NHL GAME OF THE WEEK Returns to NBC Today

The return of the NHL Game of the Week on NBC, featuring a rematch of the 2013 Stanley Cup Final, Round Two of Sidney Crosby (Sochi Olympics Team Canada member) and Alex Ovechkin (Team Russia) on Wednesday Night Rivalry, and 56 Sochi Olympians highlight nearly 30 hours of hockey coverage across NBC and NBCSN this week.

The Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins are featured in the return of NBC's NHL Game of the Week Sunday at 12:30 p.m. ET, in their first meeting since Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals last season. The Blackhawks and Bruins sit atop their respective divisions, and Chicago is tied with St. Louis and Anaheim for the fewest regulation losses (8) in The League. This is the first of nine Sunday NHL Game of the Week regular-season broadcasts on NBC prior to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Emmy Award-winning play-by-play commentator Mike 'Doc' Emrick, analyst Eddie Olczyk and Emmy Award-winning 'Inside-the-Glass' analyst Pierre McGuire will have the call from United Center in Chicago, Ill.

NBCSN's Wednesday Night Rivalry matchup between the Capitals and Penguins features the top two teams in the Metropolitan Division, and the top two offensive leaders in the NHL. Crosby's 67 points outpace Chicago's Patrick Kane (Team USA) and the New York Islanders' John Tavares (Team Canada) by 11 points for second place, while Ovechkin's 32 goals are seven more than any other player in The League. This marks the second meeting of the season between the Capitals and Penguins; Pittsburgh shut out Washington by a score of 4-0 on Wednesday Night Rivalry on Nov. 20.

Emrick, Olczyk and McGuire will provide live commentary from CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pa., where the Penguins have won 12 straight games, dating back to Nov. 13, 2013.

NBC Sports Group's NHL coverage begins tonight when the Buffalo Sabres host the Philadelphia Flyers at 7:30 p.m. ET. Dave Strader (play-by-play) and Brian Engblom (analyst) will have the call from the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, N.Y.

Coverage continues on Thursday, when the St. Louis Blues host the Los Angeles Kings at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN. The Blues enter Thursday's action with the second most home victories (17) in the Western Conference, and L.A. (96) and St. Louis (99) have allowed the fewest goals in the conference. Strader and Engblom will provide live commentary from Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo.

NBC Sports Group's NHL coverage concludes Sunday when the New York Rangers host the Capitals at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Strader and Engblom will have the call from Madison Square Garden in New York.

The 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics' men's hockey rosters are well-represented on NBC and NBCSN this week, with a combined 56 players and 13 Team USA members featured across NBC Sports Group's five NHL broadcasts, including Patrick Kane (Chicago Blackhawks), Ryan Miller (Buffalo Sabres), David Backes (St. Louis Blues), Jonathan Quick (Los Angeles Kings), and Ryan Callahan (New York Rangers).

NBCSN's 2013-14 College Hockey coverage continues this Friday, when No. 15 Notre Dame hosts Lake Superior State at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Dan Parkhurst (play-by-play) and Anson Carter (analyst) will have the call from the Compton Family Ice Arena in South Bend, Ind. Coverage continues Saturday at 6:30 p.m. ET when Michigan State hosts Penn State in a Big Ten conference matchup. John Walton (play-by-play) and Carter will provide live commentary from Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing, Mich.

NHL Live, NBC Sports Group live NHL pre-game and post-game studio show, precedes all NHL telecasts on NBCSN. Russ Thaler will host Tuesday's edition of NHL Live, while Liam McHugh will serve as host for the week's remaining shows. They will be joined by former NHL players and analysts Mike Milbury, Keith Jones and Anson Carter.

NBC Sports Live Extra - NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets - will stream all 2013-14 NHL regular-season games televised on NBC and NBCSN, including this week's Flyers-Sabres, Capitals-Penguins, Kings-Blues, Bruins-Blackhawks and Capitals-Rangers games, as well as this week's Lake Superior State-Notre Dame and Penn State-Michigan State College Hockey games.

Date Coverage Network Time (ET)
Tue., January 14 NHL Live NBCSN 6:30 p.m.
Philadelphia at Buffalo NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
NHL Rivals - Capitals-Penguins NBCSN 10:30 p.m.
NHL Top 10 - American-Born Players NBCSN 11 p.m.
Wed., January 15 NHL Live NBCSN 6:30 p.m.
NHL Rivals - Capitals-Penguins (Encore) NBCSN 7 p.m.
NHL Live NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
Washington at Pittsburgh NBCSN 8 p.m.
Thu., January 16 NHL Rivals - Capitals-Penguins (Encore) NBCSN 7 a.m.
Washington at Pittsburgh (Encore) NBCSN 7:30 a.m.
NHL Top 10 NBCSN 6:30 p.m.
NHL Top 10 NBCSN 7 p.m.
NHL Live NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
Los Angeles at St. Louis NBCSN 8 p.m.
Fri., January 17 Lake Superior State at Notre Dame NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
Shipping Up To Boston - Notre Dame-Boston College NBCSN 10 p.m.
NHL Rivals NBCSN 10:30 p.m.
Sat., January 18 Penn State at Michigan State NBCSN 6:30 p.m.
Sun., January 19 Boston at Chicago NBC 12:30 p.m.
NHL Live NBCSN 7 p.m.
Washington at N.Y. Rangers NBCSN 7:30 p.m.

NHL Rivals - PENGUINS-CAPITALS - TUESDAY, 10:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

NHL Rivals, which debuted earlier this season, airs this week on Tuesday at 10:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. The program dovetails off of NBCSN's Wednesday Night Rivalry, which Forbes dubbed "the hottest new brand in sports." This week's episode features the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals, a rivalry reignited by Ovechkin and Crosby, the first overall picks in the 2004 and 2005 NHL Entry Drafts.

Following are excerpts from this week's episode of NHL Rivals.

Washington goalie Olaf Kolzig, who allowed GWG against Penguins in 4OT of 1996 playoff series: "When you're on the losing end of those, it's tough to recover from them. It seemed to elevate them...it's a game I'll never forget, but there's times I do want to forget about it."

Capitals forward Troy Brouwer: "You don't see too many first overall picks that make that big of an impact in the NHL right away. I think that's what drove the rivalry quite a bit."

Former Penguins forward Max Talbot: "It started with two young superstars, and became two cities and two teams."

CSN Washington analyst Chuck Gormley on Crosby-Ovechkin: "The players know when it's Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. They want to be the best player in this league. They want to fight for the Hart Trophy. They want to win the Stanley Cup - that's something Sidney Crosby has that Alex Ovechkin doesn't have."

NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA

NBC Sports Live Extra - NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets - will stream NHL coverage via "TV Everywhere," the media industry's effort to make quality content available to authenticated customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms.

For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra. The NBC Sports Live Extra app for mobile devices and tablets is available at the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, and on select Android handset and tablet devices within Google Play.

Games airing on:

NBC will live stream to PCs, mobile devices and tablets through NBC Sports Live Extra;

NBCSN will live stream to PCs, mobile devices and tablets through NBC Sports Live Extra, and to the digital platforms of participating cable, satellite, and telco services, via "TV Everywhere," which is available on an authenticated basis to subscribers of participating MVPDs.

2013-14 REGULAR-SEASON COVERAGE ON NBC & NBCSN

NBC Sports Group will deliver coverage of 103 NHL regular-season games during the 2013-14 season, featuring 13 games on NBC and 90 games on NBCSN. All games will be streamed live via NBC Sports Live Extra. Click here for more information on NBC Sports Group's comprehensive NHL coverage this season.

NBC SPORTS REGIONAL NETWORKS

NBC Sports Regional Networks, which serve top NHL markets such as Boston (Bruins), Philadelphia (Flyers), Washington D.C. (Capitals), Chicago (Blackhawks) and the Bay Area (Sharks), will air more than 300 live NHL games and surround the 2013-14 NHL season with in-depth news, analysis and original programming on the teams that matter most.

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