Courtesy USA Today

(November 10, 2010) Versus is rolling out a new late-night TV hockey show called NHL Overtime to replace the canceled sports show featuring Jenn Sterger, the woman at the center of the Brett Favre sexting scandal.

The one-hour show will premiere Nov. 15 and include game highlights, postgame player interviews, features and discussion. It will also delve into intercollegiate and international hockey.

NHL Overtime will take over the Monday-Thursday, 11 p.m. ET time slot previously occupied by TheDaily Line where Sterger served as co-host. The show flopped badly, averaging only 53,000 viewers per night and a minuscule 0.06 rating.

"It's another way we are super-serving the hockey fan better than anyone else," said Marc Fein, Versus executive vice president of programming. The "place for the hockey fan will really be Monday-Thursday at 11." He declined to comment on air-talent for the show.

Charles Coplin, the NHL's executive vice president of content, said the new show will be a "a win-win for hockey fans everywhere."

The NHL's TV deals with Versus and NBC expire after this season. Comcast and NBC could finalize their merger this year. When they do, they'll face a bidding war with ESPN over NHL TV rights.

Versus took over the NHL's cable deal after the 2004-05 lockout. After some rocky early years, the network's coverage has been gaining more viewers. Versus will televise 79 regular-season games this season, up from 65 last season, as well as All-Star weekend. Versus' TV ratings grew 33% last season.

The rise of young superstars such as Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals, and the buzz generated by NBC's popular Winter Classic outdoor game, have made the NHL a hotter TV property.

That's brought ESPN, which currently hold international TV rights, back to negotiating table for the U.S. "We remain interested in TV rights," ESPN said in a statement Tuesday. The NHL declined to comment on TV negotiations.

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