NHL Schedule: Blackhawks, Blues lead weekly national televised games
Welcome to Top Shelf TV, a preview of the week’s national NHL schedule and television listings. We comb through the schedule on NBC, NBCSN, and NHL Network to tell you which games are worth your time and which ones to skip.
After two weeks of constant action, the scheduling gods go a little lighter on us. There are only five games in the national NHL TV listings this week, but four of those are part of NBCSN doubleheaders.
Should you be excited about even more Montreal Canadiens games on your TV? Does the Saturday night matchup beat college football? Are the doubleheaders worth staying up for?
Read on to find out.
No national games on Monday, so let’s head right to Tuesday.
Tuesday (Oct. 17)
Tampa Bay Lightning at New Jersey Devils (7:30 p.m. ET/ 4:30 p.m. PT on NBCSN)
Why you should watch: The Devils are off to a surprising 4-1-0 start behind some unlikely heroes up front and a resurgent Corey Schneider in net.
Brian Gibbons scored the first 3-on-5 goal in team history last week as the Devils topped the Maple Leafs in Toronto. Meanwhile, Schneider has found his game after a down 2016-17. He’s carrying an excellent .924 save percentage, including an unreal .961 at even strength.
The Lightning are also off to a 4-1-0 start and expected to contend again after injuries dogged their 2016-17 campaign. Second year center Brayden Point is blossoming. The team is coming off of three straight wins over 2017 playoff teams, including one over the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins.
Tonight’s @SonnysBBQ goal of the game: Kuch with a filthy backhander for a goal in his fifth-straight game. 💰 #STLvsTBL pic.twitter.com/peWfX2nQhb
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) October 15, 2017
Skip it if: This match up sees the Lightning on the wrong end of a road back-to-back. They play Detroit the night before, and wrap up a road trip in Columbus on Thursday. The Lightning might be in rough shape.
Despite the Devils torrid start, they had the number one draft pick last year for a reason. This is a bad team that didn’t add much in the offseason. A bounce back season from Schneider makes them more bearable, but not by much.
Verdict: Skippable.
Montreal Canadiens at San Jose Sharks (10:30 p.m. ET/ 7:30 p.m. PT on NBCSN)
Why you should watch: Both of these teams are off to rough starts, but they also made the playoffs in 2017. It’s a star-studded match up. Defending Norris Trophy winner Brent Burns anchors the San Jose blue line, while Montreal’s Carey Price is the only active goalie with a Hart Trophy to his name.
San Jose took three games to record their first point, a 3-2 win over the Sabres on October 12. Due to scheduling quirks and a poor start, they sit on just two points in four games entering the week. Burns has a single assist and no goals on the season.
The Canadiens are struggling as well.
The Montreal Canadiens are feeling about as much pressure as a team could feel entering the second weekend of the 2017-18 season. They have a 1-3 record and have only scored four goals in their four games to begin the year.
Price hasn’t been himself either. Montreal’s number one goalie has just a .882 save percentage on the year.
Verdict: Skippable. Get some rest.
Wednesday (Oct. 18)
Chicago Blackhawks at St. Louis Blues (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT on NBCSN)
Why you should watch: A fitting match up for NBCSN’s Wednesday Night Rivalry (two weeks in a row!). These two teams have met in the playoffs twice in the last four years, and they represent the best of a still stacked Central Division.
The Blackhawks have quieted doubters with their 4-1-1 start. The blue line still raises questions, but goalie Corey Crawford has kept them above water. He leads the league with a .960 save percentage through five games played.
The Blues have been a team in transition for a few years now, but it’s gone smoothly. Yes, they’ve been snakebitten in the playoffs, but starting goalies gave way from Jaroslav Halak to Brian Elliott to Jake Allen without missing much. Alex Pietrangelo looks like an early Norris Trophy Candidate, while Colton Parayko looks like a future number one defenseman in his own right.
Skip it if: The top end talent on the Blues might be great, but there are legitimate depth concerns. An injury to Robby Fabri shouldn’t be this much of a concern. Chicago’s blue line is bleak. After Duncan Keith we have the declining Brent Seabrook, some Scotch tape, and chewing gum. And Cody Franson’s somewhere in there, we think.
Verdict: Must watch. Even with their respective roster holes, this is a can’t miss matchup.
Montreal Canadiens at Los Angeles Kings (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT on NBCSN)
Why you should watch: Anze Kopitar is a wizard. The Slovenian has six points in four games, and he’s still one of the most fun players in the league to watch. After a down 2016-17 season, his hot start has helped propel the Kings to a 3-0-1 record so far.
Skip it if: Pretty much everything else about this game is rough around the edges. The Kings are off to a hot start, but it’s a bit of a mirage. After their top end talent like Kopitar and Drew Doughty, it’s a lot of legacy contracts from their post-Cup hangover.
Verdict: Get to bed early. This one’s a snoozer.
No more games until the weekend, but it’s a fun match up ahead.
Saturday
Florida Panthers at Washington Capitals (7:30 p.m. ET/ 4:30 p.m. PT on NBCSN)
Why you should watch: Alex Ovechkin has cooled a bit from his historic start, but he still has three points in four games since he posted back-to-back hat tricks to open the season.
The Panthers are 2-2-0 and looking to find their footing after a .500 start. A loss to the Penguins on Saturday didn’t help, but Jonathan Huberdeau’s been a revelation to start the year. The 24-year old winger has five points in four games, including two goals in the loss to Pittsburgh.
Another angle of Huberdeau goal pic.twitter.com/WlsKE0Gq3T
— Cats On The Prowl (@Cats0ntheprowl) October 15, 2017
Skip it if: Beautiful fall Saturdays are hard to come by. Down here in Houston we’re finally getting a break in the weather, and it’s hard to sit inside watching the games when the sun is shining and the humidity has given way.
Verdict: Who are we kidding? We’ll be watching this at Puck Prose HQ, and you should too. At a minimum, these two teams can score.
Next: Each NHL Team's Mount Rushmore
Think Montreal will bounce back? Are we overrating the Central Division? Is foliage worth missing out on that Saturday match up?
Let us know in the comments.