The Stanley Cup Playoffs benefited from a rare weekend start to the tune of a 60 percent increase in viewership.
The first two days of the Stanley Cup Playoffs averaged a 0.53 rating and 1.03 million viewers across ESPN, TBS and truTV, up 51% in ratings and 60% in viewership from the first two days of last year’s postseason, which began on a Monday (0.35, 641K). With the move from weeknights to the weekend, all six games aired in standalone windows — while each of last year’s eight overlapped with a competing game.
Capitals-Rangers Game 1 led the weekend slate with a 0.6 and 1.34 million on ESPN Sunday afternoon, marking the largest audience for a first round opener since 2021 on NBC and the highest on record on cable. The previous cable high was 1.04 million for Penguins-Rangers on ESPN two years ago.
The three most-watched first round openers on cable aired just this weekend. Saturday’s Maple Leafs-Bruins Game 1 placed second with a combined 0.59 and 1.14 million across TBS (0.46, 877K) and truTV (0.13, 259K), and Sunday’s high-scoring Avalanche-Jets opener on ESPN2 ranked third at a 0.55 and 1.09 million.
In other action, Lightning-Panthers Game 1 opened Sunday’s slate with a 0.48 and 932,000 on ESPN and the Predators-Canucks nightcap had a 0.45 and 795,000 in a post-Sunday Night Baseball window. Last year’s post-Sunday Night Baseball game — Golden Knights-Oilers in the second round, when all national telecasts are exclusive — had a 0.93 and 1.65 million.
Rounding out the weekend slate, Islanders-Hurricanes opened with a 0.46 and 873,000 across TBS (0.37, 707K) and truTV (0.09, 166K).
