Future Looks Bright For Caps Despite Financial Losses This Season

Capitals' Sales, Sponsorships And Ratings Climb Despite Financial Losses This Season

RATINGS: Lemke notes local TV ratings have "more than doubled, particularly among the highly coveted young male viewers." Ratings have "risen from a dismal 0.3 last year to a solid 0.8 this season." About 37,000 fans tuned in to Tuesday night's game, giving it a 1.6 rating and making it the "most-watched Capitals game of the year" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 4/3). In DC, Tarik El-Bashir reports Versus has seen a "substantial increase in the [DC] market, where the five Capitals games broadcast this season averaged a 1.0 rating, up 150[%] from last season." Those figures could "increase substantially in the playoffs, particularly with" a Capitals-Penguins matchup, which would feature Ovechkin versus Penguins C Sidney Crosby. Comcast SportsNet's Senior VP/Business & Programming Development Scott Langerman: "I would expect the rating to be 1.5 range or higher. If you get an Ovechkin-Crosby matchup, the sky is the limit."

OVECHKIN: Sports industry execs believe that if Ovechkin's Capitals "reach the postseason, the presence of one of the game's most dynamic players and colorful personalities could increase interest in the league's showcase event and boost the team's profile locally and nationally." The Univ. of Oregon's Warsaw Sports Marketing Center Managing Dir Paul Swangard: "Ovechkin's primary impact will be regional, but his impact potential could be national if the league markets him well, or if he has a breakthrough, show-stopping performance. He certainly has that potential" (WASHINGTON POST, 4/3).  

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