Sunday’s Western Conference Final Game 1 between the Sharks and Blues, in which the Blues defeated the Sharks 2-1, produced a 1.26 overnight rating, second all-time out of 14 Conference Final Game 1s in NBCSN history. Friday’s Eastern Conference Final Game 1 between the Lightning and Penguins, in which the Lightning defeated the Penguins 3-1, produced a 1.24 overnight rating to rank third all-time on the network for Conference Final Game 1 matchups.

The Sharks-Blues 1.26 overnight rating was driven by a 17.4 rating in St. Louis, to rank as the highest-rated Blues game ever on the networks of NBCU in the St. Louis market. The game delivered a 4.5 rating in San Jose to rank as the second-highest rated Sharks conference final game on NBCSN in the market (behind 5/20/11 vs. Vancouver; 4.8). The Lightning-Penguins 1.24 overnight rating was propelled by a 17.9 rating in Pittsburgh and a 7.4 rating in Tampa; NBCSN was the top network overall in both markets during the game.

Round 2 of the 2016 NHL Playoffs, which ended last Thursday, averaged 1.265 million viewers across NBC/NBCSN/USA/CNBC, up 4% from Round 2 coverage in 2015 (1.219 million; 22 games). Across all 70 First and Second Round games on NBC/NBCSN/USA/CNBC, the 2016 NHL Playoffs have averaged 905,000 viewers, up 4% vs. the comparable period of the 2015 NHL Playoffs (873,000; 68 games).