NHL Worst ever ratings on NBC
 

Staurdays's NHL broadcast received a 1 rating on NBC. One of the worst ever for that evening. Week before they cut out of an Overtime game to show a pre broadcast of a horse race.

Bettman wake up and smell the coffee. Most Americans dont care about the NHL. Stop trying to force it on them. Drop NBC and go back to ESPN 2 as you will probaly get more viewers. Let teams that fail move to Hamilton or Winnipeg.
Also if you want a viable US city go to Vegas. First pro team to go there will get a sweatheart deal. Beat The NBA to the punch. Hockey still has its hot beds in Detroit and New York and a few other cities. Nashville and Atlanta are doomed to fail.

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Why would you get more viewers on cable than regular tv?
And hockey sucks they should get rid of half the teams in the US and add some canadian teams because no one here cares.

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I doubt ESPN wants them at this point.

I also doubt this increases ratings in a measurable number but I really think the NHL could help itself out at least a little if they can bring back a "NHL Tonight" type highlight show every day, even if it's on Versus. Anyone know if they have any plans to do that?

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Why would you get more viewers on cable than regular tv?
And hockey sucks they should get rid of half the teams in the US and add some canadian teams because no one here cares.

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Most NHL fans tune to ESPN already. Plus you would add bars and lounges in the mix. I agree to the add more NHL teams and to most Americans Hockey sucks. Thats why we should stop trying to convert them Its like soccer it is a loosing battle.

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I think the fact that ESPN didn't renew it's NHL agreement because WSOP reruns got better ratings than NHL games speaks volumes.

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It was probably more on the NHL side wanting the same kind of huge contract it was used to receiving. Obviously the NHL should have took a huge drop on their side of the contract just to promote the league, but it just looks like a huge mistake now.

Also, I hate the Nelson ratings.....

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Meh, hockey in the US will ALWAYS be a regional sport. Bettman needs to stop trying to force hockey in baseball/NASCAR/football areas that dont even have ice rinks.

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They need to contract Florida, Columbus, Nashville and Atlanta at the very least.

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Bring back (more) fighting.. this kid glove NHL is for the birds.

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I kind of like hockey and would watch it on ESPN when surfing around and saw a game on.

I watched very little of the playoffs this year because I just kept forgetting about the games.
I just didn't surf past NBC (it's just not typically in my regular rotation of channels to check) and missed a lot of the games on VS.


Since I've been kind of out of it hockey-wise for awhile this may sound pretty ignorant, but I'm surprised that people are in favor of contracting the team in Nashville.
I thought they were fairly popular pretty quickly in that city.
Did the novelty factor wear off THAT fast and people just stopped going?

In Sept I saw that Nash/Col were playing an NHL exhibition game in Memphis. First ever NHL game here.
We went to it. Boring as hell. The attendance was probably in the 1,000 range.
Kind of hard to get people interested in non-hockey markets.


Someone mentioned Las Vegas for a team which I think woud be worth looking into.
Another more unusual market for an NHL team might be Oklahoma City. They have a great facility in the Ford Center and their minor-league hockey team that plays there is wildly popular.
They average around 10k fans per game in a league that averages 3k or so.
Obviously they really supported their NBA team.
From what I gather it seems like a really good sports-city.
NHL needs to take chances. Instead of forcing teams into markets like Miami, Carolina, etc where almost anyone could guess they would be doomed to struggle they could try smaller markets that might actually be passionate about their team.

Then again, that smaller-market-with-passion strategy didn't seem to work so hot for Hartford, Quebec and Winnipeg.

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They need to contract Florida, Columbus, Nashville and Atlanta at the very least.

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the fact that you include columbus on this list shows you don't know what you're talking about.

contraction is impossible.

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I agree with pretty much everything posted in the thread, but I think it's important to mention that the fact that the 2 teams were Ottawa and Anaheim has a lot to do with the low ratings.

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The NHL needs to contract by like 4 teams. Expansion is bad.

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They need to contract Florida, Columbus, Nashville and Atlanta at the very least.

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the fact that you include columbus on this list shows you don't know what you're talking about.

contraction is impossible.

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I'm glad I'm not just a homer. The support for the Blue Jackets in the city of Columbus is huge. The organization is trying really hard to be competitive.

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the benefits of contraction are very few compared to the extreme negatives.

and yes mason, if they didn't have a retard at general manager, the blue jackets might've had a playoff season by now. doug maclean is one of the dumbest men in all of hockey.

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the best idea I think is for the NHL to play more of a role in funding ice arenas and youth hockey leagues. Hockey is a great sport. Actually, it's the sport I've had the best experience playing. However, in my area growing up (suburban Chicago), there were few opportunities to play and it was expensive. OTOH, I played in multiple baseball leagues, multiple basketball leagues, multiple soccer leagues, and youth football. All of those combined were cheaper than hockey. I didn't play organized hockey until my teens. The sport is great. I think all it takes is a generation of those playing it while growing up for it to become very, very popular.

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Yes, they do need more funding and youth leagues. I always wanted to play hockey SO BADLY growing up, but basketball was infinitely cheaper and I liked it just as much as I liekd hockey. Because it's hard to get the actual experience playing the game, the older you get, it loses your hold on you. I still like hockey, but it has diminished, and I don't feel like sifting through Versus to find games.

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Hockey is so damn expensive to play that I just don't see this being viable - it would take years to materialize, and I just don't ever see hockey being a mainstream sport because of that.

What the NHL needs to do more of is encourage street hockey leagues, which are way cheaper.

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but street hockey is so slow compared to ice hockey

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I agree with pretty much everything posted in the thread, but I think it's important to mention that the fact that the 2 teams were Ottawa and Anaheim has a lot to do with the low ratings.

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I want to agree with this too, but sadly, I can't think of a team that may have national appeal in US other than Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and possibly the Rangers or Red Wings.

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NHL will be surpassed by soccer soon [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

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NHL will probably stay at the level it is right now for a few years.

An ESPN deal, team in Vegas, and dropping/revising the instigator rule might create a (temporary?) surge.

Also, they don't need to contract. There's plenty of talent spread out. It's not like 4th liners are playing 30 min a game. Also, contracting probably leads to less goons and less fighting, which is the only reason hockey is ever mentioned between a group of non-hockey fans.

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NHL will be surpassed by soccer soon [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]I was under the impression it already was...

Re: NHL Worst ever ratings on NBC
 

[ QUOTE ]
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NHL will be surpassed by soccer soon [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]I was under the impression it already was...

[/ QUOTE ]

MLS?

Re: NHL Worst ever ratings on NBC
 

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I agree with pretty much everything posted in the thread, but I think it's important to mention that the fact that the 2 teams were Ottawa and Anaheim has a lot to do with the low ratings.

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I want to agree with this too, but sadly, I can't think of a team that may have national appeal in US other than Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and possibly the Rangers or Red Wings.

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Buffalo? lol. are you serious? Yeah, Buffalo does a HUGE rating in Buffalo, but no one else cares about the Sabres.

The Rangers, Stars, Blues, Bruins, Kings, Flyers, and Wings would definitely be solid picks. There are several other markets which would be better than Anaheim - and Ottawa is just about the worst market to have in the Finals.

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Buffalo? lol. are you serious? Yeah, Buffalo does a HUGE rating in Buffalo, but no one else cares about the Sabres.

The Rangers, Stars, Blues, Bruins, Kings, Flyers, and Wings would definitely be solid picks. There are several other markets which would be better than Anaheim - and Ottawa is just about the worst market to have in the Finals.

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My thought with Buffalo was the announcers kept pointing out how like the top 8 (or something) player jerseys sold were Crosby and 7 Sabres. If all those people buying the jerseys are in Western New York, then so be it. But I figured a fair amount of those were being sold in other locations.

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The Sabres also got new logo/jerseys this year. That probably has a lot to do with it.

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The traditional 6 are pretty much the teams with nationwide appeal

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The traditional 6 are pretty much the teams with nationwide appeal

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I'dd add the Devils, Avs and Stars.

The NHL will never overcome the fact that the game translates extraordinarily poorly to TV. The best spectator sport, the worst TV sport. HDTV will help as hockey benefits more than any sport from it IMO, but I don't think it'll be enough.

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Clark - have to agree. hockey on TV just isn't even close to watching it live imo?
Although most of Canada doesn't seem to have any problems with it.
but for 'typical' Americans who don't know or understand the sport, watching it on TV just doesn't do anything to spark any interest because it just doesn't look very good.

I still think getting back on ESPN could help it out a tad.
At least it could prevent it from going backwards.

Lots of American males just turn it to ESPN by default. And lots of bars show it even if it's poker or strongest-man or whatever.
It's practically a pain to get some bars to switch it to TNT or ABC for an NBA game. Even when ESPN is showing a Cheerleading competition it just doesn't occur to them until you ask.

I watched part of the TB/Calgary Stanley Cup series at a bar in Memphis. 2 guys seated near us were watching it too just because it happened to be on and they were asking me questions about how the sport worked.

No, they're not going to become huge fans. But at least it was on and they were watching it and became somewhat interested.
No way that would happen today because no bar in the south is going to intentionally change it to VS or NBC just because the playoffs are on.

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Mason - wasn't sure whether the Jackets were still popular in Columbus or not.
I went to one Blue Jackets game in their 2nd season and the atmosphere was awesome. And obviously the arena is top-notch.

Seems like Columbus has a lot going for it.
I think that getting NHL teams in non-NBA markets like that so there isn't as much direct in-season competiton is a good direction for the NHL to take.

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Every restaurant I've been to during a Sharks game had the game already on. The only time I remember not seeing hockey when I wanted to was during the playoffs last year at TGIF's, they had DirecTV and obviously no Versus. I also know that places that tune into HDNet or whatever always show hockey games.

This is in Sacramento, a good hour and a half or 2 away from San Jose with no real following.

Hockey is the best sport in HD, IMO... but it's also the worst in SD. I've also heard countless other people say the exact same thing, including Mark Cuban.

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NHL will be surpassed by soccer soon [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]I was under the impression it already was...

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MLS?

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Yes.

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Also, ESPN has no interest in showing the NHL. After the strike ESPN filled their NHL slots with random college basketball games (Fresno St. vs. Pepperdine, St. Joseph's vs. UMass, etc.) which got better ratings and cost way less than NHL games. NHL is dead.

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Mason - wasn't sure whether the Jackets were still popular in Columbus or not.
I went to one Blue Jackets game in their 2nd season and the atmosphere was awesome. And obviously the arena is top-notch.

Seems like Columbus has a lot going for it.
I think that getting NHL teams in non-NBA markets like that so there isn't as much direct in-season competiton is a good direction for the NHL to take.

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The Blue Jackets really blew a great chance to establish the franchise when tOSU bball was down a few years ago. tOSU will always be king in this city, but the Jackets really could have carved a niche those years by at least competing for the eight seed.

It's not too late to establish the franchise, but it will be more difficult being in the shadow of what looks like a developing powerhouse bball program. The support is still pretty good, but it is going to decline quickly with another awful year or two.

Doug McLean, in addition to not fielding a competitive team, was a huge jerk in public and radio appearances. He would often make lame excuses and question the hockey knowledge of anyone that dare question him. His firing was long overdue.

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As I said, I haven't followed the NHL that much.
but I'm guessing one of the radio announcers you are referring to would be their color commentator Bill Davidge whom I've known since I was a kid when he was head-coach at Miami (Ohio).

Obviously I agree with your assessment that tOSU is in town. Frankly, I was suprised that the team was as popular as it was so quickly as I didn't think an NHL team would catch on so well in OSU-country. Obviously I was wrong on that. I think the city really digs their team.

By comparison, I'm in Memphis which isn't as much of a college town but is similar to Columbus in that they only have one major-league team.
But support for the Grizzlies is really low and it has very little to do with how bad they were this season.
Kind of sad when a city with only one major-league team can't show any support for them.

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As I said, I haven't followed the NHL that much.
but I'm guessing one of the radio announcers you are referring to would be their color commentator Bill Davidge whom I've known since I was a kid when he was head-coach at Miami (Ohio).

Obviously I agree with your assessment that tOSU is in town. Frankly, I was suprised that the team was as popular as it was so quickly as I didn't think an NHL team would catch on so well in OSU-country. Obviously I was wrong on that. I think the city really digs their team.

By comparison, I'm in Memphis which isn't as much of a college town but is similar to Columbus in that they only have one major-league team.
But support for the Grizzlies is really low and it has very little to do with how bad they were this season.
Kind of sad when a city with only one major-league team can't show any support for them.

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I think there was a certain matter of pride when we finally got a "Big 4" team here. Columbus was, for years, the largest market without such a team. The arena is very nice, and it totally revitalized that area of the downtown. It also helped that they were able to completely privately fund the arena.

The Jackets did a good job of promoting youth hockey programs as well. I believe it is the only arena with an attached practice rink in the NHL. Sometimes, you can see youth hockey practices going on there even during games.

It will be sad if they can't get a competitive team in the next few years. There certainly is enough of a market there, but patience is wearing thin. Tickets are very, very expensive, especially when you consider PSL fees. I work right across the street from the arena, and by the end of this latest miserable season, desperate scalpers were practically giving away tickets. I think the new GM would be wise to field a competitive team by 2009, as I don't think he will be given more than a one year pass.

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The Jackets did a good job of promoting youth hockey programs as well. I believe it is the only arena with an attached practice rink in the NHL. Sometimes, you can see youth hockey practices going on there even during games.

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Hockey was just starting to take off in Columbus as well. When I started playing hockey we had 1 ice rink in the city and I was 9 years old playing with 14 year olds (the league wasn't affiliated with USA Hockey).

In high school we got to practice on their practice ice and played states on the real ice in the arena which was awesome.

When I started, 1 high school in the city had a team (happened to be mine). By the time I graduated high school 9 years later (and CBJ's second year in existence) I think 5 schools had varsity teams and a few more had club teams.

It seemed to be a kind of synergy, people got excited about hockey because of the team, then they got excited about the team because of hockey. Not sure what the state of HS hockey is in Columbus right now but I can only imagine it's improved even more.

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"desperate scalpers were practically giving away tickets."


ouch. not a good sign at all.

tOSU hoops success probably really hurt them I'm guessing.

tOSU hockey still has a loyal following of fans too who otherwise might be going to a handful more Blue Jackets games I'm guessing.

Those are probably not-huge factors though compared with simply fielding a competitve team.

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The Blue Jackets still sell out a ton of games. Doug MacLean has just made bone-headed move after bone-headed move. I don't think playoffs in 09 should be their goal - these sorts of goals have already screwed them up enough.

The team just cannot draft anyone aside from 1st round picks who are successful - and even their 1st round picks haven't lived up to expectations, aside from Rick Nash, who had a terrible year last year.