NHL viewership on ESPN and TNT has dropped 22% heading into the All-Star break. The main reason for such a big drop is that both cable nets have doubled the number of games that they have carried compared to last season, from 27 to 54. Bigger schedules of games typically hurt average viewership. However, ESPN, TNT and the league cannot be happy with audience numbers so far this season, which is the second one of the blockbuster media deal signed in 2021. Games have averaged 373,000 viewers on ESPN and TNT so far, down from an average of 478,000 viewers at the same point last season. That does not include the Blues-Blackhawks Black Friday game on ABC in 2021; if that number was included, the league average would have been 505,000 viewers last season.
TNT FEELING BLACKOUT IMPACT: TNT has averaged 359,000 viewers over 36 games, down 16% compared to the 20 games it carried during the same period last season. One reason for the drop is local blackouts impacted at least seven telecasts in big markets like Boston, Pittsburgh and N.Y. this season. Last season, it had no blackouts. A bright spot is that the Penguins-Bruins Winter Classic at Fenway Park posted the NHL’s best regular-season game yet for cable TV. The January 2 afternoon game averaged 1.78 million viewers, up 31% from 1.36 million for Blues-Wild on New Year’s Day last year in primetime. The two years of the Winter Classic on TNT still are below anything that NBC averaged for the outdoor game since its inception in 2008.
SUNDAY DRAGGING DOWN ESPN: Over on ESPN, 18 games to date have averaged 402,000 viewers, down 35% from 622,000 over just seven games on the cable network at the same point last year. That comparison includes six games on Sunday this season (up against the NFL), as well as a big opening night in 2021. There were no weekend games at this point last season. ESPN's 12 non-Sunday NHL games are averaging 491,000 viewers, which would be on pace to beat last year's average. Total minutes for the NHL on ESPN.com and the ESPN app are up 29% year-over-year, with page views up 38%. ESPN's social media engagements around the NHL are up 224% year-over-year.
