Friendly Confines Go Frozen: TNT Sports Augments 2024 NHL Winter Classic Coverage With NHL DataCast Powered by AWS, NHL in ASL Alternative Offerings

Friendly Confines Go Frozen: TNT Sports Augments 2024 NHL Winter Classic Coverage With NHL DataCast Powered by AWS, NHL in ASL Alternative Offerings By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor

Monday, December 23, 2024 - 11:16 am

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Shifting up a day on the sports calendar to New Year's Eve at 5 p.m. ET, TNT Sports heads to the Windy City for the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic between the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues at Wrigley Field. The network's linear and streaming platforms will be busy with exclusive domestic coverage on TNT and Max, as well as the NHL DataCast powered by AWS available on truTV and an American Sign Language alternative telecast - NHL in ASL - available on Max.

Coverage will start with an hour-long NHL on TNT Face Off presented by Verizon pregame at 4 p.m. featuring analysts Wayne Gretzky, Paul Bissonnette, Anson Carter, and host Liam McHugh. The show will emanate from Barnburner, a hockey-focused fan experience around Wrigley Field, which will also include a headlining musical performance by multi-platinum singer and songwriter Jon Pardi on The SAP Stage.

The traditional telecast on TNT and Max will be called by the commentary team of:

Kenny Albert, providing play-by-play for his fourth NHL Winter Classic and seventh outdoor NHL game;

Eddie Olczyk, calling his 14th NHL Winter Classic and 26th overall NHL outdoor game;

Brian Boucher, providing ice-level analysis for his second NHL Winter Classic and his sixth appearance in an NHL outdoor game.

TNT will give viewers unprecedented access throughout the Winter Classic, including on-ice interviews from Darren Pang (in his ninth NHL Winter Classic appearance) and additional reporting throughout Wrigley Field from Jackie Redmond in her third NHL Winter Classic appearance.

This year's Winter Classic will also include the NHL DataCast powered by AWS - an analytics-driven alternative viewing experience on truTV and Max. The broadcast will use data and real-time in-depth insights from NHL EDGE positional data (NHL Puck and Player Tracking) to provide deeper context and understanding of how statistics are utilized by players, coaches and front offices across the National Hockey League. NHL EDGE IQ powered by AWS advanced analytics - including Face-Off Probability, Opportunity Analysis and Ice Tilt - will also be featured. John Forslund will provide play-by-play for NHL DataCast powered by AWS, along with commentary from World Championship gold medalist Colby Armstrong and Mike Kelly, NHL Network analyst and Director of Analytics and Insights for Sportlogiq.

This isn't TNT Sports' first foray in data-driven alternative broadcasts. NHL DataCast powered by AWS first came on the scene during the 2024 Western Conference Final between the Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Stars. More recently, the network has continued their work in alternative broadcasts by extending it to other properties underneath the TNT Sports umbrella. The network produced five NBA 2K25 DataCasts during their coverage of the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup.

We look at it with a wide lens, said VP, Content, Matt Mosteller, about their NBA 2K25 DataCasts. The good thing is, we have additional platforms like truTV and Max, where we can be innovative and can try new ideas and new ways that are different from the traditional broadcasts. We're certainly still going to deliver the highest quality possible for the main broadcast on TNT, but now we can figure out other creative ways for fans to experience games.

In addition, NHL in ASL - an alternate telecast dedicated completely to the Deaf community using American Sign Language (ASL) - will also be available for the Discover NHL Winter Classic, exclusively on Max in the U.S. This first-of-its-kind offering made its debut during the 2024 Stanley Cup Final between the Florida Panthers and Oilers. For every game of the Final, the NHL produced live game coverage presented with commentators communicating in American Sign Language (ASL). The league partnered with P-X-P - a company dedicated to access, inclusion, and representation in professional sports for Deaf and hard-of-hearing sports fans - to produce the live shows from their studios in New York City.

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2024/12/23/friendly-confines-go-frozen-tnt...
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