3 Winners, 3 Losers from the 2020-21 NHL season NBC TV schedule

Losers

Dallas Stars – You would think getting to the Stanley Cup Final in 2019-20 would make you a team to watch the following year, right?

Well, you would be wrong. Very wrong.

The Dallas Stars gave it their best against the Tampa Bay Lightning before falling just short, but that doesn’t seem to bother NBC who will feature the Stars just once on National TV in 2020-21.

And, to add insult to injury, their one lone game won’t be until Apr. 4, 2021 when they take on the Carolina Hurricanes. Ouch.

Sorry, Dallas Stars fans.

Buffalo Sabres Fans – Now, you may be wondering why we have included the Sabres in the Losers section given that they will be featured on NBC three times in 2020-21, which is probably a lot more than you would expect given that they were not a Playoff team last year.

However, the reason why I have included them here is that expectations are high for the Buffalo Sabres after they went out and signed elite winger Taylor Hall to a one-year, $8 million contract in Free Agency to finally give franchise icon Jack Eichel a reliable running mate.

High expectations come with a price, though, and if the Sabres do their usual routine and completely fall apart during the regular season, then Buffalo fans will have to cope with the humiliation of their team being a laughing stock on National TV three times.

Not ideal.

Fans of the Anaheim Ducks, Calgary Flames, New Jersey Devils, Ottawa Senators, San Jose Sharks, Vancouver Canucks and Winnipeg Jets

What do all of the above teams have in common?

They don’t have a single National televised game on NBC between them in 2020-21.

Yes, that’s right.

While the Buffalo Sabres get three and the Detroit Red Wings get six, the Vancouver Canucks won’t be featured on NBC at all despite making it to the Second Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2019-20.

Nor will the Calgary Flames or the Winnipeg Jets, and the Anaheim Ducks, the New Jersey Devils, the Ottawa Senators and the San Jose Sharks have also been ignored too.

It is particularly shocking that a Hudson River Rivalry game between the Devils and the New York Rangers hasn’t been picked by NBC, and equally so when it comes to the Sharks and their loathed rivals the Vegas Golden Knights.

Instead, fans of those seven unlucky teams will instead have to make do with local broadcasts in 2020-21, and hope that NBC remembers who they are in 2021-22.