NHL Ratings News

I have two releases for you, both from Comcast-owned networks regarding ratings for the NHL. Let’s go to Versus first which says it had a very good opening night for the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.

VERSUS SKATES INTO PLAYOFFS WITH MOST-WATCHED OPENING NIGHT ON CABLE SINCE 2004

NEW YORK, N.Y. - VERSUS earned a .5 National HH rating and averaged 478,000 viewers for its triple-header night of action to open the 2010 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on April 14, making it the most-watched opening night of the postseason on cable since 2004. The HH rating and average viewership was up 25 percent and 22 percent, respectively, compared to VERSUS' first night of last year's Quarterfinals coverage (.4 HH rating and 392,000 viewers). Wednesday's opening night telecasts were also the most-watched among Men 18-49 and Men 25-54 on cable since 2002. This record-breaking night was garnered without the advantage of the team markets as VERSUS' Quarterfinals coverage is non-exclusive and blacked out locally.  

VERSUS' weekend Quarterfinals schedule follows (All times ET, subject to change): 

Saturday, April 17 

7 p.m., Montreal at Washington, Game 2 - Eastern
10 p.m., Los Angeles at Vancouver, Game 2 - Western

Sunday, April 18 

6:30 p.m., Pittsburgh at Ottawa, Game 3 - Eastern
9 p.m. (JIP), Nashville at Chicago, Game 2 - Western
11 p.m. (JIP), San Jose at Colorado, Game 3 - Western

And we have the ratings for Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic for the opening game of the Montreal-Washington series. We wouldn’t have a press release if the ratings were bad.

Comcast SportsNet – Capitals Game One Ratings Notes (April 15)

Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic delivered an average viewership of 143,000 households in the Washington (120,000) and Baltimore (23,000) markets for our broadcast of Game One of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals between the Washington Capitals and Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, April 15, earning an average household rating of 5.1 in the Washington market. The household rating peaked during the overtime period at 7.4 in Washington and 3.2 in Baltimore, equating to approximately 210,000 combined households during the final quarter-hour of the broadcast.

Overall, the broadcast stands as the highest-rated Game One in Capitals playoff history on Comcast SportsNet, and the fourth highest-rated Capitals playoff game overall, behind Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against Philadelphia on April 22, 2008 (5.3) and Games 6 and 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against Pittsburgh on May 11 and 13, 2009, which earned 5.3 and 5.5 average household ratings, respectively.

In the Washington market, the game was the most-watched television program among key adult and male demographic categories during the time period, including Men 18-49 (5.0), Men 25-54 (5.9) and Adults 18-49 (3.5), and ranked second in among all television programs in overall household ratings. Among Men 25-54, the game posted a peak rating of 9.4 and an 8.3 peak among Men 18-49 during the overtime period.

During the 2009-10 NHL regular season, the Capitals delivered their highest-rated season in Comcast SportsNet history and their third consecutive season of double-digit ratings growth on the network, earning a 1.6 average household rating in the Washington market, which is equal to approximately 37,000 households. Combined with the Baltimore DMA, the Capitals attracted an average audience of approximately 45,000 households this season. Since 2006-07, Capitals ratings on Comcast SportsNet have increased more than 300 percent, the largest increase of any NHL team during that span.

Some more releases coming up.