from Gregory Strong of the CP at the Globe and Mail,

The way the NHL regular season is shaping up, it’s a good bet that five of the seven Canadian teams could reach the playoffs this spring.

That’s the kind of playoff CanCon that Rogers was hoping for when it signed a massive US$5.2-billion, 12-year deal to land the league’s broadcasting rights in 2013, a move that gave Sportsnet an immediate edge in its long-running rivalry with TSN.

After some early challenges, Rogers is set to get more bang for its buck as more teams from north of the border move into contention.

“Rogers gambled that Canadian teams would be coming back,” said sports marketing expert Richard Powers, an associate professor at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management. “When they signed that deal, Canadian teams were really in a lull.

“They have come back.”

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