ESPN seeking puck payoff

Network, sibling ESPN2 to carry up to 64 Stanley Cup playoff games

By JOHN DEMPSEY

NEW YORK -- ESPN will get a chance to test whether the staggering $600 million it ponied up over five years for the rights to National Hockey League games will pay out in the end: The network and its ESPN2 sibling will carry up to 64 Stanley Cup playoff games beginning Wednesday.

This will be the last season ESPN will have to share NHL game rights with the Fox Network. The new five-year contract will funnel the games to ESPN, ESPN2 and sister broadcast net ABC from 1999 to 2003.

For the upcoming postseason, ESPN will cablecast up to 10 quarterfinal games supplemented by up to 15 carried by ESPN2. Fox gets three quarterfinals on consecutive Sundays. For the conference semifinals, ESPN will cover up to 10 and ESPN2 up to 14 games, while Fox will show two games, again on Sundays. The nets will split coverage of the conference finals.

ESPN and Fox will share the Stanley Cup finals, although if the championship is extended to a seventh game, Fox gets dibs on the deciding contest.

ESPN and ABC are banking on getting more recognition for the NHL as their $120 million-a-year license fee over five years is almost triple the previous ESPN/Fox contract with the NHL.