Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Devils and Red
Wings drew a 3.6 national rating, making it the highest rated
hockey telecast for Fox. The broadcast tied the 1990 NHL All-
Star Game on NBC for the highest-rated NHL telecast since 1980
(Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 6/28).
OUT HERE IN THE FIELD: Reports from non-NHL cities paint a
less rosy picture, however. In Atlanta, Tim Tucker writes that
"ratings for Saturday's NHL final on Channel 5 were so low that
the game barely held its own with 'Mama's Family' on Channel 69"
(ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 6/27). In San Francisco, Bruce Adams
reports that the local Fox affiliate, KTVU, cut away from the
Stanley Cup presentation to join a Dodgers-Giants game already in
progress. KTVU stayed with Fox for a few minutes "to get a
little crowd flavor," but then cut to the game in L.A. KTVU GM
Kevin O'Brien: "What people don't understand is that no one in
the entire Bay Area wants to carry hockey. I would have loved to
give that game to someone, but no one wanted it." O'Brien did
say he received about 70 complaint calls, all of which were angry
about "cutting away from the hockey" (S.F. EXAMINER, 6/27).
