Viewers who have “regularly tuned in to watch” the Maple Leafs on Saturday nights “essentially since Hockey Night In Canada was created, may be starting to lose interest,” according to Rob Longley of the TORONTO SUN. The team’s loss to the Blues on Saturday averaged "just" 743,000 viewers on CBC. One Saturday night “won't create panic among TV executives, but at the very least there should be concern.” Those “familiar with the sports-broadcasting industry” in Canada were wondering whether Saturday's audience was “the lowest number the Leafs have drawn on a Saturday night under the current ratings system.” A source said, “I couldn't believe how low it was when I saw it. It has to be a record low.” Longley: “Fair to wonder, then, how much angst executives at Rogers and Bell -- the majority owners of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment -- now have about what is normally money-in-the-bank programming.” Another factor in the “diminished rating could be with Rogers' plan of attack for Saturday nights” during the first year of a 12-year, C$5.2B deal. Competing against the Maple Leafs telecast was Canadiens-Coyotes, which drew 603,000 viewers on City-TV and the Jets-Predators with 355,000 on Sportsnet. When “HNIC” was the property of CBC, “those games would have been split regionally.” On Saturday, “viewers in most parts of the country had access to all three telecasts.” Longley: “The first year has been a learning curve for Rogers as it deals with an ambitious schedule. Publicly, anyway, there is no panic.” Rogers President of Sportsnet and NHL Properties Scott Moore in an e-mail wrote, “The Leaf rating is not unexpected based on the game and the standings” (TORONTO SUN, 3/10).
