NHL still isn't must-see tv for Americans

[Zelepukin Lives]

The first quote was a joke.

The second one is just plain ignorant.

A CFL team would likely beat a Divison I football team by 50 points if not more.
There is a big difference between a bunch of boys playing a game, and men who make a living at it.

Make a living at it? Hell, I'd bet half the players from the Divison I powerhouses would have to take a pay cut to play in Canada.

 

[MLH]

Hockey is more than capable of pulling good ratings in cities that consider it a mainstream sport.

The Sabres' ninth straight victory, 4-1 over Montreal on Monday night, was televised nationally on Versus. It had a 10.6 local rating, which is incredibly high this early in the season.

It's the largest local rating that Versus/OLN has ever gotten for a regular season game, so there is some positive news on the ratings front.

 

[Bobby Orr]

World Series Ratings

1976 - 27.7
1986 - 28.6
1996 - 17.4
2006 - 10.1

TV ratings just ain't what they used to be. I can't believe they only drew an 8.0 for one of the games, even if it was a Saturday. Heck, the Cal/TB game 7 in '04 drew a 4.2. You're telling me an NHL game 7 between a non-traditional market and a Canadian market is now good for a little over half of a World Series game 1 between two storied franchises? Scary stuff.

 

[Frek]

NHL is must see tv for me

 

[Alpine]

Please stop the CFL vs NFL debate, it really is laughable. Before the NFL got a tv contract a debate could have been warranted, but not anymore. I know if the NFL wanted to expand into Canada you football fans would be ecstatic (see Toronto for instance). A part of me believes that a lot of Canadians want to believe that the CFL is comparable to the NFL because they know they aren't going to get anything better.

Although Toronto may technically be in Canada they are not Canada. Ask anyone east or west of the Ontario border. The answer you may get is that Toronto is an American wannabe.
Back to the ratings. Do they really matter as regional broadcasts have taken over. Has it occured to anyone that hockey fans get their fill watching the local team and if a national broadcast is showing other teams they don't care. I'm a Habs fan. I watch RDS to see the Habs much more often than I watch HNIC.
Hockey I think is healthy in the States. 24 NHL teams, gawd knows how many AHL/ECHL/UHL/SPHL teams plus NCAA, USHL, NAHL, and countless other regional junior leagues and High School leagues.
Seems to me that all we're complaining about is NHL not becoming an event like NFL or NBA. So what, there's more American players in the hockey fold now than ever before. Will hockey ever be to the States what is in Canada.....no but neither will basketball be in Canada what it is in the States. BCS season will not be as important in Canada as WJC and March Madness will not take over Memorial Cup (even Blue Jays were interrupted for Mem Cup) or the World Hockey Championship or Olympic hockey. I've never seen a bar advertise the NBA final (outside of Toronto). Heck I bet BCS or March Madness would pale in numbers if they were against the Grey Cup or the Brier and the Tournament of Hearts for that matter. But so what!
I'll go back to my previous post that NCAA has ownership of future players in other sports.
The average American viewer will not identify with players from Prince George, Swift Current, Sudbury, Val d'Or or Bathurst. As they do with players from Duke, Florida State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, or UCLA. For some reason Euros get a bye in this. Hockey for the most part is seen as foreign game. But yet at the same time support local teams. This I've never understood. But I really don't see hockey as under siege in the States.

 

[Jazz]

World Series Ratings

1976 - 27.7
1986 - 28.6
1996 - 17.4
2006 - 10.1

TV ratings just ain't what they used to be. I can't believe they only drew an 8.0 for one of the games, even if it was a Saturday. Heck, the Cal/TB game 7 in '04 drew a 4.2. You're telling me an NHL game 7 between a non-traditional market and a Canadian market is now good for a little over half of a World Series game 1 between two storied franchises? Scary stuff.

Interesting spin.....seriously.

 

[Jazz]

...That said I do agree the NHL needs a grass root effort to build up participation in the game. I also think a part of should be to help build up the college game. I think the NHL should try to promote players to go through the NCAA system and help schools in NHL markets to get a hockey program started. This does a few things one it gets the best prospects in the US where they are more visible and builds a little more hype for them coming in. Also this also can help get a younger audience exposed to live hockey (which is the best way to get new fans). The might go see their schools team live because it's cheaper than an NHL or minor league game. Sure it might come at the expence of the Canadian Junior system but building up the collge game is a must.

Take it one step further.

The NHL, and every concievable minor league (AHL, ECHL, etc), along with USA Hockey should pool their efforts into building up a grass-roots program anywhere where there is a team of any kind, not just an NHL team.

 

[Jazz]

I think that one of the main reasons that TV ratings the NHL are so low is that the teams in the major TV markets have generally done very poorly over the last ten years.

In New York, the #1 TV market, the Rangers missed the playoffs eight straight years before getting swept in the first round last year and the Islanders haven't won a playoff series since 92-93. Only the Devils have done well, and they have the smallest fan base of the three NY teams.

In Los Angeles, the #2 TV market, the Kings have won only one playoff series in the last twelve seasons and missed the payoffs entirely eight of those seasons. The less popular Ducks have made long postseason runs two of the last three years, but have a much smaller fan base than the Kings due to their more abbreviated history.

In Chicago, the #3 TV market, the Blackhawks have made the playoffs only two of the past nine seasons and lost in the first round both times.

When you consider that the Rangers, Islanders, Kings, and Blackhawks have won a combined 15 playoff games in the last eight years, its no wonder that the overall TV ratings suck.

Yes, this is a factor. However, concentrate on Chicago for a minute - I am sure that TV ratings over the past few years would have been at least 5-10% higher had Wirtz not alienated virtually the entire metropolitan area to the NHL. How the NHL can continue to let him go and not televise home games is unimaginable in 2006.

 

[weezman]

NHL is must see tv for me

+1

 

[mfw13]

Bobby Orr and Jazz both make some good points.

1) Ratings for just about everything on TV are down because people have so many more entertainment options, both on terms of having more TV channels to watch as well as from video games, etc.

2) The Blackhawks have been run into the ground by Bill Wirtz (and so have the Bruins by Jeremy Jacobs). One of the major reasons I think that Bettman has been a poor commissioner is that he has not taken steps to address these situations by putting together new ownership groups to buy out both franchises from their current owners. No league will be successful when bad owners are running two of its flagship franchises into the ground.

 

[OG6ix]

Although Toronto may technically be in Canada they are not Canada. Ask anyone east or west of the Ontario border. The answer you may get is that Toronto is an American wannabe.
Back to the ratings. Do they really matter as regional broadcasts have taken over. Has it occured to anyone that hockey fans get their fill watching the local team and if a national broadcast is showing other teams they don't care. I'm a Habs fan. I watch RDS to see the Habs much more often than I watch HNIC.
Hockey I think is healthy in the States. 24 NHL teams, gawd knows how many AHL/ECHL/UHL/SPHL teams plus NCAA, USHL, NAHL, and countless other regional junior leagues and High School leagues.
Seems to me that all we're complaining about is NHL not becoming an event like NFL or NBA. So what, there's more American players in the hockey fold now than ever before. Will hockey ever be to the States what is in Canada.....no but neither will basketball be in Canada what it is in the States. BCS season will not be as important in Canada as WJC and March Madness will not take over Memorial Cup (even Blue Jays were interrupted for Mem Cup) or the World Hockey Championship or Olympic hockey. I've never seen a bar advertise the NBA final (outside of Toronto). Heck I bet BCS or March Madness would pale in numbers if they were against the Grey Cup or the Brier and the Tournament of Hearts for that matter. But so what!
I'll go back to my previous post that NCAA has ownership of future players in other sports.
The average American viewer will not identify with players from Prince George, Swift Current, Sudbury, Val d'Or or Bathurst. As they do with players from Duke, Florida State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, or UCLA. For some reason Euros get a bye in this. Hockey for the most part is seen as foreign game. But yet at the same time support local teams. This I've never understood. But I really don't see hockey as under siege in the States.

Toronto has a much different culture than American cities. If you think they want to be like Americans because they want the best sporting leagues in their backyard you need to read a few books and educate yourself. It's so easy to love Hockey when most of your country's sports landscape is equivalent to a third world country. In fact, I think third world countries are more competitive in global sports than Canada is. It's the truth. I don't think there is one American that would really give a crap about what Canadians are interested in or not (such as you bringing up baseball/basketball/NFL), but there are PLENTY of Canadians that sit around trying to make Hockey bigger than what it is. Kind of pathetic, and it's funny how people like you can sit there with a straight face and be proud of kicking butt in a Niche sport that most of the world couldn't care about.

 

[Chileiceman]

Toronto has a much different culture than American cities. If you think they want to be like Americans because they want the best sporting leagues in their backyard you need to read a few books and educate yourself. It's so easy to love Hockey when most of your country's sports landscape is equivalent to a third world country. In fact, I think third world countries are more competitive in global sports than Canada is. It's the truth. I don't think there is one American that would really give a crap about what Canadians are interested in or not (such as you bringing up baseball/basketball/NFL), but there are PLENTY of Canadians that sit around trying to make Hockey bigger than what it is. Kind of pathetic, and it's funny how people like you can sit there with a straight face and be proud of kicking butt in a Niche sport that most of the world couldn't care about.

Dude, seriously, do you even like hockey? A lot of your posts are just about how unpopular the sport is in America, and that it is only a niche sport and you almost make it sound like it shouldn't be taken seriously. If ones favorite sport is hockey, of course he/she will try to make it sound like it is the greatest sport there is, just like a person whose favorite sport is football or tennis or curling. It just so happens that in Canada most people's favorite sport is hockey, therefore it is given a lot of attention. Or in your words ''making it bigger than it really is". And BTW hockey is played in a lot more countries than american football, and probably about the same amount as baseball.

Your comment about how canadians are proud at kicking butt at a sport that no one else cares about is unfounded and ignorant. Canada doesn't always win in international competitions. In fact for most of the 20th century they always lost to USSR. And to this day there are about 6 countries that always have chances to win. That is more than in basketball.
And it isn't only Canada who celebrates when they win. Czech Republic had a massive welcoming for their team when they won the olympics in 98. Same this year in Sweden. Americans regard their 1980 victory as one of their greatest sporting accomplishments. So when Canadians win they have a right to be proud. Just like everybody else.

 

[OG6ix]

Dude, seriously, do you even like hockey? A lot of your posts are just about how unpopular the sport is in America, and that it is only a niche sport and you almost make it sound like it shouldn't be taken seriously. If ones favorite sport is hockey, of course he/she will try to make it sound like it is the greatest sport there is, just like a person whose favorite sport is football or tennis or curling. It just so happens that in Canada most people's favorite sport is hockey, therefore it is given a lot of attention. Or in your words ''making it bigger than it really is". And BTW hockey is played in a lot more countries than american football, and probably about the same amount as baseball.

Your comment about how canadians are proud at kicking butt at a sport that no one else cares about is unfounded and ignorant. Canada doesn't always win in international competitions. In fact for most of the 20th century they always lost to USSR. And to this day there are about 6 countries that always have chances to win. That is more than in basketball.
And it isn't only Canada who celebrates when they win. Czech Republic had a massive welcoming for their team when they won the olympics in 98. Same this year in Sweden. Americans regard their 1980 victory as one of their greatest sporting accomplishments. So when Canadians win they have a right to be proud. Just like everybody else.

Yes I love hockey, but some people take the sport out of contrast on this board. I have been watching it since I was like 9. I also support the Winter hawks (if you know who they are). Too many people on this message board taking shots at pretty much every other sport except for hockey, yes I understand this is a hockey message board, but take of the Gary Bettman flavored glasses. Also too many shots at Southern Markets, so I post about the other northern markets that are failing miserably. Also there are like 100 registered countries in the IBF and countries like Japan are bigger than a lot of Scandinavian countries when you PUT THEM TOGETHER. I won't even compare the amount of Hockey teams to basketball internationally, there is no comparison. What's the population of the Czech Republic sir? 10 million people or so? Big Whoop!

 

[Chileiceman]

Yes I love hockey, but some people take the sport out of contrast on this board. I have been watching it since I was like 9. I also support the Winter hawks (if you know who they are). Too many people on this message board taking shots at pretty much every other sport except for hockey, yes I understand this is a hockey message board, but take of the Gary Bettman flavored glasses. Also too many shots at Southern Markets, so I post about the other northern markets that are failing miserably. Also there are like 100 registered countries in the IBF and countries like Japan are bigger than a lot of Scandinavian countries when you PUT THEM TOGETHER. I won't even compare the amount of Hockey teams to basketball internationally, there is no comparison. What's the population of the Czech Republic sir? 10 million people or so? Big Whoop!

OK population wise Baseball has more fans, because the countries where it is played the most have more people living in them. But in international competition you can only field one team, no matter how many people. Canada basically has the same amount of viable opponenents as US has in baseball.
The IIHF has like 70 member nations, doesn't mean the sport is popular in all of them, just like I'm sure baseball isn't popular in all of the 100 or so countries that are members of the IBF.
I know basketball is played a lot more worldwide, but the countries that have any sort of a shot at winning the olympics or world championships are few (US, Serbia, Argentina, Australia, Spain, Greece, Croatia, Lithuania). My whole point was that Canadians have a reason and right to celebrate and be proud of their boys when they win a title in hockey.
And , yes I know who the Portland Winterhawks are. In fact I have seen them play in person.