NHL Rivals Features Penguins-Capitals on NBCSN Today

NBC Sports Group presents a clash of NHL superstars this week, when Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals host Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday Night Rivalry at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Coverage of Penguins-Capitals begins Tuesday with NHL Rivals at 10:30 p.m. ET, followed by the debut of Bob Costas' sit-down with Boston Bruins legend Bobby Orr on Costas Tonight at 11 p.m. ET.

Wednesday's Metropolitan Division showdown features arguably the NHL's top elite players in Crosby and Ovechkin. Crosby is currently second in the NHL lead in points (25), while Ovechkin is tied for The League lead in goals (17). The Capitals (25 pts) currently hold a slim one-point lead over the Penguins (24 pts) for first place in the Metropolitan Division.

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 Verizon Center in downtown Washington, D.C.

This week's NHL coverage on NBCSN begins Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET when the Pacific Division-leading Anaheim Ducks bring the NHL's best record to Pittsburgh to face the Penguins. Emrick and McGuire will provide live commentary from CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pa.

NBCSN's NHL coverage continues on Tuesday when Henrik Lundqvist and the New York Rangers host Zdeno Chara and the Boston Bruins at 7:30 p.m. ET. Dave Strader (play-by-play) and Brian Engblom (analyst) will have the call from Madison Square Garden in New York.

NBCSN's live hockey coverage concludes Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET with a College Hockey matchup between No. 13 North Dakota and Boston University. Strader and Ken Hodge (analyst) will provide live commentary from Agganis Arena in Boston, Mass.

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 Ducks-Penguins, Bruins-Rangers and Penguins-Capitals matchups, as well as the College Hockey matchup between North Dakota and Boston U.

NHL Live, NBC Sports Group live NHL pre-game and post-game studio show, will begin one hour prior to Monday and Tuesday's games, and 90 minutes prior to the Penguins-Capitals Wednesday Night Rivalry game, which will feature an encore presentation of NHL Rivals at 7 p.m. ET. Liam McHugh will host NHL Live with former players and analysts Mike Milbury, Keith Jones and Jeremy Roenick from the International Broadcast Center in Stamford, Conn.

Date Coverage Network Time*
Mon., NHL Live NBCSN 6:30 p.m.
November
18
Anaheim at Pittsburgh NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
Tue., NHL Live NBCSN 6:30 p.m.
November
19
Boston at N.Y. Rangers NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
NHL Rivals - Penguins/Capitals NBCSN 10:30 p.m.
Costas Tonight: Bobby Orr NBCSN 11 p.m.
Wed., NHL Live NBCSN 6:30 p.m.
November
20
NHL Rivals - Penguins/Capitals (Encore) NBCSN 7 p.m.
NHL Live NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Washington NBCSN 8 p.m.
Fri., College Hockey - North Dakota at Boston U. NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
November
22
*All
Times
Eastern

FLYERS-PENGUINS MOST-WATCHED NOVEMBER NHL GAME ON CABLE SINCE 2001

Last week's Flyers-Penguins Wednesday Night Rivalry matchup on NBCSN drew 759,000 average viewers, making it NBCSN's most-watched Wednesday Night Rivalry game of the season to this point, and the most-watched November NHL game on cable since 2001 (Flyers-Rangers, 11/14/01).

Flyers-Penguins was NBCSN's second most-watched NHL game of the season to date behind Capitals-Blackhawks on opening night, and NBCSN's most-watched November NHL game ever.

NHL RIVALS - PENGUINS-CAPITALS - TUESDAY, 11 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

NHL Rivals, which debuts this week on Tuesday at 10:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, dovetails off of NBCSN's Wednesday Night Rivalry, which Forbes dubbed "the hottest new brand in sports." This week's episode will feature 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."

2014 NHL STADIUM SERIES PROGRAMMING CHANGE

The 2014 NHL Stadium Series matchup between the Chicago Blackhawks and Pittsburgh Penguins from Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill., will now air on NBC at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 1, 2014. The game was originally scheduled to air on NBCSN.

This marks the first time since NBC re-acquired NHL rights in 2006 that a regular-season game has been scheduled for Primetime on NBC. The 2011 NHL Winter Classic aired in Primetime because weather prevented the game from being played at its regularly-scheduled time in the afternoon.

Penguins-Blackhawks will be the fourth and final game in the 2014 NHL Stadium Series, and the second time Chicago has hosted a regular-season outdoor NHL game (2009 NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field). The Penguins will be participating in their third regular-season outdoor NHL game since 2008 (2008 NHL Winter Classic and 2011 NHL Winter Classic).

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.

In addition to its coverage of the opening week of the NHL's 2013-14 regular season, NBC Sports Group will present comprehensive pre-game and post-game coverage, the NHL Winter Classic, the NHL Stadium Series, and new shoulder programming.

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 (http://nbcsportsgrouppressbox.com/2013/07/19/nbc-sports-group-to-air-103-nhl-regular-season-games-in-2013-14/) 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.

NBC SPORTS GROUP'S DIGITAL AND SOCIAL NHL COVERAGE

NBC Sports Group will continue to provide hockey fans with up-to-the-minute news, video, and information on the NHL and hockey from around the world via its digital and social properties, including NBCSports.com, Twitter and Facebook. Click here for more information on NBC Sports Group's Digital and Social NHL coverage.

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