The NHL on Versus The NHL on " Versus ( formerly known as The NHL on OLN " ) is the National Hockey League ' s cable programming in the United States for the regular season , playoffs , and Stanley Cup Finals Games 3 , and 4 . History . The NHL ' s television deal with Versus was made at the conclusion of the 2004 – 05 NHL lockout that caused the cancellation of an entire season . At the time , Versus offered a two year , $ 130 million contract ( with a network option for a third year ) that delivered guaranteed money for Commissioner Gary Bettman ( ESPN , which previously held the rights , wanted a revenue - sharing deal similar to NBC ' s ) . Versus was expected to use NHL coverage to show it was a legitimate suitor for Major League Baseball and National Football League packages that were to be negotiated later in 2005 , but they did not land agreements with either league . In 2007 , the NHL signed an agreement to extend the NHL on Versus to the 2010 – 2011 season . Versus paid $ 72 . 5 million for 2007 – 2008 and will pay inflationary increases over the next three years . Terms of the deal . Under the terms of the contract , Versus will show 54 or more NHL games each season under the agreement , generally on Monday and Tuesday nights . They will also provide nightly coverage of as many Stanley Cup Playoff games as possible ( generally two per night in the first 2 rounds ; the Conference Finals are usually played on alternating days ) , and 2 games of the Stanley Cup Finals Games 3 , and 4 in - present . Coverage . The network broadcasts at least 54 games during the regular season ( usually two games per week , sometimes three or just one ) , plus the All - Star Game , Skills Competition , and YoungStars game . At the end of the year , the network has blanket coverage of the playoffs , culminating in the first two games of the Stanley Cup Finals . Versus also shows the NHL Awards Show and first round of the NHL Draft . Versus schedules a few doubleheaders during the regular season ( consisting of a game in the Eastern Time Zone , and then a Mountain or Pacific Time Zone game ) . Playoff coverage usually involves doubleheaders throughout the first two rounds , except weekends prior to 2007 – 08 , when NBC often televised multiple games during its broadcast windows . Versus has been the main pioneer of using microphones on players , and was the first network to have a head coach ( San Jose Sharks coach Ron Wilson ) interviewed on the bench in the middle of the game . The " Game of the Week " . Included in the schedule is a " Game of the Week " for selected dates . In this " Exclusive " time period , which was created in 2006 – 07 , no other National Hockey League game may be broadcast involving a team based in the United States and , in most cases , no other game is scheduled unless it involves two Canadian teams . Regional carriers are allowed to air games outside Versus ' exclusive window . Like NBC , games aired on " The NHL on Versus " usually feature teams based in the United States , with the exception of playoffs . For the first two playoff rounds , Versus will occasionally simulcast TSN or CBC feeds depending on the schedule and match - ups , although it has made a commitment to offering its own production in most cases . The selection of teams for " The NHL on Versus " is somewhat more diverse ( possibly because there are more game slots to air ) than its broadcast partner , NBC . Because of inordinately high ratings in the Buffalo and Pittsburgh markets , Versus has made note to air a significant number of games featuring the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins . Traditionally ratings - friendly teams such as the New York Rangers , Philadelphia Flyers , Detroit Red Wings , and Boston Bruins also get selected regularly , frequently at or near the maximum of nine appearances per team during the regular season . Any regular season game selected by Versus airs exclusively on that network . During the playoffs , Versus ' first - round and second - round games may be subject to blackout in the participating teams ' regional markets ( although they have exclusivity for two second - round games per series ) . Versus regains full national coverage for its Conference and Stanley Cup Final telecasts . " Hockey Central " . Versus also provides postgame coverage of every game they broadcast . The post game show is known as Hockey Central , airing from their Stamford , Connecticut studio Versus removed from DirecTV . As of September 1 , 2009 , Versus was no longer available on DirecTV satellite service . DirecTV had released a statement and placed information on channel 603 , the original Versus DirecTV channel , concerning the issues with Comcast . On March 15 , 2010 however , it was announced that a deal had been reached with DirecTV to bring back Versus to their lineup effective immediately . The network returns to the same channel and packages as it was on before it was pulled . Ratings . 2005 – 06 . Versus ' games rated substantially higher than any non - Tour de France programming that Versus had ever aired in comparable timeslots ( rating between 0 . 2 and 0 . 3 during the regular season ) . Still , these numbers were quite small compared to ratings for most other sports on national cable channels reaching at least as many homes as Versus . Versus ' playoff viewership did not increase as much as it or the league might have hoped . Versus reached a viewership of 610 , 836 households for Games 1 , and 2 of the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals . 2006 – 07 . Versus averaged a 0 . 2 Nielsen Media Research household rating , about level with the 2005 – 06 regular season NHL numbers and its 2006 prime time average . Versus ' coverage of the 2007 All - Star Game garnered a . 7 rating ( 474 , 298 viewing homes and 672 , 948 total viewers ) . Ratings were down 76 % from ABC ' s ratings in 2004 , the last time the game was played , and down 82 % from ABC ' s coverage in 2000 . However , some of that significant drop can be attributed to the game being played on a weeknight ( Wednesday ) as opposed to the traditional weekend game , and the fact that Versus is a cable television network unlike ABC which is a broadcast network . The 2008 All - Star Game was scheduled for a Sunday . 2007 – 08 . In 2007 – 08 , NHL audiences on Versus in the United States remain small , but have increased over the previous two seasons . Versus is averaging 246 , 154 viewers a game , up 24 percent from last year at this time . Over the past year , channel distribution has increased to 73 . 6 million households from 70 . 8 million . Conference Finals ratings are now averaging a 1 . 2 HH rating . Game 2 between the Flyers and Penguins drew a 1 . 7 HH rating , 2 . 3 million viewers ; an NHL record on Versus .