A healthy dose of U.S.-based NHL teams has helped NBC Sports to a strong start for the Stanley Cup Playoffs on cable TV. NBCSN, USA Network and CNBC combined to average 494,000 viewers for 16 games through Sunday, up 13% from 438,000 viewers during the same period last postseason. Leading the way during that time frame was Rangers-Penguins Game 1 last Wednesday, which drew 713,000 viewers on USA Network. Only one game -- Islanders-Panthers Game 2 -- has aired on the non-rated NHL Network this postseason to date. The 494,000 viewers for NBC Sports is down 3% from the comparable period in '14, when USA Network did not air any games. The first round on NBC Sports Live Extra also has drawn 391,000 unique visitors and 46 million minutes watched across all platforms, up 31% and 90% respectively, from the same period last year. On the RSN front, three of NBC Sports Group's nets are down for the first round to date (Blackhawks, Flyers, Sharks). But Capitals games on CSN Mid-Atlantic are up 15% compared to the first-round average last year. The Stars also scored their highest TV rating of the season for Monday's Game 3 against the Wild with a 2.44 local rating on FS Southwest in the Dallas-Ft. Worth market. The series has averaged a 2.38 rating on the RSN to date, a 272% increase over the Stars' regular-season average (Austin Karp, Assistant Managing Editor).
WOE, CANADA: THE HOCKEY NEWS' Ken Campbell noted even people in the broadcast industry are "taken aback" at how Canadian viewers have "tuned out" this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs on CBC and Sportsnet. Through the first five nights of the playoffs, "an average of just 513,000 viewers tuned into the 20 NHL playoff games" across both nets. Last spring, when there were five Canadian teams playing in the first round, "an average of 1.306 million viewers tuned into the first 21 first-round games." That marks a drop of 61%. Campbell: "The question now is, can the ratings improve over the course of the rest of the playoffs?" Typically, interest in the playoffs "diminishes after the first round, but there are some compelling possibilities" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 4/19). Rogers CEO Guy Laurence said that the company's NHL broadcast rights "will 'absolutely, definitely' pay off for a second year in a row, despite a challenging season." Laurence: "It will absolutely, definitely, without any shadow of a doubt, make a profit, period. Trust me, it makes money. We’re happy with it" (GLOBE & MAIL, 4/20).
