On one of the least-viewed nights of the week, Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final attracted fewer viewers than last year.
The Flyers’ Game 4 win over the Blackhawks drew a 1.7 U.S. rating and 3.1 million viewers on Versus Friday night, down 6% in ratings and 9% in viewership from Red Wings/Penguins Game 4 last year (1.8, 3.4 mil), down 26% and 23%, respectively, from Red Wings/Penguins Game 4 on NBC in ’08 (2.3, 4.0 mil), and down 11% and up 12%, respectively, from Ducks/Senators Game 4 on NBC in ’07 (1.9, 2.8 mil).
Last year’s Game 4 aired on a Thursday night, Game 4 in 2008 aired on a Saturday night and Game 4 in 2007 aired on a Monday night.
Game 4 ranks as the third-most viewed program in Versus history, behind Blackhawks/Flyers Game 3 (3.6 mil) and last year’s aforementioned Red Wings/Penguins Game 4 (3.4 mil).
On the flip side, the 1.7 U.S. rating is the lowest for Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final since at least ’99. Game 4 aired on broadcast TV from 2000-08.
Friday’s game was outdrawn by primetime coverage of the Scripps National Spelling Bee (4.0 mil). Keep in mind that the Spelling Bee aired on broadcast network ABC, which is in substantially more households than Versus.
Versus averaged 3.4 million viewers for coverage of the 2010 Stanley Cup Final, up 5% from last year (3.2 mil) and up 36% from 2008, when the network aired Games 1 and 2 (2.5 mil).
This marks the most-viewed Stanley Cup Final on cable since 2002.
Ratings For Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final Since ’99
(Versus)
