The hits keep coming for the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs, as Sunday’s penultimate game between the Bruins and Capitals scored the largest audience for a postseason game — outside of the finals — since 1997.
Game 6 of the Bruins/Capitals Stanley Cup playoff series drew 3.52 million viewers on NBC Sunday afternoon, up 37% from Flyers/Sabres Game 6 last year (2.567M), and up 98% from Coyotes/Red Wings Game 6 in 2010 (1.776M).
The game ranks as the most-viewed ‘early round’ Stanley Cup playoff game on record (dates back to 1993), and the most-viewed playoff game overall — excluding the Stanley Cup final — since 1997 (NYR/PHI G5: 3.61M, FOX).
Locally, the game drew a 16.3 rating in Boston and an 8.6 in Washington, D.C., both the highest on record for a Stanley Cup playoff game (again, excluding the Stanley Cup Final).
(Sunday’s numbers from NBC Sports Group press release)
