BREAKING: Blackhawks-Red Wings May Have Set a New Record For NHL Ratings Lows on Broadcast
April 14, 2009 6 Comments
Well, it may have been a meaningless game, but NBC’s NHL ratings have hit a new low. According to SportsBusinessDaily (Reg. required), NBC’s Red Wings/Blackhawks broadcast on Sunday drew an 0.6/2 rating, possibly the lowest overnight ever recorded for an NHL telecast on network television. The game was beaten by taped poker highlights, taped monster truck coverage, and everything else on a busy sports weekend. It can be attributed to the game being meaningless, hockey fans’ general malaise toward a Sunday game in April at the end of the year, or even people being unfamiliar with the game’s timeslot (2:00 PM ET, instead of the normal 12:30 PM ET), but the fact is, NBC needs to do some work to make sure the post-season gets back up, at least into the 1’s.
NBC’s Emmy-Nominated NHL coverage returns for Stanley Cup Playoff coverage this Saturday and Sunday with Game 2 of Rangers-Capitals (1:00 PM Saturday) and Game 3 of Penguins-Flyers (3:00 PM Sunday).
Puck The Media 
It might have helped if NBC had shown the Flyers Rangers game which did matter AND showed it at the same time they had for other games this season. But their poker telecast took precedence.
Someone remind me why the NHL has a contract with NBC?
I ask you….
i don’t know what it is, but i have a lot of trouble getting into a game on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon these days. Football tends to get me watching (as it gets colder). Baseball always has me watching (or there in person). But it’s so hard to get into a Hockey game in the afternoon on TV. Unless a network is willing to take a chance on a primetime game, (then you have the whole west coast primetime thing), it’s gonna be tough.
I do miss the days of FOX, but TV was a lot simpler back then.
Nobody that cares about Chicago would watch because it doesn’t matter and the Hawks are finally in the playoffs, (lets just get that started). nobody who care about Detroit would watch because the refs blew the other game so badly. they did everything they could to ruin that game. Detroit is set up to be the bad guys.
it is questionable to even make the players play this one. just give chicago 3 goals, move on. even the playing feild as much as possible.
the new nhl, where every team gets a prize. who cares.
Maybe if NBC stopped only showing Rangers, Wings, Pens, Flyers games, they might get more views.
This is gonna sound crazy, but there is this conference called the Western Conference. I swear, I’m not making this up.
MBC should look into it. I hear the it’s slated to win the cup this year.
or maybe it was Easter …
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