NBCSN Sets Network NHL Ratings Record with Boston-Philadelphia Telecast

(Image credit: NBCSN)

NBC Sports Network skated to a ratings record with its Feb. 20 NHL Outdoors telecast of the Boston Bruins-Philadelphia Flyers game.

The game, played outdoors at Lake Tahoe, averaged 1 million viewers, making it the most watched NHL regular-season game ever on NHL, surpassing the 978,000 viewers who tuned into the Jan. 13 Pittsburgh Penguins-Flyers game.

The Bruins-Flyers game was also the most watched NHL regular season game on cable since ESPN’s 2002 San Jose Sharks-Detroit Red Wings telecast.

NBCSN and NBC split coverage of the Feb. 21 Colorado Avalanche-Las Vegas Golden Knights NHL Outdoors contest after the game was delayed for hours due to sunlight making the ice unplayable. NBC’s 3 pm to 4:30 pm telecast averaged 1.3 million viewers, while NBCSN’s post midnight coverage drew 361,000 viewers, according to Nielsen.

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.