Your Viewing Guide to Tonight’s Disney/NHL Event

Posted in: Disney+, NHL, Sports, TV | Tagged: disney, inside out, nhl

Kicking off at 7 pm ET tonight, here’s a guide to Disney/Pixar and the NHL’s Inside Out Classic: Washington Capitals vs. the New York Rangers.

Published Sun, 05 Apr 2026 16:37:08 -0500 by Ray Flook

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Article Summary
Disney/Pixar, and NHL team up for the Inside Out Classic: Capitals vs. Rangers, airing tonight at 7 pm ET.
Watch the real-time animated hockey game on ESPN+, Disney+, Disney Channel, and Disney XD worldwide.
Inside Out characters join NHL players on a virtual Hockey Island, powered by advanced tracking tech.
Exclusive video previews feature NHL stars interviewed by Riley, Sadness, Anger, and Anxiety from Inside Out.

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We will readily admit that Bleeding Cool isn’t exactly known for its hard-hitting sports coverage. But when the world of sports and pop culture collide? Well, that’s the kind of thing that grabs our attention. That’s exactly what ESPN, Disney, Pixar, and the National Hockey League (NHL) have on tap for tonight, with the Inside Out Classic set to offer  a real-time, animated NHL telecast featuring the Washington Capitals vs. the New York Rangers. We’ve got your preview/viewing guide to tonight’s big event, including when and where to watch, key highlights to watch out for, and more. In addition, we’ve included several video previews that offer insights into both the hockey game and some of the players taking part.

Image: Disney+

When & Where Can I Check Out Disney & NHL’s “Inside Out Classic”? Kicking off tonight at 7 pm ET, the special event will be available to watch on ESPN+, Disney+, Disney Channel, and Disney XD (with traditional telecast available on ESPN). The Inside Out Classic will be available internationally on Disney+ in Latin America, the Caribbean, Australia and New Zealand, South Africa (live, no replay), and Europe. Video on demand will also be available on Disney+ in most markets, including the United States and its territories, shortly after the real-time telecast.

Got Any Cool Previews for Disney & NHL’s “Inside Out Classic” to Check Out? In the following clips, Riley (Kaitlyn Dias), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), and Anxiety (Maya Hawke) have a chance to ask some famous faces from both teams about themselves, how they got involved with hockey, how they deal with the emotions that come with the game, and much more:

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What Can You Tell Me About Disney & NHL’s “Inside Out Classic”? The Inside Out Classic will feature virtually created real-time animation of the action between the Washington Capitals and the New York Rangers, modeled after characters on Pixar’s award-winning franchise Inside Out. The animated telecast will leverage tracking technology to present the action on the ice in real time, while featuring Inside Out characters skating alongside animated versions of NHL players. Here’s a rundown of the event’s key highlights, along with a look at Hockey Island:

The presentation will blend two types of tracking technologies – NHL EDGE positional data (NHL Puck and Player Tracking) and Sony’s Hawk-Eye Innovations’ optical tracking – to create more dynamic player and character movement to help fans better visualize detailed limb and stick movement and mannerisms.
Inside the mind of Inside Out character Riley, Hockey Island will host the animated presentation where Riley’s Emotions will skate alongside animated versions of the NHL players.
Using Sony’s Beyond Sports’ Virtual Commentator technology, the ESPN commentators calling the action on the animated telecast – Drew Carter, Kevin Weekes, and Arda Öcal – will wear virtual reality headsets for motion capture, immersing them in the animated environment of Hockey Island in Riley’s Mind.
Inside Out voice talent will also be featured in the animated presentation, including Phyllis Smith (Sadness), Lewis Black (Anger), Tony Hale (Fear), and Maya Hawke (Anxiety).

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The real-time animated telecast will be produced in association with ESPN Edge Innovation Center and NHL partner, Sony’s Beyond Sports. Driven by Sony’s Beyond Sports’ proprietary virtual recreation technology, the broadcast transforms tracking data from fellow NHL partner Sony’s Hawk-Eye Innovations into animated action on the ice.

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