A return to broadcast television had the expected results for the NHL All-Star Game.
The NHL All-Star Game had a 1.3 final rating and 2.3 million viewers on NBC Sunday afternoon, up 44% in ratings and 42% in viewership from last year (0.9, 1.6M) and up 86% and 89% respectively from 2015 (0.7, 1.2M), both of which aired on NBCSN.
The telecast, which peaked north of 2.5 million viewers from 6:45-7 PM ET, ranks as the highest rated and most-watched NHL All-Star Game since 2004, when ABC scored a 1.8 and 2.7 million. Not coincidentally, it was also the first All-Star Game on a broadcast network since 2004.
Outside of outdoor games and the playoffs, it was also the highest rated and most-watched NHL telecast since regional action on the opening weekend of the lockout-shortened 2013 season (1.6, 2.8M).
Figures do not include the 19,000 who streamed coverage on NBC Sports digital platforms. With those numbers added to the mix, the game had a slightly larger audience (2.28M vs. 2.26M).
Pittsburgh led all markets with a 6.1 rating, followed by Buffalo at a 5.3. Minneapolis-St. Paul was a distant third (3.7), with St. Louis (3.4) and Chicago (3.1) rounding out the top five.
Despite the stronger numbers, the NHL All-Star Game still trailed the other Big Four All-Star games by a wide margin. The NFL Pro Bowl had a 4.2 and 7.4 million later in the night, last year’s NBA All-Star Game had a 4.3 and 7.6 million, and last year’s MLB All-Star Game had a 5.4 and 8.7 million.
It is worth noting that the 1.3 rating is the lowest ever for the NHL All-Star Game on a broadcast network, trailing the previous low of 1.7 in 2003 and 2001. The game had a 2.5 the last time it aired on NBC, though that was a lifetime ago in television terms — 1994.
(Wknd. numbers from NBC Sports Group Press Box 1.31)
