- All-Canadian doubleheader headlines NHL opening night on Scotiabank Wednesday Night Hockey, October 4 -

-- Hockey Night in Canada returns on Saturday, Oct. 7 with all seven Canadian teams in action -

-- Season four of Rogers Hometown Hockey premieres in Niagara Falls, ON, Sunday, Oct. 8 -

TORONTO (October 2, 2017) Lace up the skates, tape up the sticks, and get ready for the first face-off as the puck drops on the 2017-18 NHL regular season Wednesday, Oct. 4 and Sportsnet is set to deliver exclusive national English-language coverage of all the must-see matchups.

Headlined by three marquee national nights - Hockey Night in Canada, Scotiabank Wednesday Night Hockey and Rogers Hometown Hockey - Sportsnet will broadcast 11 games nationally through the first five days of the season, highlighting all seven Canadian teams. In total, Sportsnet will air more than 450 NHL games this season.

Below are the broadcast details and channel allocations for NHL opening week on Sportsnet. All games listed are available to stream live on Rogers NHL LIVE and Sportsnet NOW.

Wednesday, Oct. 4- Scotiabank Wednesday Night Hockey

The 2017-18 season opens with a battle of the sophomore stars as Auston Matthews and the Toronto Maple Leafs visit Patrik Laine and the Winnipeg Jets.

Following the early action, Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers look to renew the Battle of Alberta as they play host to the Calgary Flames.

6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT - Hockey Central Tonight (Sportsnet)

· Host: Daren Millard; Analysts: Elliotte Friedman and Doug MacLean

· Feature:One year after his historic, four-goal NHL debut, Sportsnet recounts Auston Matthews's first NHL game, having him share his personal memories while also hearing from his family and NHL peers.

7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT - Toronto Maple Leafs @ Winnipeg Jets (Sportsnet)

· Play-by-play: Jim Hughson; Game Analyst: Craig Simpson; Reporter: Scott Oake

10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT - Calgary Flames @ Edmonton Oilers (Sportsnet)

Rogers Place panel - Host: David Amber; Analysts: Louie DeBrusk, John Shannon and Mark Spector

· Play-by-play: Dave Randorf; Game Analyst: DeBrusk; Reporter: Gene Principe

Thursday, Oct. 5

The defending Stanley Cup champions are in action as the Pittsburgh Penguins take on the Chicago Blackhawks.

8:30 p.m. ET / 5:30 p.m. PT - Pittsburgh Penguins @ Chicago Blackhawks (Sportsnet 360)

Friday, Oct.6

Tune in as Sportsnet broadcasts the first-ever game of the NHL's newest franchise the Vegas Golden Knights as they visit the Dallas Stars.

8:30 p.m. ET / 5:30 p.m. PT - Vegas Golden Knights @ Dallas Stars (Sportsnet 360)

Saturday, Oct. 7 - Hockey Night in Canada

Hockey Night in Canada returns to the airwaves on Saturday evening with five games on tap featuring all seven Canadian NHL teams.

The action begins with an Original Six matchup between the Leafs and Rangers, and two trips to national capitals as the Montreal Canadiens visit Washington and the Detroit Red Wings take on the Ottawa Senators. Later in the evening, four Canadian teams face-off as the Canucks open their season against the Oilers at Rogers Arena while the Flames play host to the Jets.

6:30 p.m. ET / 3:30 p.m. PT - Hockey Central Saturday (CBC, City and Sportsnet ONE)

Host: Ron MacLean; Studio Analysts: Friedman, Kelly Hrudey, Nick Kypreos

Coaches Corner: Don Cherry and MacLean

Saturday's Headlines: Friedman, Kypreos, Chris Johnston

Feature: Kelly Hrudey sits down with newest Toronto Maple Leaf Patrick Marleau, who lived with the Hrudey family during his first year in San Jose.

7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT - New York Rangers @ Toronto Maple Leafs (CBC)(OMNI - Hockey Night in Canada: Punjabi)

· Play-by-play: Hughson; Game Analyst: Craig Simpson; Reporter: Kyle Bukauskas· HNIC: Punjabi - Host: Bhupinder Hundal; Play-by-play: Harnarayan Singh; Analyst: Harpreet Pandher; Panel: Randip Janda, Taqdeer Thindalo New for the 2017-18 season, Hockey Night in Punjabi now features coverage of intermissions exclusively in Punjabi, including commentary and analysis from the panel of hockey experts

7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT - Montreal Canadiens @ Washington Capitals (City)

· Play-by-play: Paul Romanuk; Game Analyst: Garry Galley; Reporter: Christine Simpson

7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT - Detroit Red Wings @ Ottawa Senators (Sportsnet ONE)

· Play-by-play: Bob Cole; Game Analyst: Greg Millen; Reporter: Shawn McKenzie

10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT - Edmonton Oilers @ Vancouver Canucks (CBC)(OMNI - Hockey Night in Canada: Punjabi)

Host: Amber; Studio Analysts: Friedman, Hrudey, Kypreos

· Play-by-play: Randorf; Game Analyst: DeBrusk; Reporter: Oake· HNIC: Punjabi - Host: Hundal; Play-by-play: Singh; Analyst: Pandher; Panel: Janda; Mantar Bhandal

10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT - Winnipeg Jets @ Calgary Flames (City and Sportsnet ONE)

· Play-by-play: Rick Ball; Game Analyst: Cassie Campbell-Pascall; Reporter: Roger Millions

1 a.m. ET / 10 p.m. PT - After Hours with Scott Oake (CBC)

For those looking to get a head start on Saturday's hockey watching, there is also an afternoon matchup between the Colorado Avalanche and New Jersey Devils on tap.

2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT - Colorado Avalanche @ New Jersey Devils (Sportsnet)

Sunday, Oct. 8 - Rogers Hometown Hockey

The fourth season of the country's ultimate hockey festival kicks off in the honeymoon capital of the world, Niagara Falls, ON. Appropriately located right on the border of the United States and Canada, the week's broadcast matchup features Original Six rivals the New York Rangers against the Montreal Canadiens.

6:30 p.m. ET / 3:30 p.m. PT - Rogers Hometown Hockey pre-game show (Sportsnet ONE and Sportsnet 360)

· Hosts: Ron MacLean and Tara Slone

· Special guests: Former NHLers Derek Sanderson and Frank Pietrangelo, and a special musical performance by multi-platinum Canadian country artist Tim Hicks.

7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT - Montreal Canadiens @ New York Rangers (Sportsnet ONE and Sportsnet 360)

· Play-by-play: Romanuk; Game Analyst: Galley; Reporter: Christine Simpson

*NOTE: Commentator and broadcast schedule is subject to change.

Sportsnet Radio Network

All Calgary Flames games are available on Sportsnet 960 The FAN, all Vancouver Canucks games are available on Sportsnet 650, and select Toronto Maple Leafs games are available on Sportsnet 590 The FAN.

New for the 2017-18 season is Hockey Central Saturday on The Sportsnet Radio Network, a nine-hour national radio show that will air weekly from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. ET / 2 p.m. to 11 p.m. PT.

The show will move in and around all of the NHL games airing that night, checking in live, providing commentary and analysis and speaking with various key hockey figures each week. Hosting duties will be split between two experienced duos as Jeff Marek and John Shannon will anchor the first five hours of the show while Nick Alberga and Rory Boylen will close out the last four hours.

Sportsnet.ca - Digital

Home to everything NHL, Sportsnet.ca will have every angle of the NHL's opening week covered:

· Insiders Insight - From Matthews vs. Laine in Winnipeg, to the Battle of Alberta to Luke Fox 's Power Rankings and Friedman's 30 Thoughts, Sportsnet's hockey insiders will provide fans across the country with exclusive on-site analysis, insight, and updates.· NHL Predictions & Previews - Before the first puck drop, Sportsnet.ca's panel of NHL experts preview all 30 NHL teams and weigh in on which franchise will dominate the 2017-18 NHL season.· Sportsnet Fantasy Hockey Pool - Fans can set up their dream NHL roster with Fantasy Hockey to play for a chance to win great prizes while challenging their friends in a group for bragging rights. It is free and easy to play.· Sportsnet NHL Live Tracker - Stay up-to-date on all the action on the ice with the Sportsnet.ca NHL Live Tracker. Featuring real-time team and individual stats, videos, and highlights of every goal, the live tracker is a fantastic second-screen experience available on sportsnet.ca and with the Sportsnet mobile app.

Find My Channels

To find NHL on Sportsnet channels specific to your location and cable provider, head to Sportsnet.ca to 'Find My Channels' feature and simply input your postal code for full channel listings.

This season, Sportsnet will deliver exclusive coverage of more than 450 national and regional NHL games this season. In addition to delivering premium Canadian matchups, Sportsnet's 2017-18 national broadcast schedule showcases the biggest events of the NHL season, including two outdoor games featuring Canadian teams - theNHL 100 Classic between Montreal and Ottawa on December 16 and the 2018 Coors Light NHL Stadium Seriesgame between Toronto and Washington on March 3. The schedule also features exclusive coverage of the 2018 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on January 1, the 18 annual Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada on January 20, the 2018 NHL All-Star Game on January 27-28, the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffsand the2018 Stanley Cup Final.

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About SportsnetSportsnet is Canada's #1 sports media brand,uniting Canadians through sport with the content they love, accessible from anywhere.Delivering world-class storytelling on a local, regional, national and global level, the multiplatform brand consists of Sportsnet,sportsnet.ca, Sportsnet 590 The FAN, Sportsnet 960 The FAN, Sportsnet 650, Sportsnet NOW, and the Sportsnet app. Sportsnet consists of four regional channels (Sportsnet East, Ontario, West and Pacific), and the nationally-distributed Sportsnet ONE, Sportsnet 360, and Sportsnet World. Sportsnet is the official Canadian NHL national multimedia rights holder, and is also the official regional television broadcast rights holder for the Calgary Flames (including radio rights on Sportsnet 960 The FAN), Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs (including radio rights on Sportsnet 590 The FAN) and Vancouver Canucks (including radio rights on Sportsnet 650). Sportsnet also has exclusive TV & radio coverage of all 162 Blue Jays games, as well as other MLB games, Toronto Raptors, NBA, Grand Slam of Curling, Rogers Cup, CHL, IndyCar, and extensive soccer programming including Premier League, Bundesliga, FA Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup European Qualifiers.

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Rogers Communications Inc. published this content on 02 October 2017 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein.
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