Six-time Stanley Cup Champion and Hockey Hall of Fame member Mark Messier has signed a multiyear contract extension to continue his broadcast work at ESPN. Messier, who has served as a studio analyst since the return of the NHL on ESPN during the 2021-22 season, has provided consumers with insight and analysis surrounding live game broadcasts on the network. Throughout the Stanley Cup Final between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers, he will be part of the studio team with host Steve Levy and analyst P.K. Subban. The trio will be on site covering the games from Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla. and Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta.
“Mark Messier brings such depth and insight to our hockey coverage, and truly embodies what it means to be the ultimate team player,” Mark Gross, senior vice president, production and remote events at ESPN, said in a statement. “As a first-ballot Hockey Hall of Famer with six Stanley Cups, he’s been a tremendous addition to our studio coverage, and we’re thrilled to reach a contract extension with a true NHL legend.”
Messier won five Stanley Cup championships as a member of the Edmonton Oilers, including the organization’s last championship in the 1989-90 season. The former team captain played the fourth-most games in franchise history (851) and has the third-most points for the organization (1034) over its 45-year history in the NHL. Throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs, ESPN has recorded gains in viewership, including the Eastern Conference Final between the Florida Panthers and New York Rangers. The series averaged 2.3 million viewers and 852,000 viewers within the Persons 18-49 demographic, up 42% year-over-year from last year’s Western Conference Final on ESPN.
The Walt Disney Company (ESPN/ABC) is currently within the third season of a seven-year media rights deal with the National Hockey League. The company will present its second Stanley Cup Final broadcast under the new deal featuring play-by-play announcer Sean McDonough, analyst Ray Ferraro, reporter Emily Kaplan and rules analyst Dave Jackson on the call. Coverage of the Stanley Cup Final on ABC and ESPN+ commences on Saturday at 8 p.m. EST with Game 1 of the best-of-seven series.
