NEW YORK — The Sports Emmy Award-winning Welcome to the NHL, produced by NHL Productions, returns with exclusive behind-the-scenes access to the top prospects in the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft™ at Sphere in Las Vegas. The show will premiere on Saturday, July 20, at 7 p.m. ET on NHL Network and ESPN+ in the U.S. Sportsnet 360 will carry the program on Sunday, July 21, at 8 p.m. ET for fans in Canada. View the trailer here.
Cameras follow 10 top prospects – Macklin Celebrini (No. 1 overall, San Jose Sharks), Cayden Lindstrom (No. 4 overall, Columbus Blue Jackets), Tij Iginla (No. 6 overall, Utah Hockey Club), Zayne Parekh (No. 9 overall, Calgary Flames), Zeev Buium (No. 12 overall, Minnesota Wild), Cole Eiserman (No. 20, New York Islanders), Michael Hage (No. 21, Montreal Canadiens), Max Plante (No. 47, Detroit Red Wings), Carter George (No. 57, LA Kings), and Kevin He (No. 109, Winnipeg Jets) – as they experience the anxiety and exhilaration of the NHL Draft with their families, friends and trusted advisors.
The show provides an unprecedented inside look as prospects make history as part of the first event broadcast live from Sphere, and the first event where footage from inside was broadcast live on the Exosphere, the exterior of Sphere and the world’s largest LED screen. Welcome to the NHL captures the excitement and emotion of draft day, as well as the unique experience in Las Vegas: prospects enter the venue’s Atrium where they are welcomed by Aura, Sphere’s humanoid robot; see themselves for the first time on Sphere’s immersive media plane – the world’s highest resolution LED screen that wraps up, over and around the audience; and meet celebrity fans including NFL legend Marshawn Lynch, iconic ring announcer Michael Buffer and GRAMMY Award-winning singer Celine Dion. The 2022 edition of Welcome to the NHL covering the NHL Draft in Montreal earned a 2023 Sports Emmy Award for Edited Event Coverage.
