Last night’s Game 7 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final really did well for NBC. Boston’s 4-0 win over Vancouver received a 5.7 with a 10 share tying the record overnight set in 2003 between Anaheim and New Jersey. When you look at the local ratings, they’re even more astounding with Boston the highest rating as one could expect, a 43.4/64 followed by Providence with a 25.9/38. Buffalo, Detroit and Hartford round out your top five rated markets. I’m amazed that Las Vegas with no NHL team finished tied for 8th. You’ll see it below.
Boston’s local numbers for the Bruins this year beat the Celtics in the NBA Finals last year. And the overnight rating is the highest featuring a Canadian team in almost four decades. That’s astounding.
We expect to get the final numbers later today. They should go up. I expect about 7.5 million to be the average viewership when all is said and done. Here’s the press release.
LAST NIGHT’S STANLEY CUP FINAL GAME TIES FOR BEST GAME 7 OVERNIGHT ON RECORD
Up 14% Over 2009’s Game 7
Ties for Second-Best Stanley Cup Overnight in 37 Years
Highest Stanley Cup Overnight Featuring a Canadian Team in 38 Years
Boston Sets Record, Leads All Metered Markets with a 43.4 Rating & 64 ShareNEW YORK – June 16, 2011 – Game 7 of the 2011 Stanley Cup Final, which saw the Boston Bruins defeat the Vancouver Canucks, 4-0, to claim their first championship since 1972, generated a 5.7/10 overnight rating, tying 2003 for the best NHL Stanley Cup Game 7 overnight on record, according to overnight data released today by The Nielsen Company. The overnight was up 14 percent compared to the most recent Game 7 in 2009, which featured two U.S. teams, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings.
NBC Sports Group surrounded the Stanley Cup with pre- and postgame coverage on VERSUS, regional coverage on Comcast SportsNet New England and robust digital coverage on the integrated NBCSports.com.
- Last night’s Game 7 registered a 5.7 overnight rating and a 10 share, tying 2003 (Anaheim-New Jersey) for the best Game 7 overnight on record.
- Last night’s game was up 14 percent from the 2009 Stanley Cup Game 7 (Pittsburgh-Detroit, 5.0/10).
- The 5.7 overnight for Game 7 ties for the second-best Stanley Cup overnight rating in 37 years, behind only last year’s Chicago-Philadelphia Game 6 which registered a 5.8/10 overnight (5/19/74 Boston-Philadelphia Gm 6, 7.6/27 on NBC).
- Highest Stanley Cup overnight rating for a game featuring a Canadian team in 38 years.
STANLEY CUP FINAL GAME 7 OVERNIGHT RATINGS (SINCE 1995):
T1. 6/15/11, Boston-Vancouver, 5.7/10 – Last Night’s Game
T1. 6/9/03, Anaheim-New Jersey, 5.7/9
3. 6/9/01, New Jersey-Colorado, 5.5/11
4. 6/7/04, Calgary-Tampa Bay, 5.3/8
5. 6/12/09, Pittsburgh-Detroit, 5.0/10
6. 6/19/06, Edmonton-Carolina, 4.1/7BOSTON SETS RECORDS: The Boston market earned a 43.4 rating and a 64 share, the best overnight on record for a hockey game in Boston (dating back to 1991) and the best overnight in the Boston market featuring a Boston team in any major sports championship since Super Bowl XLII (Patriots-Giants, 55.6 on 2/3/08).
Boston’s seven-game average for the Stanley Cup Final (five games on NBC, two games on VERSUS) was a 28.1/44, 12 percent higher than ABC’s seven-game Boston average for last year’s NBA Finals (25.0/40 for Boston-LA Lakers).
TOP MARKETS FOR 2011 STANLEY CUP FINAL GAME 7:
1. Boston, 43.4/64
2. Providence, 25.9/38
3. Buffalo, 10.6/17
T4. Detroit, 8.7/14
T4. Hartford, 8.7/13
6. Pittsburgh, 7.6/12
7. Denver, 7.2/14
T8. Minneapolis, 6.7/12
T8. Las Vegas, 6.7/11
10. St. Louis, 6.2/10
More later.
