Wild teaming up with NHL to broadcast games next season

The Wild are teaming up with the NHL to broadcast their games next season on a multimedia television network after FanDuel regional sports networks ceased operations earlier this year, but watching the action should be a similar experience for fans. Games will be on a Wild channel that is in the same tier of cable and satellite TV packages as FanDuel Sports North was. A select number of games will be over-the-air on a local channel like four games were last season. A paid streaming option will also be available. Details on availability, channel locations and the cost of annual and monthly subscriptions to the streaming service will be announced before the start of the season. Blackout rules will still apply. The team’s broadcasters are staying the same, including play-by-play announcer Anthony LaPanta, lead analyst Ryan Carter and rink-side reporter Kevin Gorg. Katie Storm and Wes Walz are the primary hosts of the Wild pre- and postgame shows. Alex Stalock and Lou Nanne will be analysts for certain games. In all, approximately 70 games will be handled by the Wild and NHL, with the rest of the team’s new 84-game schedule getting picked up by national TV outlets like ESPN and TNT. The Wild’s season starts Oct. 1 at Nashville, and their home opener is Oct. 3 vs. Boston at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul. Last season, the Wild ranked in the top 10 in household rating and viewership among the 25 U.S.-based NHL teams. According to the team, the Wild’s television ratings increased 41%, after they traded for star defenseman Quinn Hughes. The Wild were also one of the two biggest national TV draws of the Stanley Cup playoffs’ opening weekend (1.9 million viewers), and they were part of a record-setting second-round Game 1 audience for cable (2.22 million viewers).