To quote Chief Wiggum, “You just…you couldn’t have picked a worse time.”
Yes, the NHL has released its national television schedule for the 2012-13 season.
With a fairly large asterisk, here’s what the NBC Sports Group (that’s us!) has on tap:
---- Over 100 games on NBC and NBC Sports Network.
---- The Discover NHL Thanksgiving Showdown pits the Boston Bruins against the New York Rangers on Thanksgiving Friday (Nov. 23).
---- The 2013 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic goes Tuesday, Jan. 1, at Michigan Stadium between the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs.
---- A triple-header on Feb. 17 for Hockey Day in America. Two afternoon games on NBC will be followed by an evening game on NBC Sports Network.
The regular season will conclude Saturday, April 13, with 14 games.
Of course, when the regular season commences is the big unknown. But if it does happen to start on Oct. 11 as planned, NBC Sports Network will air a double-header starting with the Boston Bruins at Philadelphia Flyers and followed by the St. Louis Blues at Colorado Avalanche.
The next night, Oct. 12, the Los Angeles Kings will raise their first-ever Stanley Cup banner at the Staples Center. (And if the season doesn’t start on time, the Clippers will have a practice.)
Update: Here’s a link to the full list of games.
Puck Daddy has the individual team breakdowns.