TNT’s NHL Winter Classic viewership set a cable record for a second-straight year, if still below the NBC-era norm.
The NHL Winter Classic — Penguins-Bruins from Fenway Park in Boston — averaged 1.78 million viewers on TNT Monday afternoon, the largest regular season NHL audience ever on cable and up 31% from the previous high set by last year’s Winter Classic (Blues-Wild: 1.4M). Ratings were not immediately available.
The Bruins’ win, which peaked with 2.1 million viewers from 5-5:15 PM ET, also ranks as the most-watched NHL regular season window since the Winter Classic three years ago — the last time the event aired on broadcast network NBC (1.96M). The previous high was 1.71 million for Capitals-Penguins on NBC in January of 2021.
This year marks just the second time since 2014 that Winter Classic viewership has increased over the previous edition. Viewership also increased for the previous Winter Classic to involve the Bruins, against the Blackhawks at Notre Dame Stadium in 2019.
Despite the multiple highs, this year’s audience tops only last year as the lowest for the Winter Classic. Keep in mind the event aired on broadcast from 2008-20. The previous times the Bruins hosted the Winter Classic, it averaged 2.78 million in 2016 (against Montreal from Gillette Stadium) and 3.68 million in 2010 (against Philadelphia from Fenway).
In other NHL action, ESPN averaged a 0.12 and 237,000 for Islanders-Kraken opposite Sunday Night Football on New Year’s Day. Figures for Tuesday’s Stars-Kings game on ESPN were not immediately available.
(Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 1.2, network PR)
