From Sports Media Watch, a one-stop page for all sports ratings news.
Jon Lewis
Coverage of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs was averaging 1.15 million viewers through the first five days, up 76% from last year and the highest average on record at that point of the postseason. This year’s average is up 30% from the previous high of 887,000 in 2012, and up 39% from the previous high during the current media rights deal — 832,000 in 2024.
Jon Lewis
Last weekend’s Red Wings-Devils NHL regular season game averaged 863,000 viewers on ESPN, the network’s most-watched game since 2021, excluding Opening Night and the Stadium Series. ESPN losing its Sunday night NBA games to NBC has opened up that window for NHL games (as will ESPN’s loss of Sunday night MLB starting next month).
(Note that changes in Nielsen methodology — specifically the expansion of its out-of-home viewing sample and shift to a new methodology that adds “Big Data” to its traditional panel — will generally skew comparisons to past years.)
ESPN also drew 808,000 for Sabres-Penguins last Thursday. On ABC last Saturday, Capitals-Bruins and Rangers-Devils both averaged 1.0 million. ESPN/ABC is now averaging 782,000 for NHL games this season (+21%).
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
NHL games were averaging 648,000 viewers on ESPN and ABC through January 23 (18 telecasts), up 31% from last year. On ESPN alone, games were averaging 569,000 (+39%).
ESPN averaged 754,000 for Lightning-Blackhawks on January 23 and 574,000 for Red Wings-Wild the previous night.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Friday’s opening round of the 2025 NHL Draft averaged 534,000 viewers on ESPN, up 6% from last year and the second highest average on record for the event — trailing only the Connor Bedard draft two years ago (681K). Viewership peaked at 734,000.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Sunday’s Stars-Oilers NHL Western Conference Final Game 3 averaged 1.71 million viewers on ABC, down 3% from the same matchup on TNT Sports last year, which aired in primetime (1.76M). Compared to last year’s comparable conference final window on ABC, viewership fell 30% from Rangers-Panthers Game 3 (2.46M).
Game 4 on Tuesday night drew 1.52 million on ESPN, down 17% from the same matchup a year ago on TNT and truTV (1.82M). Compared to last year’s Rangers-Panthers Game 4 on ESPN, viewership fell 27% from 2.07 million.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Wednesday’s Oilers-Stars NHL Western Conference Finals Game 1 averaged a 0.75 rating and 1.46 million viewers on ESPN, down 8 and 5 percent respectively from the same matchup on TNT and truTV last year (0.8, 1.54M). Compared to last year’s ESPN conference final, Panthers-Rangers in the East, viewership fell 26% from 1.98 million.
As for this year’s Eastern Conference Final, Thursday’s Panthers-Hurricanes Game 2 averaged a 0.6 rating and 1.26 million on TNT and truTV — down 34 and 41 percent respectively from Panthers-Rangers on ESPN last year (1.0, 2.12M). Compared to Game 2 of Oilers-Stars on TNT Sports last year, viewership fell 18% from 1.54 million.
Source: ESPN, TNT Sports, Programming Insider, Programming Insider
Jon Lewis
Games 3, 4 and 5 of the Hurricanes’ second round Stanley Cup series victory over the Capitals averaged 1.33, 1.25 and 1.50 million viewers respectively on TNT Sports — down 24, 32 and 21 percent respectively from last year’s equivalent windows, Games 4-6 of Hurricanes-Rangers (1.76, 1.83 and 1.91 million).
In the other Eastern series, Games 3, 4 and 5 of Panthers-Maple Leafs averaged 1.16, 1.53 and 1.09 million — down 25, 30 and 30 percent respectively from last year’s equivalent windows, Games 3 and 4 of Panthers-Bruins (1.54 and 2.18 million) and Game 5 of Avalanche-Stars (1.56M). Games 3 and 4 aired on TNT Sports and Game 5 on ESPN.
Complete figures for the Western series were not immediately available. The Oilers’ series-clinching Game 5 win over the Golden Knights drew 1.05 million on ESPN Wednesday, with Game 3 at 1.02 million on TNT and truTV last Saturday (-34%).
Games 2-4 of Jets-Stars drew 911,000, 1.01 million and 1.15 million. Compared to the all-Canadian Canucks-Oilers series on the same nights last year, viewership increased 18, 9 and 16 percent respectively.
Source: ESPN, Programming Insider, Programming Insider, Programming Insider, Programming Insider
Jon Lewis
Monday’s NHL Draft Lottery, won by the New York Islanders, averaged 454,000 viewers on ESPN — on par with last year’s 453,000.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Wednesday’s Stars-Jets second round Stanley Cup playoff Game 1 averaged 1.1 million viewers for ESPN, up 22% from the all-Canadian Oilers-Canucks last year (902K) — marking a rare year-over-year increase for this year’s postseason.
Earlier in the night, Panthers-Maple Leafs averaged 1.0 million — down 43% from the all-American Bruins-Panthers a year ago (1.8M).
As for the lone all-American series in this year’s second round, Hurricanes-Capitals Game 2 averaged 1.4 million on Thursday night — down 20% from Rangers-Hurricanes on TNT and truTV last year (1.75M). The Oilers-Golden Knights nightcap followed with 973,000, down 22% from Avalanche-Stars a year ago (1.24M).
The second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs has averaged 1.14 million viewers through Thursday, down 32% from last year. The full postseason has averaged 817,000 on the ESPN networks, down 30%.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Tuesday’s Hurricanes-Capitals second round Stanley Cup playoff Game 2 averaged 1.3 million viewers on ESPN, down 31% from Hurricanes-Rangers in the same year-ago window (1.93M). The Oilers-Golden Knights nightcap drew 909,000, down 20% from last year’s Avalanche-Stars game (1.14M).
On Monday, Panthers-Maple Leafs Game 1 averaged 1.1 million — down 39% from Bruins-Panthers last year (1.85M).
Second round Stanley Cup playoff games have averaged 1.15 million viewers on ESPN through two nights (three games), down 37% from a year ago. The full Stanley Cup Playoffs is averaging 770,000 on the ESPN networks, down a third from the same point last year.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Wednesday’s Canadiens-Capitals first round Stanley Cup playoff Game 5 averaged 743,000 viewers on ESPN, down 39% from Golden Knights-Stars last year (1.2M). Unlike last year’s game, the Capitals’ series-clinching win faced a competing window on ESPN2 — Panthers-Lightning Game 5 at 564,000.
Later in the night, Blues-Jets Game 5 averaged 673,000, down 16% from Kings-Oilers a year ago (803K).
On Tuesday, Senators-Maple Leafs Game 5 averaged 615,000 — down 50% from Maple Leafs-Bruins last year (1.2M) — followed by Wild-Golden Knights at 532,000 (-36%). In competing windows on TBS, Devils-Hurricanes Game 5 drew 552,000. Figures for the Oilers-Kings nightcap were not immediately available.
Source: ESPN, Programming Insider
Jon Lewis
Monday’s Lightning-Panthers first round Stanley Cup playoff game averaged 1.1 million viewers on ESPN, down 10% from the same matchup last year (1.2M) but still the largest audience of the playoffs across all networks.
Later in the night, Avalanche-Stars drew 924,000 — down 7% from Stars-Golden Knights a year ago.
So far this postseason, Stanley Cup playoff games have averaged 652,000 on the ESPN networks — down 24% from last year.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Thursday’s Maple Leafs-Senators first round Stanley Cup playoff Game 3 averaged 324,000 viewers on ESPN2, down 26% from Hurricanes-Rangers last year (435K). Jets-Blues Game 3 followed with 285,000. Both games aired opposite the NFL Draft and competing playoff games on TBS.
The ESPN networks were averaging 606,000 viewers for first round coverage through Thursday, down 27% from last year.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Wednesday’s Canadiens-Capitals first round Stanley Cup playoff Game 2 averaged 815,000 viewers on ESPN, down 34% from Bruins-Maple Leafs last year. That led into Stars-Avalanche Game 3 at 779,000, down 22% from Golden Knights-Stars a year ago (1.0M).
On Tuesday night, ESPN averaged 659,000 for Devils-Hurricanes Game 2, 603,000 for Panthers-Lightning Game 1 and 459,000 for Wild-Golden Knights Game 2 in a rare weeknight tripleheader — down from last year’s ESPN doubleheader of Capitals-Rangers (1.05M) and Avalanche-Jets (700K).
On ESPN2, Senators-Maple Leafs Game 2 averaged 427,000 — down 17% from Lightning-Panthers a year ago (515K).
The ESPN networks are averaging 652,000 viewers for Stanley Cup playoff coverage thus far, down 24% from the same point last year.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Monday’s Canadiens-Capitals first round Stanley Cup playoff Game 1 averaged 901,000 viewers on ESPN, down 20% from Maple Leafs-Bruins last year (1.1M). That was followed by Avalanche-Stars Game 2, which averaged 661,000 — down 15% from Golden Knights-Stars a year ago (778K).
On ESPN2, Blues-Jets Game 2 averaged 372,000 and Oilers-Kings Game 1 followed with 323,000 — down 33 and 11 percent respectively from last year (Rangers-Hurricanes: 556K; Kings-Oilers: 362K).
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
Sunday’s first round Stanley Cup playoff tripleheader averaged 806,000 viewers on the ESPN networks, down 22% from last year’s quadrupleheader (1.04M). That is despite the games taking place on Easter Sunday, when there is greater out-of-home viewing.
Devils-Hurricanes led the way with 880,000 viewers on ESPN, down 34% from Capitals-Rangers in the same window last season (1.34M). Senators-Maple Leafs followed with 794,000 on ESPN2, down 27% from the year-ago pairing of Colorado and Winnipeg (1.09M).
Rounding out the tripleheader, Wild-Golden Knights averaged 735,000 — down 8% from Predators-Canucks a year ago.
On Saturday, TNT and truTV averaged 981,000 for Avalanche-Stars and 810,000 for Blues-Jets, down 7 and 14 percent respectively from last year’s pairing of Maple Leafs-Bruins (1.14M) and Islanders-Hurricanes (873K).
Source: ESPN, TNT Sports
Jon Lewis
Thursday’s Capitals-Penguins NHL regular season game averaged 535,000 viewers on ESPN, the network’s third-largest audience of the season, despite there being nothing at stake. The Flames-Kings nightcap followed with 392,000.
Viewership declined from last year’s equivalent windows (Kraken-Wild: 591K; Oilers-Avalanche: 482K).
The ESPN networks (ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC) averaged 571,000 viewers for the NHL regular season, down 14% from last year. A full NHL regular season recap is to come.
Source: ESPN
Jon Lewis
ABC averaged 547,000 viewers for Capitals-Blue Jackets and 519,000 for Rangers-Hurricanes in an NHL regular season doubleheader last Saturday, down 38 and 11 percent respectively from last year’s equivalent windows (Islanders-Rangers: 877K; Kraken-Stars: 584K). ABC also carried a third game last season, drawing 1.19 million for Bruins-Penguins in primetime.
On ESPN Sunday, Avalanche-Ducks averaged 495,000 following Sunday Night Baseball.
Shifting to the workweek, ESPN averaged 237,000 for Panthers-Lightning and 157,000 for Kings-Kraken in a Tuesday night doubleheader — both down from last years solo Maple Leafs-Panthers game (316K).
Source: ESPN
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