Opinion: CBC once said it was essential to keep Hockey Night in Canada on the public broadcaster, even if Rogers owned it. No longer.

While the CBC still holds the "Hockey Night in Canada" trademark, it's the first time the program won't be available to Canadian viewers via the public broadcaster.

"Watching hockey on Saturday night is a time-honoured tradition for Canadians and SportsNet is privileged to continue delivering that tradition," says SportsNet.