Stanley Cup Ratings: Skating on thin ice
The playoffs did spectacular. The finals?
Stanley Cup Ratings: Skating on thin ice
David Hiltbrand, Inquirer TV Critic
OK, hockey fans. The TV ratings are in on the playoffs. You want the good news or the bad news first?
Good news? You got it. The initial playoff rounds did boffo business. In part that’s because NBC Sports for the first time telecast all 80 games nationally, utilizing its platforms CNBC, the NHL Network, CNBC, the NBC Sports Network and on weekends, NBC itself.
The conference quarterfinals and semifinals set all-time ratings records. Through the first three rounds, this was the most watched hockey post-season in 15 years.
Then came the bad news. I mean the Stanley Cup Finals, which the Los Angeles Kings won in six over the New Jersey Devils. The games did pretty well in Los Angeles, the nation’s second largest TV market. Elsewhere? Ehhh.
The series averaged 3.01 million viewers, down an icy 34% from last year’s finals making it the least watched Stanley Cup showdown since the Anaheim Ducks faced off against the Ottawa Senators in 2007.
Hollywood hockey, folks. You can’t beat it with a stick.
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The Ovechkin vs. Crosby rivalry fizzled out, and most people on the street couldn't name two players from the Kings or the Devils. Meanwhile, soccer ratings are up -- the Mexico-Brazil soccer exhibition game drew more TV viewers than Game 2 of the Stanley Cup finals. 10 years ago I wouldn't have said this, but I think soccer will soon replace hockey as the fourth major sport. (Whether it will be MLS soccer is another question, though.)— J H- 10 years ago there were less Mexicans in the country! Duh! — kevin44
Hockey is immensely popular, just not in a way that translates to national ratings. On every front except national ratings, they are on par with the NBA. No professional league in the world averages fewer empty seats per game than the NHL (The NFL is the only one with a better slightly better percentage).— Pelti- Keep telling yourself that Pelti. Its like the guy who says the NBA puts a decent product on the court every night...deeee-lusional.— Shemp Howard
- The NBA is the opposite. Their national ratings hide the fact that many of their teams are struggling, and their local support is eroding. But lots of front-runners watch the heat, celtics, and lakers, so they get big national ratings.
They like to pretend that they are at the same level as MLB or the NFL, but the reality is that they have half the revenues, the worst average attendance among big 5 sports, and no fan support for teams that aren't favorites to win it all.
Basically, they have the most TV friendly sport on earth, and ESPN's total support, and they can barely scrape out 15% better revenue than the NHL. On top of that, NHL revenues are set to jump dramatically in the next 2 years, because the Hockey Night in Canada contract is up for renewal.— Pelti - Hockeys ratings were off the charts Until the finals, the Finals games were boring nobody watched, Soccer is popular now because the whole country is full of illegals that love to watch games get drunk and stab each other, soccer will never be a major sport in america rather watch grass grow— bigtom blew3
- Bigtom is bu t t hurt because he got a bad doritos locos taco from Taco Bell. Don't be mad because hard-working immigrants have taken all the jobs you're qualified to obtain. Get an education or a sound work ethic, and you won't find yourself going on rants (one-sentence runoffs, actually)and making sweeping generalization. For every "illegal that loves to watch games get drunk and stab eachother", I see at LEAST 10 lazy, crybaby Americans that act all tough on internet discussion boards, but are adding no value to society. You should be ashamed that a non-english speaking person has made a better life for themself in this country than you. Pathetic.— jevans
- ^ meant him/herself— jevans
- Not sure how the Stanley Cup Finals tv ratings turned into an illegal immigrant rant by jevans.— BobbyD
- Bobby...It's like he has ADD...oh look, it's a chicken!!!— gogoruch
