It was not the best of hockey days in America.
Red Wings/Penguins scored a 0.9 overnight rating in the back-half of Sunday’s Hockey Day in America doubleheader on NBC, down 25% from a Blackhawks/Wild outdoor game last year (1.2) and down 31% from Bruins/Blackhawks in 2015 (1.3).
The 0.9 is the lowest yet for the late Hockey Day game (5 telecasts dating back to 2011), falling below the previous mark of 1.0 for Bruins/Wild in 2012.
Earlier in the day, Capitals/Rangers had a 0.8 overnight — even with Penguins/Sabres last year and Capitals/Flyers in 2015. The 0.8 is tied as the lowest for any Hockey Day telecast on NBC, regardless of timeslot (13 telecasts).
For reference, Hockey Day overnights rose as high as 1.4 for regional action in 2012 and hit at least a 1.2 on six other occasions.
Rounding out the day’s action, Blackhawks/Sabres had a 0.4 overnight on NBCSN (-20%) and the Bruins/Sharks nightcap had a 0.3.
(Wknd. numbers from NBC Sports)
