The 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs continue this week with second-round games on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, and will stay on the air throughout the stretch. After Saturday’s prime-time telecast of the Philadelphia Flyers against the Carolina Hurricanes on ABC drew 2.5 million viewers, one of the most-watched second-round openers on record, the schedule now shifts to a busy run of games that includes Buffalo, Montreal, Vegas, Anaheim, Colorado, Minnesota and, if needed, Philadelphia.
Sunday opens with the Buffalo Sabres facing the Montreal Canadiens in Game 3 at 7 p.m. ET, followed by the Vegas Golden Knights against the Anaheim Ducks in Game 4 at 9:30 p.m. Monday brings the Colorado Avalanche against the Minnesota Wild in Game 4 on at a time to be determined. If a Game 5 becomes necessary, the Flyers will meet the Hurricanes on at a time still to be determined. On Tuesday, the Sabres and Canadiens return for Game 4 at 7 p.m., and the Ducks host the Golden Knights at 9:30 p.m. on.
The weekend’s audience figure gives the league and its television partners a clean measure of momentum. The Flyers-Hurricanes game on Saturday was aired in prime time on ABC and reached 2.5 million viewers, setting a new high for a second-round Game 1 broadcast. It was a reminder that the postseason can still deliver a large national audience when the matchup, time slot and platform line up.
That matters now because the next three days are packed with games spread across and ESPN2, with ABC also carrying playoff action through the rest of the tournament. The network’s postseason slate is not just about filling time; it is about sustaining the kind of reach Saturday delivered while the series move deeper into the bracket. + will carry In The Crease after select games, giving viewers another route to follow the action.
The one uncertainty is the part most fans and teams have learned to live with in the playoffs: timing can change fast. Monday’s Avalanche-Wild Game 4 and any possible Game 5 between the Flyers and Hurricanes still do not have start times set, and commentator assignments and studio show times beyond May 12 are expected in the coming days. For now, the schedule is clear enough to know where the pressure points are — and the record Saturday audience only raises the stakes for what comes next.
