The NHL’s annual Black Friday game slipped in ratings and viewership. In other news, recent NHL figures have been mixed on NBCSN, and the annual Bayou Classic posted an increase over last year’s low performance.
NHL Thanksgiving Showdown Dips on NBC
- Rangers/Flyers had a 0.9 final rating and 1.3 million viewers in last week’s NHL Thanksgiving Showdown on NBC, down a tick in ratings and 1% in viewership from Rangers/Bruins last year (1.0, 1.4M) but up a tick and 16% respectively from Rangers/Flyers in 2014 (0.8, 1.1M). It ranks third out of the five day-after-Thanksgiving matinees on NBC (dates back to 2011). (Nielsen)
Recent Results Mixed For NHL on NBCSN
- Penguins/Islanders scored 417,000 viewers on the latest edition of NBCSN’s Wednesday Night Rivalry, up 76% from Flyers/Islanders last year (237K) and up 79% from Flyers/Red Wings in 2014 (233K). The previous night, Flyers/Bruins had 380,000; there was no comparable window last year. One week earlier, NBCSN scored 246,000 for Sharks/Blackhawks and 245,000 for Flyers/Lightning (-49%) on November 23 and 160,000 for Bruins/Blues on November 22 (-29%). (Sports TV Ratings 12/1, 11/30, 11/28a, 11/28b)
Bayou Classic Bounces Back From Last Year, Still Low
- The Grambling/Southern Bayou Classic had a 0.1 final rating and 200,000 viewers on NBCSN last Saturday evening, flat in ratings and up a third in viewership from last year (0.1, 150K) but down 86% and 81%, respectively, from 2014 — the last time the event aired on the NBC broadcast network (0.7, 1.0M). The Bayou Classic outperformed four college football games on Nielsen rated networks last weekend, including Purdue/Indiana on ESPNU (181K). (ShowBuzz Daily 11/30)
UPDATE 12/9: NHL numbers updated to correct year-over-year comparisons.
