NBC Sports Philadelphia adds a new Flyers host as Taryn Hatcher branches out

NBC Sports Philadelphia has a new Flyers host.

The network is adding Ashlyn Sullivan to its Flyers coverage, where she’ll primarily host the Flyers pre- and postgame shows alongside 94.1 WIP host Al Morganti and former Flyers winger Scott Hartnell. Sullivan will make her NBC Sports Philadelphia debut Thursday ahead of the Flyers’ 7 p.m. game against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Sullivan, a University of Florida graduate who was born and raised in the Sunshine State, spent the past six years working for the Jacksonville Jaguars as an in-house reporter. The job brought her to Philadelphia in October for the Eagles’ win against the Jaguars during Doug Peterson’s return, where she got to witness the intensity of the city’s sports fans firsthand.

“They were just nuts,” Sullivan said. “You can just tell this city cares so much about their sports, and that’s a dream for a sports broadcaster. Where else would you want to be?”

In addition to her role with the Jaguars, Sullivan has also appeared on the NFL Network, the Golf Channel, and CBS Sports Network, but this will be the first time hockey is her main gig.

“Truthfully, what appealed to me about the job is a new challenge and a new sport that I’ve never covered, and with that comes a little bit of a learning curve,” Sullivan said. “But NBC Sports Philadelphia has put so many knowledgeable people around me that I feel very confident in a couple of weeks I’ll be right where I need to be.”

Sullivan will largely fill the role recently vacated by Taryn Hatcher, who shifted away from the Flyers in September to a wider role covering the Eagles and Sixers.

Hatcher, who has been with NBC Sports Philadelphia since 2018, has been co-hosting Birds Huddle alongside former Eagles offensive lineman Barrett Brooks and has been part of the network’s pre- and postgame coverage. She also took part in NBC Sports Philadelphia’s coverage of the Phillies World Series’ run.

Hatcher has also acted as a sideline reporter for a handful of Sixers home games this season, which is a notable return to a role NBC largely did away with at its regional sports networks in 2020. That included saying goodbye to Sixers sideline reporter Serena Winters and longtime Phillies reporter Gregg Murphy, who has since landed as the pregame and postgame host during Phillies radio broadcasts.

Moving forward, NBC Sports Philadelphia will have Hatcher report from the Wells Fargo Center during select Sixers games, and she’s expected to have a reporting role during the network’s Phillies coverage in the spring and summer. At this point, there’s no expectation she’ll join Flyers broadcasts as a between-the-benches reporter.

NBC Sports Philadelphia is also debuting a sports betting-themed alternate Sixers telecast on Friday, when Philly takes on the Memphis Grizzlies at 8 p.m. Michael Barkann will host the alternate broadcast on NBC Sports Philadelphia+ alongside former Sixers analyst and former coach Jim Lynam and NBC Sports betting analyst Jay Croucher.

The alternate broadcast stems from NBC Sports Philadelphia’s partnership with the online sportsbook PointsBet, and is an expansion of a similar alternate broadcast that began last season in Chicago. NBC Sports Philadelphia experimented with a short-lived sports betting-themed telecast in 2019, which was hosted by Marc Farzetta and 97.5 The Fanatic host Anthony Gargano.

The Sixers’ BetCast schedule will feature three additional games: Detroit Pistons (Dec. 21), Orlando Magic (Jan. 30), and Indiana Pacers (March 6).