The shortened NHL season led to blockbuster local ratings for several teams.
The Pittsburgh Penguins not only led the NHL in local television ratings during the 2012-13 season, but also outdrew every team in the NHL, NBA and Major League Baseball over the past 11 years. Penguins games averaged a 12.66 rating on Root Sports this season, up 58% from last year (8.03), and the highest average for any major sports team on an RSN since the 2002 Seattle Mariners (13.2).
Of the 20 highest rated Penguins telecasts on Root Sports, sixteen took place this season alone. Islanders/Penguins on March 30 (16.6) and Flyers/Penguins on March 24 (16.5) rank as the top two games.
The Penguins were not the only team to set a record. In Boston, Bruins games averaged a 6.3 rating on NESN — up 35% from last year (4.7), up 103% from 2010-11 (3.1), and the network’s highest rating ever for Bruins coverage. The Bruins finished just shy of the Red Sox’ average on NESN last year (6.4), and crushed the Celtics’ 2012-13 average on Comcast SportsNet New England (2.9).
Of the 25 highest rated Bruins telecasts on NESN, eighteen took place this season. The Bruins’ January 19 opener against the Rangers (9.6) was the team’s highest rated game ever on the network.
Records also fell in Chicago, where the Blackhawks were boosted by high-profile 24-game points streak. Comcast SportsNet Chicago averaged a 5.38 rating for Blackhawks games this season, up 73% from last year (3.11), up 94% from 2010-11 (2.78), and a record for the network. The Blackhawks outrated the Bulls, who were without Derrick Rose all season, by 67%.
The 33 highest rated Blackhawks games ever on CSN Chicago took place this season, an incredible stat considering that the network aired only 39 games.
In New York, the Rangers averaged a 1.65 rating on MSG Network — up 67% from last year (0.99), up 126% from 2010-11 (0.73), and the network’s second-highest average ever. Only the 1994-95 season, which was also shortened to 48 games due to an owner-imposed lockout, averaged a higher rating (1.88).
The Islanders averaged a 0.49 on MSG, up 133% from last year (0.21), and a network record. The Devils (0.47, +42%) also had a substantial increase, but the team only hit a three-year high.
Not every team had a massive increase. In Washington (DC), Capitals games averaged a 1.62 rating on CSN Mid-Atlantic — up only 8% from last year (1.50). Even so, the Capitals had their second-highest rated season ever on a local RSN.
(Season averages from Root Sports, NESN.com, NBC Sports Group Press Box, Madison Square Garden, The Washington Post; Mariners’ 2002 average from Sports Business Journal)
