New Broadcast Deal Has Reportedly Been Reached for Canadiens Games After 2026
Photo credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
This flew completely under the radar, but the excellent Félix Forget from the DansLesCoulisses network just reported major news for Habs fans.
We'll still take this with a grain of salt (just in case), but according to his information, there is indeed a deal in place to ensure that RDS retains the rights to broadcast 46 regular-season Montreal Canadiens games per year after 2026.
A Major Deal Reportedly Signed by RDS for the Broadcast Rights to Canadiens Games
Let's not forget that after 2026, the current agreement expires, meaning all NHL broadcast rights in Canada (including those for the Montreal Canadiens) will need to be renegotiated.
There was a real risk that RDS and/or TVA Sports could completely lose the rights to air Canadiens games.
That said, all indications suggest a major deal is already in place!
Yes, this is big.
EXCLUSIVE: "According to what I was told yesterday, there is reportedly a deal in place for RDS to retain the regional broadcasting rights for the Canadiens after 2026.
The network would broadcast 46 regular season games per year (compared to 60 currently), but the Habs are expected to remain on RDS."
- Felix Forget
The network would broadcast 46 regular season games per year (compared to 60 currently), but the Habs are expected to remain on RDS."
- Felix Forget
So I'll ask you the question.. Is this great news or bad news for RDS?
On one hand, it's great news to see that the Montreal Canadiens will remain on RDS even after 2026. On the other hand, it's disappointing to see that the number of Habs games aired on RDS would drop from 60 (currently) to 46.
That would mean 14 fewer games per year on RDS..
So the question is valid:
Is this great news, or bad news for RDS?
Just a reminder, all of the above applies to the 2026-2027 season. For the 2025-2026 season, which begins in about two months, the broadcast setup will remain exactly the same as we've known in recent years.
Previously on HabsFanatics
| POLL | ||
AOUT 5 | 1077 ANSWERS New Broadcast Deal Has Reportedly Been Reached for Canadiens Games After 2026 Do you think this is good news for RDS? | ||
| Yes, they're keeping the Habs on their network | 654 | 60.7 % |
| No, they're losing 14 games! That's huge | 423 | 39.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
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