On the NHL's Biggest Night in Years, The Broadcast Matched the Moment

Disney's bet on hockey paid off in a major way.

Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

In times like these it's easy to fall victim to hyperbole but last night may have been the biggest night for the NHL in, well, name any number of years because there's a case to be made. It wasn't just Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. It wasn't just the best player on the planet in Connor McDavid trying to break through with a championship. It wasn't just the opportunity for the Edmonton Oliers to overcome a 3-0 series deficit and bask in elation while the Florida Panthers had to swallow infamy in their own barn. It was the ending of the longest hockey season in history — a harrowing 259-day marathon — that Sean McDonough correctly identified as its best campaign the sport has ever put on. The crowning moment to cap what is a brutal and thrilling meritocracy desperate to be discovered and adopted by new fans while being cherished by diehards.

This is everything Gary Bettman and league brass could have dreamed of coming to reality. The same can be said for ESPN/ABC, which scored a seven-year rights deal with the league back in 2021 and has been building to this moment, blossoming into a symbiotic relationship — a rare win-win-win out of Michael Scott's playbook that has also benefitted the audience.

It's a not a smoke-and-mirrors success story built on flashy shortcuts and the buzziest stunts. ESPN/ABC set out to treat one of the four major American sports with the seriousness and respect it deserves, bet on their being a thirsty and underserved market, and skated hard to make it happen. They tapped chronically underrated McDonough to step into the premier play-by-play role left vacant by the irreplaceable Doc Emerick, gave him a nice counterbalance in Ray Ferraro, and put hosting duties in the capable hands of Steve Levy. They leveraged P.K. Subban and Mark Messier's starpower and on-air ability by allowing them to play to their strengths and they gave a microphone to Emily Kaplan for interviews.

Every single one of those decisions paid off under the brightest lights imaginable. They threaded the needle of welcoming in the casual fan and serving the lifers. Stakes and storylines were made digestible without falling into the trap of talking down to the viewer. In an era when the Big Game feel can be elusive they brought gravitas were reliable narrators of an impeccable climax.

McDonough was tremendous counting down the final seconds in Sunrise. The production truck did great work with the sights and sounds. But the highlight — the lasting testament of the night — came in the haze of victory. The broadcast took great care to tell individual stories. Kaplan paused her interview with Panthers coach Paul Maurice so he could finally hoist the Cup he's been chasing his entire life.

ESPN/ABC banked on the sport being enough and they were proven correct. They didn't try too hard or force anything. What resulted was totally refreshing and vindication for a project that was not guaranteed to succeed.