NHL Network Blanket Coverage on NHL Tonight: First Shift, NHL Now, NHL Tonight and On The Fly
NHL Network today announced its upcoming programming schedule ahead of the 2025-26 season, featuring NHL Tonight: First Shift, NHL Now, NHL Tonight™ and On The Fly.
- NHL Tonight: First Shift (4 p.m. ET): The one-hour weekday casual and conversational style show features hard-hitting opinions and analysis on the news of the day.
- NHL Now (5 p.m. ET): On the air every weekday throughout the 2025-26 NHL season, this show previews all the games of the evening providing commentary on the most relevant topics and entertaining interviews during its signature “Players Only” segments with players from the game.
- NHL Tonight (7 p.m. ET): Presented daily, this signature program airs alongside NHL regular season games, with live look-ins and real-time reactions to goals, breaking news and analysis.
- Following the conclusion of the night’s games, On The Fly provides all of the NHL highlights with additional analysis, interviews and postgame clips.
NHL Network hosts Jamison Coyle, Lauren Gardner, E.J. Hradek, Alexa Landestoy, Tony Luftman, Kathryn Tappen, Adnan Virk and Erika Wachter will be joined by former coaches Bruce Boudreau (2008 Jack Adams Award winner) and Tony Granato (13-year NHL veteran and former Wisconsin Badgers head coach), former players turned analysts Brian Boyle (2018 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy winner), Ken Daneyko (three-time Stanley Cup champion), Michael Del Zotto (13-year NHL veteran), Jason Demers (13-year NHL veteran), Devan Dubnyk (2015 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy winner and 12-year NHL veteran), Stu Grimson (14-year NHL veteran), Billy Jaffe, Mike Johnson (11-year NHL veteran), Steve Konroyd (15-year NHL veteran), Bill Lindsay (13-year NHL veteran), Dave Reid (two-time Stanley Cup champion), Mike Rupp (Stanley Cup champion), Cory Schneider (2011 William M. Jennings Trophy winner) and Kevin Weekes (11-year NHL veteran), along with Sam Cosentino (NHL Draft and prospects expert) and Mike Kelly(analytics expert), and insider Elliotte Friedman will appear throughout the 2025-26 NHL season.
As previously announced, Pat Maroon and Nate Thompson are set to make their NHL Network analyst debuts on Monday, October 6 at 7 p.m. ET on NHL Tonight: Western Conference Preview and Monday, October 13 at 5 p.m. ET on NHL Now respectively.
Ahead of the regular season, NHL Network will air back-to-back one-hour specials NHL Tonight: Eastern Conference Preview, airing Monday, October 6 at 6 p.m. ET with host Jamison Coyle and analysts Brian Boyle and Mike Rupp, followed by NHL Tonight: Western Conference Preview at 7 p.m. ET with host Tony Luftman and analysts Jason Demers and Pat Maroon.
NHL Network will also televise a dozen regular season games in the first three weeks of the 2025-26 NHL season beginning with an Original Six matchup — Montreal Canadiens at Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday, October 11 at 7 p.m. ET.
NHL Network will air 20 NHL Network Showcase games this season, with the puck dropping on Sunday, October 26 when the Colorado Avalanche take on the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center at 1 p.m. ET. NHL Network’s E.J. Hradek and Mike Rupp will provide the call and analysis.
A full programming schedule of NHL Network’s first week of the regular season can be found here and below:
NHL NETWORK LIVE STUDIO PRGRAMMING TO BEGIN 2025-26 REGULAR SEASON
| Date | Time | Show | Personalities |
| Monday, October 6 | 6 p.m. | NHL Tonight: Eastern Conference Preview | Jamison Coyle, Brian Boyle and Mike Rupp |
| 7 p.m. | NHL Tonight: Western Conference Preview | Tony Luftman, Jason Demers and Pat Maroon | |
| Tuesday, October 7 | 4 p.m. | NHL Tonight: First Shift | E.J. Hradek and Pat Maroon |
| 5 p.m. | NHL Now | Kathryn Tappen, Jason Demers and Mike Rupp | |
| 7 p.m. | NHL Tonight | Jamison Coyle, Brian Boyle and Mike Johnson | |
| 10:30 p.m. | On The Fly | Erika Wachter | |
| Wednesday, October 8 | 4 p.m. | NHL Tonight: First Shift | E.J. Hradek and Pat Maroon |
| 5 p.m. | NHL Now | Lauren Gardner, Brian Boyle, Mike Rupp and Cory Schneider | |
| 7 p.m. | NHL Tonight | Tony Luftman, Mike Johnson and Kevin Weekes | |
| 12:30 a.m. | On The Fly | Erika Wachter | |
| Thursday, October 9 | 4 p.m. | NHL Tonight: First Shift | E.J. Hradek and Dan Rosen |
| 5 p.m. | NHL Now | Lauren Gardner, Jason Demers and Cory Schneider | |
| 7 p.m. | NHL Tonight | Adnan Virk, Cory Schneider and Kevin Weekes | |
| 9 p.m. | NHL Tonight | Tony Luftman, Ken Daneyko and Devan Dubnyk | |
| 11:30 p.m. | On The Fly | Erika Wachter | |
| Friday, October 10 | 4 p.m. | NHL Tonight: First Shift | E.J. Hradek and Dan Rosen |
| 5 p.m. | NHL Now | Lauren Gardner, Jason Demers and Mike Rupp | |
| 7 p.m. | NHL Tonight | Jamison Coyle, Devan Dubnyk and Kevin Weekes | |
| Saturday, October 11 | 7 p.m. | Montreal Canadiens at Chicago Blackhawks | |
| 10 p.m. | On The Fly | Erika Wachter | |
| Sunday, October 12 | 7 p.m. | Washington Capitals at New York Rangers | |
| 10 p.m. | On The Fly | Tony Luftman and Mike Johnson | |
*All times ET
About NHL Network: As the TV home for the National Hockey League, NHL Network™ gives viewers an all-access pass to complete hockey coverage both on and off the ice, including live NHL games and special on-site coverage of NHL events, plus three signature studio shows, interviews, highlights and expert analysis from a variety of hockey insiders and former players.
Additional programming includes behind-the-scenes features, player profiles and international and amateur hockey competitions. For more information, visit www.nhlnetwork.com.
