Florida Panthers produce shocking TV ratings for Stanley Cup Final
Photo credit: Imagn Images
There were some shocking numbers that were reported on the first three games of the Stanley Cup finals that were hosted by TNT for South Florida and it's safe to say that they were not ideal.
According to the report, TNT produced ratings of 3.2, 3.0 and 3.2 which meant only 3.2% of homes in the southern Florida area have the game tuned for the Finals.
Terrible numbers for a back-to-back champion
These are dreadful numbers for the NHL and their finals as this number meant 96.8% of homes in southern Florida did not watch the games at any point.
This has drawn criticism from many NHL fans and some pundits throughout the league on how the fan base for the Florida Panthers is very small and localized and the team has not grasped the state when it comes to fans tuning in to watch on television.
For several decades, the Panthers along with many other organizations in the southern half of the United States have struggled to build their fanbases for NHL hockey.
At several points in their history, the Panthers had horrible attendance numbers especially through the regular season and became visible on many social media websites and even on some telecasts for sports.
Viewership in the USA should concern the NHL
It seems the NHL is having trouble getting viewership to watch there games especially during the Stanley Cup playoffs. John Kosner ESPN explained several reasons why the teams are struggling.
«Obviously, there's less distribution and less fan awareness with the games on TNT,» said John Kosner, who advises sports media companies after a two-decade career as an executive at ESPN. «That said, I find it really disappointing
considering how remarkable the series was last year with seven games and how many of the star players here played in the Four Nations Face-Off, which was really highly rated on ESPN.» - John Kosner
considering how remarkable the series was last year with seven games and how many of the star players here played in the Four Nations Face-Off, which was really highly rated on ESPN.» - John Kosner
Despite all the success that has been touted by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, the league still has much work to do to try to grow its viewership amongst American fans especially in the teams in the South.
It's safe to say the NHL will look at this and other factors and see how they can change the distribution of their games so that more eyes can see and enjoy their product.
Source: The Athletic
Why are so few people watching the Stanley Cup Final in the U.S.?
Why are so few people watching the Stanley Cup Final in the U.S.?
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JUIN 21 | 930 ANSWERS Florida Panthers produce shocking TV ratings for Stanley Cup Final Do you think the NHL has a major viewership problem in the USA? | ||
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