Last night’s Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final registered the best overnight rating for a Game 2 on record. The 4.1 overnight rating and 7 share for the Philadelphia Flyers-Chicago Blackhawks Game 2 is higher than all other Stanley Cup Final Game 2’s since 1975. NHL overnight data prior to 1975 is unavailable. NBC again won the night, as it did Saturday for Game 1, finishing No. 1 in primetime (2.4, A18-49).
Game 2 posted a 21-percent increase over last year’s Game 2 (3.4) between the then-defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins, featuring Sidney Crosby.
Last night’s game peaked at a 4.7/8 in final half-hour. Chicago led all markets with a 25.1 rating and 39 share. Philadelphia followed with an 18.5 rating and 28 share.
The two-game average overnight rating for Games 1 and 2 is a 3.5, the best two-game average overnight rating for the first two games of a Stanley Cup Final in 11 years (3.8 on Fox in 1999, Buffalo vs. Dallas,) and up 17 percent over last year (3.0).
Top 10 Markets
1. Chicago 25.1/39
2. Philadelphia 18.5/28
3. Buffalo 10.2/16
4. Indianapolis 6.3/10
5. Pittsburgh 4.9/8
6. Detroit 4.4/7
7. Seattle 4.1/9
8. Denver 3.8/7
T9. Ft. Myers 3.7/6
T9. Las Vegas 3.7/6
About NBC Sports
NBC Sports is synonymous with superior production that elevates the event, broad promotion, and mutually-beneficial partnerships. Known as America’s Olympic Network, NBC has broadcast 12 Olympic Games, more than any other network. Its ability to amass large audiences with broad promotion, particularly for the Olympics, has resulted in NBC Sports broadcasting nine of the top 10 most-watched events in U.S. television history, including the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games which stands at No. 1 all time with 215 million viewers. In 2009, NBC Sports won the prestigious Peabody Award for its production of the Beijing Games and was named ‘Best in Sports Television’ at the Sports Business Awards.
NBC Sports partners with numerous leagues and governing bodies to broadcast some of the most prestigious properties in sports, including: ‘NBC Sunday Night Football,’ which is the premier primetime NFL game of the week; ‘Football Night in America,’ which is the most-watched NFL studio program; Notre Dame football; the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes; the U.S. Open Championship, THE PLAYERS Championship, and the Ryder Cup; the NHL Winter Classic, NHL ‘Game of the Week,’ and NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs and Final; and Wimbledon and the French Open.