The dominance of Sidney Crosby and his Pittsburgh Penguins has led to near-record ratings locally.
Game Three of the Penguins/Rangers second round series, which Pittsburgh won to take a 3-0 lead, drew an 18.5 rating on FSN Pittsburgh — the second-highest rating ever for a Penguins game on the network.
The 18.5 rating helped FSN Pittsburgh finish as the highest rated network in the market on Tuesday night.
Huge NHL ratings are nothing new in Pittsburgh. Game 3 of the Penguins’ first round series against Ottawa drew a 16.5 rating on FSN Pittsburgh, at the time the third-highest rated Penguins game ever on the network. This year, FSN Pittsburgh leads “all FSN regional sports networks in NHL ratings for both the 2007-08 Penguins regular season and playoffs.”
Such local support, combined with Crosby’s national star power, could be a boon to NBC if the team makes the Stanley Cup Finals. So far, Pittsburgh is undefeated in the playoffs, and on its way to a second consecutive sweep.
