NHL, NBC announce multiyear extension

For a hockey fan, NBC these days could either stand for “No Bloody Cash” or “Not a Bad Contract.”

I gravitate towards the latter.

Ideally, the NHL would have found a mainstream, over-the-air carrier in the United States willing to shell out mega-millions on a new pact. Ideally, I’d be mortgage free, own vacation properties in Hawaii and Monaco and have a full head of my own hair.

In this economic climate, with this product, Gary Bettman and the gang – despite some of the moaning I’m hearing from some fans and colleagues – did OK in extending the revenue sharing agreement with NBC by a couple years.

For starters, NBC does a commendable job with the property. Its broadcast teams are highly credible and its production values are first-rate. And NBC pioneered the “Between the Glass” insider’s position, one of the best innovations introduced to televised hockey in years.

The way the deal is structured, NBC covers the cost of production for
each game. Any revenues generated from the broadcasts first go to
paying those production costs and any money that is left over is split
between the NHL and NBC, with 80 percent going to the league and 20
percent to the network.

But the league struck only a two-year deal with NBC for one very
important reason. Its cable deal with Versus expires in two years and
the league is hoping that by having both its over-the-air and cable
contracts up for renewal at the same time it will have more options
when it comes to its next television contracts.

Cap'n Clutch wrote:In two years the NHL will have Ovechkin, Malkin, Crosby, Tavares, Hedman, Taylor Hall, Stamkos, Kane, and Toews as well as many others. I think that, if marketed properly, can only help right?

shabbs wrote:Heh. Money left over after covering production costs? Not likely.

So, 80% of nothing = nothing, and the NHL is most likely getting zero revenue from their NBC deal.

Which is fine I guess, NHL is paying nothing for it and are getting some coverage so in the end it helps get hockey broadcast in the US.

So, in two years all TV deals in the US expire... hmmm...

Cap'n Clutch wrote:In two years the NHL will have Ovechkin, Malkin, Crosby, Tavares, Hedman, Taylor Hall, Stamkos, Kane, and Toews as well as many others. I think that, if marketed properly, can only help right?

shabbs wrote:It seems teams are not hesitating as much as before to give their new young guns a chance and some real responsibility. Look at all the young captains that have been made.

wprager wrote:http://thehockeynews.com/articles/27274-THNcom-Blog-NHL-deserves-kudos-not-carving-for-NBC-deal.html

Jason Kane's (THN) take on the NBC extension.

For a hockey fan, NBC these days could either stand for “No Bloody Cash” or “Not a Bad Contract.”

I gravitate towards the latter.

Ideally, the NHL would have found a mainstream, over-the-air carrier in the United States willing to shell out mega-millions on a new pact. Ideally, I’d be mortgage free, own vacation properties in Hawaii and Monaco and have a full head of my own hair.

In this economic climate, with this product, Gary Bettman and the gang – despite some of the moaning I’m hearing from some fans and colleagues – did OK in extending the revenue sharing agreement with NBC by a couple years.

For starters, NBC does a commendable job with the property. Its broadcast teams are highly credible and its production values are first-rate. And NBC pioneered the “Between the Glass” insider’s position, one of the best innovations introduced to televised hockey in years.

OK, he had me until that last sentence.

wprager wrote:

shabbs wrote:It seems teams are not hesitating as much as before to give their new young guns a chance and some real responsibility. Look at all the young captains that have been made.

One of the side-effects of the cap is that you no-longer have that second contract or the mid-tier vets making $3-4M. Young guys *have to be* marketed earlier and more aggressively because they are earning the big bucks after only 3 years in the league, and are free to fly the coop after seven.