Award-winning sportscaster Andi Petrillo will lead CBC’s studio coverage for the return of Hockey Night in Canada featuring the Professional Women’s Hockey League starting December 5, CBC reported.
The public broadcaster announced its full broadcast team for eight prime-time Saturday night PWHL contests during the historic program’s 90th season. Petrillo, who hosts CBC Sports Primetime on Saturday evenings, becomes the first woman to join the Hockey Night in Canada team full-time.
She will be joined in the studio by four-time Olympic medallist Cassie Campbell-Pascall and writer Hailey Salvian from The Athletic. The team will provide pre-game, post-game, and between-period coverage.
Campbell-Pascall returns to the program 20 years after making history as the first woman to provide colour commentary on Hockey Night in Canada. “Campbell-Pascall recalls her Hockey Night in Canada debut from 20 years ago,” CBC said in previewing her return.
The in-game broadcast team features play-by-play announcer Daniella Ponticelli, who called the first PWHL game on January 1, 2024. Three-time Olympic champion Becky Kellar handles game analysis, while Rob Pizzo reports rinkside.
The coverage begins when the defending Walter Cup champion Montreal Victoire host Hamilton’s expansion team on December 5. The matchup features a banner-raising celebration in Montreal and airs on CBC-TV, CBCSports.ca, and CBC Gem.
CBC and Radio-Canada also acquired exclusive French-language audio broadcast rights for all Victoire games during the 2026-27 season. Those broadcasts air on Radio-Canada OHdio and ICI Première, with select contests on ICI Télé and ICI TOU.TV.
The public broadcaster secured the PWHL package months after announcing on June 16 that it would no longer broadcast NHL games. That decision followed the expiration of a sublicensing deal with national rights-holder Rogers Sportsnet, though CBC retained the Hockey Night in Canada trademark.
