NHL possibly getting bumped for a WNBA game

[Golden_Jet]

Luckily only gets bumped in USA

 

[Filthy Dangles]

Hockey is just niche sport. In soccer you only need a ball and a field.
In hockey you need a massive money. Hockey is just a rich kids sport.

You're not wrong but this has nothing to with the situation at hand...that explains the general popularity difference in basketball and hockey in North America.

This is more about the talent and interest in one person

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

Not that surprising, Caitlin Clark is a household name at this point. More popular than Ovechkin, McDavid, and Matthews combined.

What the hell is a Caitlin Clark??

 

[Filthy Dangles]

Someone who doesn't follow basically at all, women team sports, how can that person know who this Caitlin Clark is?
I didn't even know that WNBA was a summer league, yes i knew a league of that kind exists, but that's pretty much it.

If my hometown's women basketball team gets to a point where they are one win away from the championship, sure i watch that game from TV
- we have won several titles in a row and are in the finals again, though this time we didn't win the regular season

I do watch the women world cup every time, also of late the women ice hockey world championships, until the gold medal fiasko watched that is.
But that's my experience of women team sports

I'm gonna guess it's because you're from Finland...where i'm also guessing American college basketball doesn't get much, if any coverage.

Here in the 'States, she was talked about by the sports and mainstream media basically every day during her season and run @ Iowa.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

I'm gonna guess it's because you're from Finland...where i'm also guessing American college basketball doesn't get much, if any coverage.

Here in the 'States, she was talked about by the sports and mainstream media basically every day during her season and run @ Iowa.

And the worthless midget Buttman can't even outdraw women's basketball.

 

[PensPlz]

Just accept that women’s basketball is getting more popular. NCAA women’s final did 14 mil in viewers. The NHL could only dream of touching that.

College sports =/= professional women's basketball

One is popular and the other is not. Conflating them is a mistake. And it will be a financial mistake for ESPN.

Caitlin Clark will not maintain her popularity into her mid to late 20s. No one will remember her in 3 years. And anyone thinking she's going to carry an entire league into relevancy then I have some magic beans I'd like to sell you.

 

[joelef]

College sports =/= professional women's basketball

One is popular and the other is not. Conflating them is a mistake. And it will be a financial mistake for ESPN.

Caitlin Clark will not maintain her popularity into her mid to late 20s. No one will remember her in 3 years. And anyone thinking she's going to carry an entire league into relevancy then I have some magic beans I'd like to sell you.

She still be revelant then any nhl star.

 

[Mattb124]

Believe me. They have ways of making that happen. It's not hard with a billion bucks.
Stars are chosen. Not earned

The way “they” chose for her to be highest scoring women in NCAA basketball history is impressive.

 

[Overrated]

assuming it's actual growth. Soccer fans in the US have seen similar play out before (Beckham, Zlatan, currently Messi) and it hasn't meant shit for the actual state of the game.

Yes Beckham, Zlatan or even Messi aren't the main reason but soccer is growing in the US due to the change in demographics and a wider acceptance of the sport from among the American youth. IShowSpeed for example is one of the biggest American internet celebrities and half is channel is about soccer: https://www.youtube.com/@IShowSpeed/videos

 

[Cubs2024WSChamps]

If a WNBA preseason game out draws an NHL playoff game with elimination circumstances in the ratings the NHL will look like more a joke league then it already does.

Hot Take- Clark's rating double the NHL game and the Chicago Blackhawks magically win the draft lottery.

 

[CJV123]

Just accept that women’s basketball is getting more popular. NCAA women’s final did 14 mil in viewers. The NHL could only dream of touching that.

For the record, there is no longer any objective ratings data collected and even the media lackeys concede that figure is exaggerated.

 

[Cubs2024WSChamps]

For the record, there is no longer any objective ratings data collected and even the media lackeys concede that figure is exaggerated.

Your going to have to post some proof with this considering Neilsen themselves stated 12 million.

Can the WNBA over take the NHL? It's possible. The world is ready for competitive women's professional sports and have an actual generational talent to build around.

And quite honestly, I'd say the WNBA is on the same tier as the NHL in terms of niche sport with the exception the WNBA has a player millions want to see while the NHL has...who? You have to stack what, four, five NHL players to come close to one Caitlin Clark in terms of popularity.

 

[Beerz]

Funny thing is.. Im not even sure Caitlin Clark is as good as Brianna Stewart is/was.

Clark really only started getting attention last year when the Clark/ Angel Reese beef happened.

I don't think this popularity will last.

 

[BLNY]

No problem with Clark getting some priority. She's a superstar in a sport that's more popular in the US. The problem is that the NHL has terrible leadership and no bargaining power. They've put themselves in a position where US networks dictate terms.

There was a time when the schedules were locked in. Round one meant that these 8 teams played one night. The other 8 played the next, and they did that until round one was complete. Now there are nights with 6 games, nights with 3 games ... it's all over the place. That's on the NHL. Not the WNBA.

 

[BKIslandersFan]

Never heard of her until 3-4 weeks ago.

Good thing the world doesn't revolve around you then.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Good thing the world doesn't revolve around you then.

Ya and that was posted 3 weeks ago,
Don’t worry I wasn’t alone, and with some they still don’t know.

 

[Seras]

Can't blame em, the NBA is spending lots of money keeping that league operational

 

[BKIslandersFan]

Ya and that was posted 3 weeks ago,
Don’t worry I wasn’t alone, and with some they still don’t know.

If they don't have access to internet and live in cabin middle of no where, sure.

 

[Ezekial]

If they don't have access to internet and live in cabin middle of no where, sure.

Or, you know, they're Canadian and NCAA sports mean nothing to them.