NBC earned a 3.9 overnight Nielsen rating for last night's Canucks-Bruins NHL Stanley Cup Final Game Six from 8:00-11:15pm ET, down 33% from a 5.8 for the series-clinching Blackhawks-Flyers Game Six last year, which aired on a Wednesday night. The telecast was also down slightly from both Penguins-Red Wings Game Six in '09 (4.1 overnight) and the series-clinching Red Wings-Penguins Game Six in '08 (4.4 overnight). However, the 3.9 overnight is up 77% from a 2.2 rating for Hurricanes-Oilers in '06, which was the last Stanley Cup Final Game Six to involve a Canadian team. Despite the Bruins being up 4-0 midway through the first period last night, the telecast peaked at a 4.8 rating during the last quarter hour of the game (11:00-11:15pm). Boston earned a 33.3 local rating for the game, while Providence earned an 18.4 rating.
FIVE GUYS: NBC's telecast of Bruins-Canucks Game Five last Friday earned a 2.6 final Nielsen rating and 4.319 million viewers from 8:00-11:00pm. Last year's Blackhawks-Flyers Game Five aired on a Sunday night, earning a 3.3 rating and 5.848 million viewers. The '07 series-clinching Ducks-Senators game Five earned a 1.8 rating on a Wednesday night, which was the last time a Canadian team appeared in a Game Five (Austin Karp, THE DAILY). USA TODAY's Michael Hiestand notes that despite the year-over-year drop, Friday's Game Five figures are "not horrible," considering the Vancouver market "doesn't count in U.S. ratings." Still, "for a title series, this is a niche-sport rating" (USA TODAY, 6/14).
