TNT Sports to Exclusively Present 2026 Discover NHL Winter Classic – New York Rangers vs. Florida Panthers – Friday, Jan. 2 at 8 p.m. ET

TNT Sports will be the exclusive U.S. home of the 2026 Discover NHL Winter Classic on Friday, January 2 at 8 p.m., available on TNT, truTV and HBO Max. South Florida will make hockey history bringing the traditional snow and ice elements of Winter Classic to loanDepot Park, home of the Miami Marlins. 

In a dramatic departure from the cold, Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett and the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers will take the ice amid palm trees and ocean breezes to battle Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad and the New York Rangers, giving the Original Six franchise a shot at extending their perfect 5-0 record in outdoor games. 

TNT Sports’ coverage will start with an hour-long NHL on TNT Face Off presented by Verizon pregame at 7 p.m. live from Miami, featuring analysts Wayne Gretzky, Henrik Lundqvist, Paul Bissonnette, Anson Carter and host Liam McHugh. The show will emanate from the 2026 Enterprise NHL PreGame event, a hockey-focused fan experience near loanDepot Park, which will also include a headlining musical performance by rising alt-pop star Role Model on NHL on TNT’s Verizon Stage. 

The game will be called by the commentary team of: 

• Kenny Albert, providing play-by-play for his fifth NHL Winter Classic and eighth outdoor NHL game;
• Eddie Olczyk, calling his 15^th NHL Winter Classic and 27^th overall NHL outdoor game;
• Brian Boucher, providing ice-level analysis for his third NHL Winter Classic and his seventh appearance in an NHL outdoor game. 

Darren Pang and Jackie Redmond will also be reporting from loanDepot Park throughout the broadcast.  

NHL in ASL, an alternate telecast dedicated completely to the Deaf community using American Sign Language (ASL), will also be available for the 2026 Discover NHL Winter Classic, exclusively on HBO Max in the U.S. The broadcast, produced in partnership with P-X-P, will feature original intermission interviews and commentary. 

NHL on TNT Postgame presented by Vanda Pharmaceuticals coverage will feature highlights and analysis, and interviews from key players on the winning team, as well as the presentation of the NHL on TNT Cocoa Cup to the Most Valuable Player of the game, selected by the TNT crew. 

Tripleheader and Altcast on Tuesday, December 23: 

Ahead of Winter Classic, NHL on TNT will broadcast a blockbuster tripleheader on Tuesday, December 23, starting with the Pittsburgh Penguins at Toronto Maple Leafs at 4 p.m. with John Forslund, Eddie Olczyk and Jackie Redmond on the call.  

Later at 6:30 p.m., the Detroit Red Wings will host the Dallas Stars, called by Kenny Albert, Brian Boucher and Nabil Karim.  

To end the night, TNT Sports will offer fans an alternate viewing experience for the Philadelphia Flyers-Chicago Blackhawks game at 9 p.m. Brendan Burke, Shane Hindy and Darren Pang will be on the mic for the traditional broadcast on TNT, while on truTV fans get a healthy dose of humor from the Cheap Seats Altcast with the Sklar Brothers – comedians Jason and Randy Sklar will bring their fun and unique commentary to the NHL with a variety of guests throughout the night.  

NHL ON TNT PROGRAMMING SCHEDULE