NHL Negotiations With NBC Universal Stall, NXT May Not Have To Move To Tuesdays

It has been rumored that NXT would be moving to Tuesday nights soon, primarily due to, at the time, the belief that Wednesday night NHL games would air on the USA Network. However, that is currently up in the air because negotiations between the NHL and NBC Universal have stalled.

Sports Business Journal and the New York Times report that the Walt Disney Company, owner of ESPN and ABC, announced a seven-year rights deal with the NHL for roughly $400 million a year. That is double the current deal with NBC, a $10-year deal worth $2 billion that expires in October.

The reason that the move for NXT is still up in the air, is that the NHL is shopping around a second rights package and is still talking to NBC Universal about it. Their deal with ESPN is mostly for streaming and half of the NHL Playoffs. In addition to NBC, FOX Sports and CBS are also expected to make offers for the programming. It was noted that negotiations between the NHL and NBC “had been strained over the past several weeks, especially as it pertains to price.”

So where we stand now is roughly where we stood before the news of the Disney deal, although a little more uncertain. If NBC ends up making a deal with the NHL after all, then NXT will likely be moving to Tuesdays. If the talks fall through, then NXT will likely remain on Wednesdays to go head-to-head with AEW Dynamite.