Penguins heavily featured during this season’s NHL coverage on NBC

NBC unveiled their 2018-19 NHL on NBC broadcast schedule earlier today to pretty positive reviews from fans. Gone are the days of Wednesday Night Rivalry, and long live the newly minted Wednesday Night Hockey broadcast.

From NBC:

NBC Sports is scheduled to present 109 NHL regular-season games during the 2018-19 season – its most since acquiring NHL rights prior to the 2005-06 season. Coverage begins Wednesday, Oct. 3, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, when Alex Ovechkin and the Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals raise their championship banner to the rafters and host the Boston Bruins. All games will be streamed live on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app to authenticated users via TV Everywhere.

NBC Sports’ 2018-19 NHL schedule is highlighted by the debut of “Wednesday Night Hockey” on NBCSN, which will showcase the network’s most diverse schedule since it acquired NHL rights prior to the 2005-06 season, as well as NHL’s current and rising stars.

With the Penguins being one of the league’s hottest teams over the last 10 years or so, it’s no surprise that they’ve been penciled in for numerous NBC broadcasts during the regular season. The 2018-19 season will be no different.

From the Penguins:

The Pittsburgh Penguins will make 15 national television appearances on NBC and NBC Sports Network during the 2018-19 regular season, it was announced by the National Hockey League and its network rightsholder, NBC Sports, on Monday.

Eleven of the Penguins’ 15 national television appearances will be exclusives, beginning with Pittsburgh’s visit to our nation’s capital to play the defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals on Wednesday, November 7 at 7:30 PM on NBC Sports Network.

That game is the first of seven times that the Penguins will play on “Wednesday Night Hockey” on NBC Sports Network. One of the marquee “Wednesday Night Hockey” showdowns of the season will occur on Wednesday, February 13 at PPG Paints Arena when the Penguins host Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers at 8:00 PM on NBC Sports Network.

Pittsburgh is scheduled to make two appearances on the NHL on NBC. The Pens’ first such appearance will come on Sunday, February 17 when they host the New York Rangers at 12:30 PM. Less than a week later, the Penguins will appear on NBC again when they visit the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, February 23 at 8:00 PM in the 2019 Coors Light Stadium Series game at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.

The Penguins’ local regional rightsholder, AT&T SportsNet, will broadcast the other 71 games this season. Steve Mears will return for his second year as play-by-play broadcaster working alongside color commentator Bob Errey and rinkside reporter Dan Potash.

AT&T SportsNet begins its coverage of the Pens’ 2018-19 campaign beginning with the home opener against the Washington Capitals on Thursday, October 4 at 7:00 PM.

Give me McDavid vs. Crosby in the national spotlight, please.

In all seriousness though, it’s fantastic to see NBC is finally realizing there are more teams in the league than repeatedly showing a combination of the Blackhawks, Bruins, Rangers, Capitals, and, yes, even your Pittsburgh Penguins every Wednesday night or Sunday afternoon.

Below are all the games the Penguins will be featured in on NBC’s networks:

More information on NBC’s new schedule of games can be found in the linked article up above.

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So long as the Penguins continue to bring in the ratings in the Crosby/Malkin era (and we’re sure they will), the Pens will continue to be a go-to team for NBC and its array of networks.