Does NBCSN shutting down at the end of 2021 interfere with Flyers games?

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 09: SVP of Communications, NBC Sports Group, Greg Hughes speaks onstage during the NBCUniversal portion of the 2018 Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour at The Langham Huntington, Pasadena on January 9, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 09: SVP of Communications, NBC Sports Group, Greg Hughes speaks onstage during the NBCUniversal portion of the 2018 Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour at The Langham Huntington, Pasadena on January 9, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

According to various reports, NBC has been reportedly telling sports leagues that they are shutting down the NBC Sports Network at the end of this year, but does this have an impact on Flyers games in the foreseeable future after this season?

The answer is no. The regional sports networks, which is what NBC Sports Philadelphia is, are not shutting down – just the NBC Sports Network is. They are two different things, and there has been no indication that NBC will be shutting down regional networks as well.

However, Flyers games that are sometimes broadcasted nationally via NBC Sports Network on predetermined dates throughout the regular season and the postseason will no longer happen.

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The current contract between the NHL and NBC Sports expires at the end of the year, making sense that the network would shutter at the end of the year and not in the middle of the year.

While there isn’t a confirmed reason why the multimedia giant decided to close the NBC Sports Network, one could only assume that is in direct response to revenue loss created by the ongoing coronavirus.

This means that the National Hockey League will have to find a new network to air national games on. ESPN seems like it could be a potential landing spot for the NHL, and it would make sense. It would also be a great network to air NHL games on.

Negotiations between the league and potential networks are expected to begin following the expiration of the current contract between NBC and the NHL.