The Stanley Cup finals series that ended with the Vegas Golden Knights' triumph over the Florida Panthers had a significant decline in viewership by 43%, which is the lowest in at least three decades.
The National Hockey League (NHL) has seen a decline in viewership for its most anticipated event, the Stanley Cup finals, as this year's series concluded. According to reports, there was a 43% decrease compared to last year's edition. The average audience per finals game was down by 10% year-on-year and reached only 1.23 million viewers.
The decider saw a drop of 47% compared to last season's equivalent game. The first three rounds of Stanley Cup play-offs achieved an all-time high for average viewership at 1.14 million. However, this couldn't save the final series from being one of the NHL's second-least watched in at least thirty years.
One reason behind these low numbers could be attributed to both teams coming from smaller markets than traditional hockey cities like New York or Toronto. On top of that, the series aired entirely on pay TV for the first time since 1994.
The competition between the Golden Knights and Panthers didn't create much hype when it began, as both teams represent smaller markets than usual contenders such as the Boston Bruins or Chicago Blackhawks. However, they did manage to fuel some excitement after reaching their respective positions throughout the play-offs.
Despite having lower ratings than expected throughout this year’s Stanley Cup finals games - all five were broadcasted by TNT and TruTV - NHL will hope that next season brings a surge back into its fan following.
With new initiatives lined up, such as ESPN and NHL Network jointly covering the next draft, there should be more interest among fans, who have missed out during the recent pandemic-affected times.
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