The Stanley Cup Final ended with its smallest Game 5 audience in nearly three decades.
Tuesday’s Panthers-Golden Knights NHL Stanley Cup Final Game 5 averaged a 1.4 rating and 2.72 million viewers across TNT (2.47M) and TruTV (253K), marking the smallest audience for a Game 5 of the Cup Final in 29 years — since Canucks-Rangers on ESPN in 1994 (2.41M). That was also the previous Game 5 to air on cable. Keep in mind ESPN’s coverage was blacked out in host market New York, where the games aired on MSG Network.
The Golden Knights’ Cup-clinching win fell below the previous mark of 2.79 million for Stars-Lightning in a fanless fall “bubble” three years ago. It was also the least-watched Cup clincher in at least 30 years, falling below the previous mark of 2.90 million for Senators-Ducks Game 5 in 2007. (The previous Cup clincher on cable — Stars-Sabres Game 6 on ESPN in 1999 — averaged 4.45 million.)
Viewership fell a series-high 47 percent from Lightning-Avalanche on ABC last year (5.15M). Game 5 was the first of the series to decline from the 2020 “bubble” and the second-straight to decline from 2021, which also aired out-of-season (Canadiens-Lightning: 3.56M).
The full, five-game Stanley Cup Final averaged a 1.3 rating and 2.6 million viewers on the Turner networks, down 43% in both measures from last year’s six-game Avalanche-Lightning series on ABC (2.3, 4.6M). Compared to the two out-of-season COVID-era Cup finals, viewership edged Lightning-Canadiens in 2021 (2.5M) and comfortably outpaced Lightning-Stars in the 2020 “bubble” (2.1M).
Outside of the COVID-era seasons, this year’s Cup Final was the least-watched since Ducks-Senators in 2007 (1.8M) and the second-least watched in at least 30 years — ahead of only 2007 and Rangers-Canucks on ESPN in ’94 (2.4M).
Stanley Cup Final ratings, viewership (1994-present)
As a result of the low Cup Final numbers, the full postseason finished with an average of 1.23 million viewers — down 10% from last year. That is a sharp reversal from the first three rounds of playoffs, which increased 2% to a five-year high (1.14M). Despite the decline, this year’s postseason finished as the most-watched ever on cable.
In a rarity, the most-watched game of the playoffs took place in the first round — TNT’s non-exclusive broadcast of Panthers-Bruins Game 7 nearly two months ago (3.10M). Game 1 of the Cup Final ranked second, followed by Kraken-Stars Game 7 in the second round (2.75M) and Tuesday’s Cup clincher.
If low historically, Game 5 was the night’s top program in the key demographics of adults 18-49 (0.8), 18-34 (0.65) and 25-54 (1.0). Compared to last year, ratings in those demographics fell 47, 45 and 45 percent respectively from a 1.5, 1.2 and 1.8.
Game 5 was the first of the Cup Final to air on only two networks rather than three, as TBS was occupied by Major League Baseball commitments.
(Nielsen estimates from Programming Insider 6.14, ShowBuzz Daily 6.14)
