Prime Video is moving its NHL national package in Canada to Wednesday nights, opening a 12-year run with 27 regular-season games and a bilingual presentation that begins at Scotiabank Arena. The Toronto Maple Leafs will host the New York Islanders in the first broadcast, with Toronto forward Gavin McKenna, selected first in the 2026 NHL Draft, facing New York defenseman Matthew Schaefer, the top pick from 2025.
The opener is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, available on Prime and MSGSN. It marks the end of Prime’s two-season “Monday Night Hockey” slot and the start of “Wednesday Night Hockey” as the platform’s weekly national NHL window.
After the horn
Prime’s Canadian NHL agreement runs for 12 years, with the service emphasizing that the games and its playoff inventory will be included for members without an additional charge.
For the first time, every Wednesday broadcast will be carried in both English and French. Prime will be the only national NHL broadcaster in Canada offering both language feeds for the same games.
The postseason package this season includes two Stanley Cup Playoff series in the First Round and one Second Round series. Those opening rounds are among the busiest stretches of the hockey calendar, and the broadcasts will also be offered in English and French.
Broadcast crew
John Forslund returns on English play-by-play, with Jody Shelley as the booth analyst. Thomas Hickey will work between the benches, while Andi Petrillo handles rink-side reporting.
The French crew will feature Alain Crête and Michael Roy sharing the play-by-play assignment. Crête recently finished a broadcasting career of more than four decades at RDS. Jean-Luc Grand-Pierre joins them as analyst.
| Feed | Play-by-play | Analysis and reporting |
|---|---|---|
| English | John Forslund | Jody Shelley, Thomas Hickey, Andi Petrillo |
| French | Alain Crête, Michael Roy | Jean-Luc Grand-Pierre |
Inside the broadcast
Prime plans to keep building on production elements introduced during its Monday schedule, including “Home Ice Access,” a feature that takes viewers into the building 30 minutes before the conventional game broadcast begins.
The coverage also used a late-season segment called “Eavesdropping,” moving from Forslund and Shelley in the booth to Hickey at ice level. The objective is to bring viewers nearer to the rink while preserving the familiar rhythm of a traditional Canadian hockey telecast.
Forslund, whose broadcasting career spans more than 40 years, has called NHL games for the Hartford Whalers, Carolina Hurricanes and Seattle Kraken. He spent 25 years as the Whalers/Hurricanes voice before taking Seattle play-by-play duties in 2021.
He sees room for the production to grow without losing the basic ingredients fans expect. “We have to keep improving,” Forslund said. “There are more things we can do, while still keeping the standard of a classic hockey broadcast that people enjoy.”
