New NBC Press Release For This Sunday's Red Wings-Pens Game

NEW YORK – Jan. 25, 2010 -Pittsburgh and Detroit will meet for the first time since the Penguins defeated the Red Wings, 2-1, in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final on the NHL “Game of the Week” this Sunday at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC Sports.

Mike “Doc” Emrick (play-by-play), Eddie Olczyk (analyst) and Pierre McGuire (inside-the-glass reporter) call the action. McGuire will pull double duty, hosting NBC’s studio show alongside analyst Mike Milbury on site at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh and Detroit have met for the last two Stanley Cup Finals with the Red Wings winning in 2008 and the Penguins capturing the Cup in 2009. The Penguins are currently fourth in the Eastern Conference with 65 points, while the Red Wings (58), who have suffered through a number of injuries, are tied for eighth in the Western Conference.

OLCZYK ON DETROIT AFTER THEY REGAIN THEIR INJURED PLAYERS: “They will be a dangerous team, tough medicine for any team that might take them on in the Western Conference. It would not surprise me to see both of these teams back in the Stanley Cup Final for the third consecutive year.”

EMRICK: “Because they have reached the Stanley Cup Final in each of the previous two seasons, these have been two of the busiest teams in the history of the sport, playing so many games. But it doesn’t show in their performances. Both teams leave it all out there.”

TAMPA TRIBUNE (1/18) ON NBC SPORTS’ HOCKEY COVERAGE: “[It] picked up where it left off last season – among the best sports coverage on television.”

CLOSE GAMES: All of NBC Sports’ NHL games this season have been decided by one goal and two needed extra time to determine a winner. Yesterday, the Penguins defeated the Philadelphia Flyers, 2-1, on a power-play goal by Matt Cooke with 1:47 remaining. In NBC’s inaugural “Game of the Week” on Jan. 17, the Chicago Blackhawks needed a shootout to beat the Red Wings, 4-3, in Detroit. The Boston Bruins needed overtime to defeat the Flyers, 2-1, at Fenway Park on New Year’s Day in the 2010 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic.

OLYMPIANS IN THE GAME: Sunday’s game features 12 players who will compete for their respective Olympic teams in Vancouver in February.

USA
Pittsburgh, D Brooks Orpik
Detroit, D Brian Rafalski

CANADA
Pittsburgh, F Sidney Crosby
Pittsburgh, G Marc-Andre Fleury

FINLAND
Detroit, F Valtteri Filppula

RUSSIA
Pittsburgh, D Sergei Gonchar
Pittsburgh, F Evgeni Malkin
Detroit, F Pavel Datsyuk

SWEDEN
Detroit, F Henrik Zetterberg
Detroit, F Tomas Holmstrom
Detroit, D Nicklas Lidstrom
Detroit, D Nicklas Kronwall

NBCSPORTS.COM: NBCSports.com will again offer “Star-cam” this season, tracking a player from both teams throughout each of their shifts. Following the game, NBCSports.com will present bonus material, including “Star-cam” and “Net-cam” and bonus analysis from NBC Sports commentators.

PENGUINS AT CAPITALS FLEXED INTO FEB. 7 “GAME OF THE WEEK”: Commissioner Gary Bettman announced last week on his SIRIUS XM Radio program that the Sunday, Feb. 7, Pittsburgh Penguins at Washington Capitals game was flexed as NBC Sports’ “NHL Game of the Week” (Noon ET). Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin last spring delighted the sports world with a memorable seven-game playoff series, including both superstars recording a hat trick in Game 2, that elevated what had been a rivalry between individuals into what many are calling the NHL’s best current team rivalry. Last week at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, the Capitals defeated the Penguins, 6-3, in the first meeting between the two teams of the season. Ovechkin scored two goals, while Crosby had one.

FLEX SCHEDULING & CONSISTENT 12:30 PM ET START TIME: Again this year, “Game of the Week” broadcasts will consistently start at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sundays (except for Feb. 7 and Apr. 11, Noon ET start times). For the third straight season, the NHL and NBC Sports will utilize flex scheduling and will be able to select from up to four games on Sunday afternoons. At least 13 days prior to the scheduled games, the NHL and NBC Sports will announce one of those games as the “Game of the Week” to be broadcast during the NBC Sports window. The other games will remain available to the teams’ regional carrier but will not be televised during NBC Sports’ broadcast window.

2010 NHL GAME OF THE WEEK REGULAR-SEASON FLEXIBLE SCHEDULE
(All Games Announced At Least 13 Days Prior)

Sunday, Jan. 31, 12:30 p.m. ET
Detroit @ Pittsburgh (Flexed)

Sunday, Feb. 7, 12:00 p.m. ET
Pittsburgh @ Washington (Flexed)

Sunday, Mar. 7, 12:30 p.m. ET
Boston @ Pittsburgh
Detroit @ Chicago
Carolina @ Atlanta

Sunday, Mar. 14, 12:30 p.m. ET
Philadelphia @ New York Rangers
Pittsburgh @ Tampa Bay
Colorado @ Dallas
Washington @ Chicago

Sunday, Mar. 21, 12:30 p.m. ET
New York Rangers @ Boston
Buffalo @ Carolina

Sunday, Apr. 4, 12:30 p.m. ET
Detroit @ Philadelphia

Sunday, Apr. 11, 12:00 p.m. ET
Boston @ Washington
New York Rangers @ Philadelphia
Detroit @ Chicago

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