The Business of HockeyDiscuss the financial and business aspects of the NHL. Franchise sales, valuations, TV contracts, ratings, expansion, relocation, the CBA and work stoppage discussion goes here.
I can't post a link, but take my word for it. I would not lie about this, I heard on the radio yesterday morning the Blues are averaging a 4.0 on FSMW on the season now after the most recent game.
I remember reading somewhere recently it was around a 3.6 on the season.
the Boston-New York showdown drew 664,000 viewers. This marked the best numbers for NBCSN/VERSUS since opening night, and the sixth-best number for an NHL regular season game since they began covering the sport as OLN in 2005.
The game scored a 4.9 in Boston, up 86% from the 2.6 average the Bruins have gotten for prior NBCSN telecasts this season. It hit a 1.4 rating in the New York market, up 82% from the season average for Rangers games (0.7). NBCSN was #1 on cable and #3 overall on Boston TV Sunday night. Eight of the 10 most-watched games on NBC Sports Network this season have occurred on either Sunday or Wednesday.
One is that, it would probably not be best to schedule a hockey game featuring two markets at the same time those two markets are playing each other in basketball on a competing network. However, on the good side, hockey performed to it’s normal levels without having the luxury of dominating it’s dependable local markets, meaning the sport is slowly, but surely gaining traction with completely neutral hockey fans.
We’ll go to the most upsetting news first, where the Rangers – first place in the Eastern Conference by a mile, with charismatic star players getting better and better – were absolutely trounced by the Knicks – a mediocre, patchwork bunch whose only draw is Jeremy Lin – in New York by a count of 9.6 for Knicks/Celtics on ABC to 1.9 for Bruins/Rangers on NBC. The only good news to take out of this: A 1.9 is a very solid number for New York as far as hockey goes. But, if you’re a New York fan with allegiances to both teams, you should be more than a little ashamed of yourself for rewarding mediocrity.
In Boston, things were a bit better. Beantown led all markets for the Game of the Week with a 5.1/12, an above average number for NBC in the market, and an improvement from the 4.6 the Bruins road game against Minnesota drew on Hockey Day in America. While a solid hockey team was still getting beaten by an aging, mediocre hoops counterpart (6.4/15 for Knicks/Celtics in Boston) the numbers were a little more stout. Overall, hockey did fine without carrying two of it’s most important markets on Sunday.
sharkvoice 1:51pm via Web Last night's Sharks-Kings game on Comcast Sportsnet California earned a regular season record 2.7 rating since the Sharks moved to CSNCA.
sharkvoice 1:51pm via Web Last night's Sharks-Kings game on Comcast Sportsnet California earned a regular season record 2.7 rating since the Sharks moved to CSNCA.
sharkvoice 1:51pm via Web Last night's Sharks-Kings game on Comcast Sportsnet California earned a regular season record 2.7 rating since the Sharks moved to CSNCA.
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Originally Posted by CupChamps2011
I'm shocked that the record is only 2.7
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Originally Posted by Jonas1235
2.7 rating record for games on comcast. Must have been higher before on whatever network they were on.
Still pretty good for a california hockey team.
The Sharks used to be on CSN Bay Area - which was the 2008 re-branded successor to SportsChannel Pacific / Fox Sports Bay Area / Fox Sports Net Bay Area / FSN Bay Area - which broadcast the Sharks since their inception. CSN Bay Area also broadcast the Giants, A's, and Warriors - with teams shuffled around on multiple overflow channels. Comcast also broadcast the Sacramento Kings on the then CSN-West. Starting in 2008, Comcast re-branded CSN West as CSN California and extended its coverage to the Bay Area. In 2009, both the A's & Sharks were moved over to CSN-CA, the Giants & Warriors remained on CSN-BA, and the Kings remained on CSN-CA but are blacked out in most of the Bay Area.
The theory was that the split would give the A's and Sharks a more fixed home channel and reduce the number of times they got moved to temporary overflow channels - this was supposed to make it easier to find the teams and increase the ratings. It didn't work out that way - the Sharks avg ratings dropped from 1.35 on CSN BA in '08-'09 to 1.11 on CSN CA in '09-'10.
ESPN said the other day that the NHL's ratings are falling. I'm not sure what is was in reference to, or if its true or not, but it was interesting that the only time ESPN seems to mention the NHL is when they are putting it down.
They were actually discussing the NFL and commenting on how more safety rules and regulations will turn viewers off, and used the NHL as an example. Its comments like this that will turn on the casual fan, as now, without watcing a game, they will think that the NHL is over regulating the game and turning off the fans. Kind of made me wonder if its an ESPN mandate to put down the NHL to keep casual viewers from checking it out on other channels.
ESPN said the other day that the NHL's ratings are falling. I'm not sure what is was in reference to, or if its true or not, but it was interesting that the only time ESPN seems to mention the NHL is when they are putting it down.
They were actually discussing the NFL and commenting on how more safety rules and regulations will turn viewers off, and used the NHL as an example. Its comments like this that will turn on the casual fan, as now, without watcing a game, they will think that the NHL is over regulating the game and turning off the fans. Kind of made me wonder if its an ESPN mandate to put down the NHL to keep casual viewers from checking it out on other channels.
I think it's more likely that those commentators are talking to their football audience and using the NHL as a straw dog in order to not justify changing the rules.
A lot of older NHL jocks and other "hockey people" are also very conservative when it comes to rule changes regarding player safety.
Blackhawks Set Ratings Record: Regular season Chicago Blackhawks telecasts averaged a 3.11 rating on Comcast SportsNet Chicago this season, up 12% from last year (2.78), up 28% from 2010 (2.44), and the highest average for Blackhawks telecasts ever on the network. The previous record was set last season.(chicagobusiness.com)
Flyers Ratings up 38%: Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia averaged a 3.3 rating for Philadelphia Flyers telecasts during the 2011-12 regular season, up 38% from last year (2.4), and up 50% from two seasons ago (2.2). Over on The Comcast Network, games averaged a 2.2 rating — up 10% from last year. (Comcast)
Ratings Hit Three-Year High For NHL’s Rangers MSG Network averaged a 0.99 local rating for New York Rangers telecasts during the 2011-12 regular season, up 36% from last year (0.73), and the highest average since 2008-09 (1.05). (Yahoo!)
Bruins Set Ratings Record on NESN: Regular season Boston Bruins telecasts averaged a 4.7 local rating on NESN in the Boston market, up 52% from last year (3.1), and the highest average ever for regular season coverage on the network. The previous record was set last season. A whopping 23 of the 25 highest rated Bruins telecasts ever on NESN took place this season alone. (NESN via Fang’s Bites)
2.7 rating record for games on comcast. Must have been higher before on whatever network they were on.
Still pretty good for a california hockey team.
They have historically been packing the building but that's about it. However it's growing. And two decades will do that. Hooking up with a playoff rival like St. Louis will be good for both markets.
San Jose is mad respected here. Owen Nolan is a household villain in the hockey circles.
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NUMBERS GAME
Fox Sports Midwest's Blues telecasts, with one remaining, have been seen in an average of 3.5 percent of area homes this season, up 14 percent from FSM's previous record of 3.1 that was set last season. But that's far off figures in the 6 range the Blues drew in the late '90s when they were on over-the-air TV, something the team dropped three seasons ago.
Yeah, some late 90s we had 20-25 games on KPLR Saturday nights that would pull big time ratings.
I am very happy to see the 3.5 rating. The Cable ratign is likely over 4.0, which would make sense, the 4.0+ number was reported twice on local airwaves but it came from Fox Sports, so it's likely it's the cable rating, which has 85-90% penetration so it will be higher than the over all HH.
I also expect the blues to pull 8-10 ratings for round 1. If they are a clincher game 5 then 11.0, a game 7 would get 15.0+ here.
The Edmonton Oilers weren't the only ones to strike it rich on Tuesday as the 2012 SCOTIABANK NHL DRAFT LOTTERY delivered its largest audience ever to TSN and RDS. Preliminary overnight data from BBM Canada confirms a record 941,000 viewers (602,000 on TSN and 339,000 on RDS) watched as NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly revealed the draft order with the #1 overall pick in the 2012 NHL DRAFT going to Oilers GM Steve Tambellini.
On TSN, the 2012 SCOTIABANK NHL DRAFT LOTTERY was the most-watched NHL draft lottery ever and marked a 65% increase in viewers compared to last year.
Fans were equally engaged on RDS as it was the first time the network aired a special NHL Draft Lottery edition of HOCKEY 360.
With Montreal out of the playoffs, few are tuning in; but BC is glued to their sets.
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Nationally, 35 per cent of Canadians say they will be watching the playoffs either very or somewhat closely. That plunges to just 20 per cent in Quebec and soars to 55 per cent in British Columbia.
PTM with game-by-game ratings of Versus/NBCSN; and ranking top/bottom 10:
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10 Most-watched Games on NBCSN This Season
1. Boston vs. Philadelphia (10/6/11) - 874,000
2. Philadelphia vs. Pittsburgh (4/7/12) - 691,000
3. Boston vs. NY Rangers (4/1/12) - 664,000
4. Chicago vs. Pittsburgh (12/20/11) - 634,000
5. Philadelphia vs. Detroit (2/12/12) - 600,000
6. Detroit vs. Chicago (1/8/12) - 587,000
7. Philadelphia vs. Buffalo (12/7/11) - 585,000
8. Detroit vs. St. Louis (4/4/12) - 572,000
9. Philadelphia vs. Buffalo (11/2/11) – 558,000
10. Chicago vs. Minnesota (12/14/11) – 540,000
10 Least-watched Games on NBCSN this Season
1. NY Rangers vs. Los Angeles (10/7/11)* – 101,000
2. NY Rangers vs. Anaheim (10/8/11)* – 124,000
3. Anaheim vs. Vancouver (4/3/12)* - 132,000
4. San Jose vs. Los Angeles (3/20/12)* - 134,000
5. Anaheim vs. Dallas (12/19/11) – 149,000
6. Los Angeles vs. Tampa Bay (2/7/12) – 155,000
7. Los Angeles vs. San Jose (4/7/12)*- 146,000
8. Los Angeles vs. Minnesota (2/28/12) - 156,000
9. Tampa Bay vs. Washington (10/10/11)* – 162,000
10. Los Angeles vs. Colorado (2/22/12) - 166,000
*- game blacked out in one or both home markets
BEST OPENING NIGHT EVER: Yesterday’s two opening night games on NBC Sports Network – Flyers-Penguins and Kings-Canucks -- averaged a 0.44 rating, up 29% compared to last year’s opening night (0.34) and the best opening night in NBC Sports Network’s seven-year history (formerly VERSUS) of televising NHL playoff games. The viewership average was 656,000, up 23% compared to last year (534,000). All NBC Sports Network, CNBC and NHL Network first-round playoff games are blacked out in local markets.
Flyers-Penguins: The game posted a 0.55 rating, up 83% from last year’s comparable opening night game and making it the most-watched opening night playoff game in NBC Sports Network history, and the most-watched opening night playoff game in 10 years. The game peaked with a 0.75 rating in the 9:45 p.m. ET quarter-hour.
Kings-Canucks: The Kings 4-2 upset win over the top-seeded Canucks in the Western Conference, which began at 10:30 p.m. ET, earned a 0.34 rating, down from a 0.36 for last year’s late opening night game.
COMBINED AVERAGE UP 12%: Last night three games, including coverage on CNBC of the Predators 3-2 win over the Red Wings in Nashville, averaged 0.38 rating and 555,000 viewers, up 12% and 4%, respectively, vs. last year’s averages (0.40 and 534,000). The Predators-Red Wings game averaged 0.24 with no comparable coverage last
Last edited by CanadaIsHockey: 04-12-2012 at 05:34 PM.
While the Stanley Cup Playoffs scored high marks nationally, it was local networks that continued to see great numbers from their teams on Wednesday and Thursday night.
Starting in Boston, the Bruins-Capitals Game 1 overtime thriller scored an 11.6 in Beantown on NESN, marking the best Stanley Cup Playoff Conference Quarterfinal opener ever for the Bruins in Boston. Similarly, the Flyers proved the Keystone State drives up numbers, as the orange and black scored a 7.3 local rating for Game 1 of their series with the Penguins, the best opener ever for Comcast Sportsnet, breaking a record set 14 years ago.
St. Louis also set records, as Game 1 of the Blues double overtime defeat to the San Jose Sharks drew a 9.7 overnight in the Gateway City, marking the best numbers for a Blues telecast since 2002. FS Midwest peaked at a 15.6 and 195,000 homes from 9:45-10:00 p.m. ET. Game 3 of the 2002 Blues-Red Wings Conference Semifinal was the last game to draw such high numbers, with a 12.3 on KPLR. Aside from two games from the Blues-Stars Conference Semis in ’01, it was the highest-rated Blues telecast ever on FS Midwest.
It wasn’t just traditional markets doing well, as Nashville (4.7) scored it’s third-highest ratings for the Predators since 2007 on SportSouth.
__________________
"Trust me I'm an expert, I watched 13 rangers games on NHL center Ice this year through streaming." -Starburst
"I don't even understand what the point of all this arguing is. Are you guys hoping that the other side is going to have an epiphany and go 'Oh, OH! You're right, we ARE going to lose this series!'" -Crease
While the Stanley Cup Playoffs scored high marks nationally, it was local networks that continued to see great numbers from their teams on Wednesday and Thursday night.
Starting in Boston, the Bruins-Capitals Game 1 overtime thriller scored an 11.6 in Beantown on NESN, marking the best Stanley Cup Playoff Conference Quarterfinal opener ever for the Bruins in Boston. Similarly, the Flyers proved the Keystone State drives up numbers, as the orange and black scored a 7.3 local rating for Game 1 of their series with the Penguins, the best opener ever for Comcast Sportsnet, breaking a record set 14 years ago.
St. Louis also set records, as Game 1 of the Blues double overtime defeat to the San Jose Sharks drew a 9.7 overnight in the Gateway City, marking the best numbers for a Blues telecast since 2002. FS Midwest peaked at a 15.6 and 195,000 homes from 9:45-10:00 p.m. ET.Game 3 of the 2002 Blues-Red Wings Conference Semifinal was the last game to draw such high numbers, with a 12.3 on KPLR.Aside from two games from the Blues-Stars Conference Semis in ’01, it was the highest-rated Blues telecast ever on FS Midwest.
It wasn’t just traditional markets doing well, as Nashville (4.7) scored it’s third-highest ratings for the Predators since 2007 on SportSouth.
Holy Crap that is amazing, if it ended in regulation it would have been over a 10.0.
Wowzers, it sure does feel good to see my local NHL team do that well. Just amazing numbers for game 1. Saturday Night will do better, can't wait to see them.
I hope this goes 7 games just to see it. I predict right now that if it goes 7, it will peak at a 22.5 and average 16.1
