In an upset, Turner Sports is picking up the remaining portion of the NHL’s media rights.
Sports Business Journal and the New York Post reported Monday that Turner has acquired the NHL “B” package starting next season, including three Stanley Cup finals, half of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and a regular season schedule that includes the annual Winter Classic. Numerous outlets and reporters said as much Monday, but only SBJ and the Post were characterizing the deal as done, rather than close.
Both outlets are both reporting that Turner will pay $225 million/year for the rights. Variety is reporting a rights fee “around $200 million.”
While there was initially some mention of a CBS-Turner joint bid, CBS is not involved in the deal. That means the Stanley Cup Final will air exclusively on cable in the years Turner has the rights, the first time that has happened since 1994. It should be noted that ESPN, which previously acquired the NHL’s “A” package that includes four Stanley Cup finals, has agreed to air the championship series exclusively on broadcast network ABC.
It was not immediately clear which of the Turner Sports networks will carry NHL games. Andrew Marchand of the New York Post indicated Monday that the streaming service HBO Max will be involved in some way.
ESPN/ABC’s deal for the “A” package is worth a reported $400 million/year, bringing the NHL’s annual rights haul to $625 million/year. NBC currently pays $200 million/year for its deal, which includes all of the NHL’s linear TV rights. Disney pays another $100 million/year for streaming rights on ESPN+.
Per SBJ, a formal announcement of the Turner deal is expected “as soon as tomorrow.”
Turner has never carried NHL games nationally and has not added a major sports package since acquiring the NCAA men’s basketball tournament in a joint bid with CBS in 2010. With the addition of the NHL, the Turner networks will now have the NCAA men’s Final Four and National Championship in every-other-year, the Stanley Cup Final in every-other-year, and annual coverage of an NBA conference final, NHL conference final and Major League Baseball League Championship Series.
News of the Turner deal broke shortly after reports that incumbent NBC had exited the bidding for the NHL’s remaining rights. As recently as the weekend, Fox was said to be the frontrunner for the “B” package.
