Kendall Coyne Schofield’s memorable performance as the first woman to compete in the NHL All-Star Skills Competition has prompted NBC to hire her as an analyst for the Wednesday Night Hockey game between Tampa Bay Lightning and Pittsburgh Penguins (8 p.m., NBCSN).

Coyne, 26, a communications major who worked as a sideline reporter while at Northeastern, will appear on the pregame show and then go Inside the Glass with Pierre McGuire. She will also appear during intermissions that will be called by John Forslund.

“I love to be able to talk about the game and when this opportunity presented itself, I was more than ecstatic,” Coyne told USA TODAY Sports

Coyne, a member of the 2018 U.S. Women’s Olympic gold medal-winning hockey team, posted an NHL-worthy time Friday to finish seventh in the fastest-skater competition at the All-Star Skills Competition.

Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid, who won the event for the third consecutive time, said Coyne's start was so strong that he thought she would win it.

Sam Flood, executive producer and president, production, at NBC Sports & NBCSN, said Coyne’s “spectacular moment” at the All-Star Weekend had “had people talking about hockey.”

“We saw the enormous reaction the players and fans had when she blazed that amazing speed, and want to celebrate her accomplishment,” Flood said. “We think viewers will be very interested to hear her lean in and talk about hockey during a regular-season game.”

Coyne said when she received the call that she would compete in the NHL All-Star Skills Competition as a replacement for injured Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon, “it put chills down my back.”

“I knew it was going to break down a lot of barriers and open a lot of eyes,” she said. “I was super excited for the opportunity. I know there was a lot of people who worked really hard to make that moment possible. I didn’t think it would (lead to) this opportunity, but I knew it would be a historic moment and it would change perceptions about women’s hockey.”

She was gratified by the comments of McDavid and others who noted her skating was NHL-caliber.

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“I did see it,” she said. “The NHL players view us as hockey players and that’s how we want to be viewed. The NHL took a huge stance that night in allowing me to compete. They knew I could skate with the guys. And it is so important for people to realize that women’s hockey has grown and the speed of the game is right up there with men’s hockey.”

Coyne said she received more messages, tweets and comments from her All-Star moment than she received when the Americans won the Olympic gold medal in South Korea.

“It just speaks to the platform of the NHL,” she said. “It showcased us, and it went viral.”

This isn’t the first time NBC has turned to women’s hockey star for its broadcast team. Former U.S. Olympian A.J. Mleczko Griswold has served as an NHL analyst for NBC. She now works as a studio analyst for Madison Square Garden network on New York Islanders games.

“I will obviously be doing some research tonight, tomorrow, leading up to Wednesday’s game,” Coyne said. “Obviously the Lightning and Penguins are premier teams with a lot of superstars, so it will be excellent game to talk about.”