The second night of the NHL’s second round generated a pair of declines on NBCSN.
Game 1 of the Wild/Blackhawks Stanley Cup playoff series drew 1.9 million viewers on NBCSN Friday night, down 4% from the same matchup last year (2.0M), but still the top audience of the postseason on cable.
NBCSN’s coverage did not begin until after 11 PM ET due to overtime coverage of Lightning/Canadiens earlier in the night. As a result, it was able to avoid direct competition with the NFL Draft.
The Blackhawks’ win came to within 8% of Friday’s Hawks/Nets NBA playoff game on ESPN (2.0M), though with a few caveats. Hawks/Nets aired earlier in the night, faced the NFL Draft head-to-head, and co-existed with local coverage in the home markets.
In other action Friday, the previously-mentioned Lightning/Canadiens opener drew 1.1 million viewers opposite the draft — down 25% from Rangers/Penguins last year (1.5M) but up 13% from Senators/Penguins in 2013 (1.0M).
(Fri. numbers via TV By the Numbers)
