The new look on Saturday night came with a notable absence once the final horn sounded.
Rogers Saturday Night Hockey made its Sportsnet debut over the weekend, and for most of the night it carried the familiar feel viewers have come to expect. Ron MacLean handled hosting duties, with Kevin Bieksa, Elliotte Friedman and newcomer Colby Armstrong on the panel.
The night’s all-Canadian matchups were also in place, beginning with the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Ottawa Senators and then the Vancouver Canucks hosting the Calgary Flames. The Edmonton Oilers and Montreal Canadiens also had games available to watch.
So in plenty of ways, it was still a hockey night in Canada, even if the name had changed.
But after the games ended, the long-running postgame element that had helped define the broadcast was gone. After Hours did not air, bringing an end to its 26-year run as the show that wrapped up Saturday nights with sitdown interviews.
In its place, Sportsnet carried Sportsnet Central.
After Hours had been a staple of those Saturday broadcasts, but the show faced a reset after Scott Oake retired last spring. A new host would have been needed, and the program also would have required a new name. The After Hours trademark, like Hockey Night in Canada, is owned by CBC because it existed before Sportsnet became involved.
Still, the key reason Sportsnet moved on from the show was Oake’s departure, not the trademark issue. Offside was told it would have been hard to recreate the program without him.
The broader shift traces back to Sportsnet and CBC not renewing their sublicensing agreement for this season, a move that ended Hockey Night in Canada as it had been known. Sportsnet still holds the NHL broadcast rights in Canada, while CBC retains the Hockey Night in Canada brand and plans to use it for PWHL games moving forward.
In Other News...
Flames Suddenly Have A Young Forward Decision Fans Didn't Expect
The Flames made a notable young-forward shuffle this week, parting with former first-round pick Connor Zary after placing him on waivers. The move sent a ripple through a Calgary roster that has been leaning on internal competition for depth, and it also opened the door for two more prospects to get a look with the NHL club as the schedule tightens.
Aydar Suniev and Jonathan Castagna have both been brought up from the Wranglers, giving Calgary a chance to see what each can add in a forward group that needs energy and production. Suniev has flashed offensive upside in preseason and AHL play, while Castagna has earned his way into the conversation with strong work in the minors, making this one of those early-season decisions that could quietly shape the teams depth chart. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Already Face An Early Roster Decision With Scoring At Stake
The Flames are already facing an early test of roster balance, with scoring depth suddenly at the center of the discussion. With the club looking for help up front, the next move is expected to come from the Calgary Wranglers, where a few forwards have put themselves on the radar with recent play and fit the kind of need Calgary is trying to address.
Aydar Suniev, Tyson Gross, Jonathan Castagna, Alex Nylander and Rory Kerins are all being viewed as possible options for an NHL promotion, and the teams decision could say plenty about how it wants to handle its forward group in the short term. Nothing has been made official yet, but the anticipation alone underscores how quickly the Flames may need to sort through their options if they want to keep enough offense in the lineup. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Scoring Problem Puts One Veteran Option In Focus
Three games into the 2026-27 season, the Flames are already facing an offense that has produced just three goals, and that has naturally pushed help-seeking conversations into the open. On TSNs Insider Trading, Pierre LeBrun reported that Calgary has at least discussed the idea of adding veteran winger Patrik Laine, a free agent who is still recovering from injury and would bring instant name value to a lineup that has struggled to find it early.
For now, though, the focus appears to be internal, with the team inclined to see what its young options can provide before making a bigger move. Aydar Suniev, Rory Kerins and Alex Nylander are among the Wranglers players the Flames want to evaluate, which leaves Laine as a potential fix rather than an immediate one. The interest is there, but the urgency to act on it does not seem to be. [Read more 🡒]