A look back at the articles on this site from April 13 to April 19.
Monday
- Harry Kalas: 1936-2009.
- Mark Fidrych: 1954-2009.
- NBC opts to feature Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin during its coverage of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
- ABC’s final NBA doubleheader of the regular season sees a drop in overnight ratings, thanks in part to the Cavaliers’ blowout of the Celtics.
- Despite a three-way playoff, overnight ratings for the final round of The Masters drop on CBS.
Tuesday
- ESPN sees strong numbers for coverage of the first two rounds of The Masters.
- Meanwhile, ratings for final round coverage of The Masters fall to the lowest level since ’04.
- 2009 NFL schedule: NBC gets the Dallas Cowboys’ first game at their new stadium, ESPN features the Steelers as many times as the Texans and Raiders, and NFL Network gets a game on Christmas night.
- Most readers on this site pick the Cowboys’ stadium-opening Week 2 tilt against the Giants as the prime time game they most look forward to.
- Overnight ratings: the season debut of MLB on FOX is flat, the last regular season NHL game on NBC is down 25%, and the college hockey national title game is up 75%.
- More overnight ratings from the weekend in sports.
Wednesday
- Ratings for the final round of The Masters since 1982.
- Turner Sports prepares for the 2009 NBA Playoffs — on the heels of TNT’s most viewed NBA regular season since 1995-96.
- Versus sees a double-digit jump in viewership for regular season NHL telecasts.
Thursday
- NBC NFL analyst John Madden, who worked as the lead NFL analyst for all four major broadcast networks during his career, retires from broadcasting.
- Reaction to John Madden‘s retirement from some of the giants of the industry, including his most recent boss Dick Ebersol, FOX’s Ed Goren and David Hill, and ESPN/ABC’s George Bodenheimer.
- NBC taps Cris Collinsworth to replace John Madden on Sunday Night Football.
- The 2009 NBA Playoffs schedule features LeBron James and his Cavaliers getting prime exposure.
- Versus sees solid increases for coverage of the first night of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
- People to know: Stephen A. Smith is out at ESPN, David Wells is in at TBS, and Charles Barkley gets his own video channel on NBA.com.
Friday
- On the heels of TNT having its most viewed NBA season since ’96, ESPN scores its most viewed NBA season ever.
- Meanwhile, NBA ratings rise 5% on ABC during the 2008-09 season, and the network has its most viewed season since 2002-03.
- Stephen A. Smith confirms on his blog that he is leaving ESPN; his last day on the net is May 1.
- The Bruins see huge ratings locally for Game 1 of their playoff series against Montreal.
- Several NHL markets see strong numbers for playoff games.
- The NBA and NHL both see increased attendance from last year.
- Cris Collinsworth leaves NFL Network after becoming the lead analyst for Sunday Night Football on NBC.
Saturday
- NBC’s NHL ratings were flat during the 2008-09 season.
- Reports have ESPN hiring Matt Millen as an NFL analyst during the 2009 season.
- Ratings predictions for a playoff-dominated weekend.
