Kukla's Korner Hockey
Watching The NHL Playoffs
by Paul on 05/14/12 at 05:18 PM ET
Comments (1)
from Bruce Dowbiggin of the Globe and Mail,
The last time the NHL was riding this high, in the estimation of American public opinion anyway, was during the spring of 1994 when the New York Rangers won their first Stanley Cup in 54 years. The league promptly celebrated its success by locking out its players for the first three months of the next season, thereby squandering almost all of its hard-won momentum.
Fast forward to the present. Ratings for the first two rounds of the NHL playoffs are hitting record levels with four of the top-6 NBC Sports Channel games ever telecast. On a local level, the New York Rangers (playing in the No. 1 media market in the U.S.) have reached the finals in the Eastern Conference, while the Los Angeles Kings (No. 2 media market) are in the Western Conference finals.
Strike up Gary Bettman’s Marching Band ... we’re headed for another lockout.
Much is being made in some corners of the ascension in NHL playoff ratings and the concurrent decline in the NBA’s ratings during its just-completed first round.
Filed in: NHL Media, Hockey Broadcasting, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: nbc
Comments
Add a Comment
Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.
Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.
Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.
Most Recent Blog Posts
KK- The KK Donation Drive Is Now On
Video- Matt Cooke Suspended 7 Games
Open Post- Three Games Tonight On The Stanley Cup Playoffs Schedule
NBC Sports Group Will Cover Team USA From IIHF World Championship
About Kukla's Korner Hockey
Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.
From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.
Email Paul anytime at pk@kuklaskorner.com
The NHL’s first round (even round 2) are always more exciting than the NBA’s first round or two.
And there’s a very logical reason for that.
In the NBA, skill always rises to the top and teams can’t rely on odd bounces or pure ‘luck’ to usurp a larger seed.
In the NHL, luck and bounces play more of a part than skill.
So upsets are far more likely in the first 2 rounds of the NHL playoffs - which heightens interest.
By the time the conference finals approach, the game is all but ignored on a national scale.
Posted by Hank1974 on 05/14/12 at 06:10 PM ET