Flyers Set for Showcase on National Stage in 2026-27 – The Hockey Writers – Philadelphia Flyers

The sports world will see a lot of Xfinity Mobile Arena this winter. The Philadelphia 76ers have 34 of their 82 games airing nationally on ESPN/ABC, NBC/Peacock, or Prime, tied for the most in the NBA after signing generational superstar LeBron James to cap his legendary career.

But the Philadelphia Flyers will have their fair share of the spotlight, too. The NHL’s announcement of its broadcasts on ESPN networks and TNT for the 2026-27 season features 19 games for the Orange and Black, more than any except the team they defeated in the first round, the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Of course, we already knew the Penguins and Flyers would have a mutual air date across the United States: their season opener in Philadelphia has been slated for TNT since it was scheduled. In addition to their first meeting since Cam York‘s series-ending overtime winner, 18 other dates have now joined it.

TV Schedule Breakdown

In fact, the Flyers start the season with two straight national games. Their first road game of the season, Oct. 1 at the New Jersey Devils, will be a streaming exclusive on ESPN+, Hulu and Disney+. It’s one of four games that won’t be available on traditional TV this season. The others are Oct. 15 at the Detroit Red Wings, Dec. 3 at home against the New York Islanders and Jan. 28 at home against the Los Angeles Kings.

After five national broadcasts in October—the three above, plus Oct. 21 at the Buffalo Sabres and Oct. 28 versus the Washington Capitals—the Flyers don’t have any in November. Other than a Dec. 16 game against the New York Rangers on TNT, the Flyers don’t have a national TV (non-streaming broadcast) game from Oct. 28 until Jan. 31. That’s the first of four ABC games on the schedule, this one also against the Penguins for a Sunday noon matinee start leading into the NFL’s conference championship games.

It’s not just traditional opponents in these games, either. The Flyers’ first two national games of February are at home against the Tampa Bay Lightning (Feb. 3, TNT) and at the Dallas Stars (Feb. 18, ESPN). The Flyers have another national game in Tampa Bay on March 25 on ESPN+. Those are two teams that have dominated the Flyers in recent seasons, so there’ll be extra attention to see if they can hold their own against expected Cup contenders.

February includes two more national broadcasts, a Saturday matinee with the Rangers on ABC on Feb. 20 and a Wednesday night TNT game with the Sabres, both at home. The Flyers have another weekend afternoon game on Sunday, March 7, at 3:30 p.m. against the St. Louis Blues on TNT.

They’ll end the regular season as they start it, with their final two games (and four of their last five) on national networks. That’s always subject to a bit of change; for example, TNT picked up the Flyers’ Easter Sunday game this year with the Boston Bruins since it became a huge game in the playoff race (although NBC Sports Philadelphia and NESN still aired local broadcasts).

One game that definitely won’t change networks, though, is Philadelphia’s regular-season finale. ABC will air potentially the final regular-season, if not career, game for Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals, who have gone down to the wire with the Flyers for a playoff spot in two of the last three seasons, with each edging the other once.

Status Quo Locally

As for the other 65 games on the Flyers’ schedule, fans should know where to look. NBC Sports Philadelphia will once again air all local broadcasts for the Flyers. Jim Jackson and Brian Boucher have both been selected for national duties throughout their careers for good reasons and should be a treat to listen to again.

Simulcasts have slowly but surely been taking over the NHL landscape, with the Columbus Blue Jackets drawing ire for dismissing long-time radio voice Bob McElligott this summer. As of now, there are no indications the Flyers are considering a similar change, meaning Tim Saunders and Todd Fedoruk will continue radio broadcasts on 97.5 The Fanatic.