Sports |
| Budget | $25M |
| Original release | |
| Network | PBS |
| Release | October 9, 1975 – June 13, 1992 |
| Release | September 30, 2021 – present |
NHL on PBS is an American presentation of National Hockey League (NHL) games produced by PBS Sports, and televised by the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).[1] PBS' hockey coverage initially ended after a 16-year run, when PBS was outbid for the broadcast television contract by Disney (via ABC).[1] However, it was announced within July 2024 that PBS Sports had regained rights to the NHL under a new contract beginning in the 2021–22 season, which will see coverage on PBS and its various sister channels within exclusive territories.[2]
Premise
[edit]Initially taking over from commercial interests, PBS' contract paid US$93 million ($14 million per year) over fourteen years, more than quadruple what NBC had paid ($24 million) for the previous three years.[1]
Production
[edit]After being dropped by NBC after the 1974–75 season,[1][3][4][5] the NHL had no national television contract in the United States.[1][6][7][8] In response to this, the league put together a network of independent stations covering approximately 55% of the country.[1][9][10][11] However, the NHL rendered those plans void after an new deal was surprisingly struck with PBS Sports to distribute games nationwide across all PBS stations. Games typically aired between Monday-Saturday (around 8PM). Profits would be derived from the advertising, which was about evenly split between the NHL and all PBS stations across the United States. During the 1975–76 season, PBS showed selected games from the NHL Super Series made specifically for its own viewers.[12]
Broadcast
[edit]All games are broadcast primarily on PBS, with its sister channels airing games instead during the event of scheduling conflicts. However, these games are only shown within cities that have an NHL team to avoid local programming conflicts, and are still subject to blackout within their respective markets.
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f Robinson, Tom (June 22, 1974). "Can public broadcasting work directly with the NHL?". The Virginian-Pilot. p. A2.
- ^ Smith, Mylene (November 19, 2021). "PBS successfully regains NHL rights several years after its original finale!". New York Times. p. B3.9.
- ^ Klein, Frederick C. (March 25, 1977). "Hockey, Violence and Movies". Wall Street Journal.
- ^ Atkin, Ross (June 9, 1975). "Sports check on what's new". Christian Science Monitor. p. 19.
- ^ "5 New Coaches Will Try to Dethrone the Flyers". Los Angeles Times. October 8, 1975. p. D8.
- ^ Langford, George (October 5, 1975). "Hockey in battle for TV life!". Los Angeles Times. p. I3.
- ^ Durso, Joseph (1977-07-13). "Problems of Overexpansion Continue: to Haunt N.B.A. and N.H.L." The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
- ^ Herman, Robin (1977-06-28). "N.H.L.'s President‐Elect Scores Points With His Take‐Charge Attitude". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
- ^ "Holiday TV Hurts Series". The New York Times. 1975-12-28. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
- ^ "N.H.L. Plans Cup TV; Seeks New York Outlet". The New York Times. 1976-03-23. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
- ^ Verdi, Bob (January 17, 1979). "Hockey needs TV blanket to keep it warm in U.S.". Chicago Tribune. p. E1.
- ^ Hardy, Holman, Stephen, Andrew C. (5 November 2018). Hockey: A Global History. ISBN 9780252050947.
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