Red Wings TV ratings start off sour
According to Tony Gallagher of The Province, TV ratings have been down across the NHL in all markets but Pittsburgh and Chicago.
Detroit was another sore spot. Traditionally one of the strongest hockey markets for obvious reasons, the Wings got hammered early this season.
Obviously some of the downturn can be attributed to the success of another Mike Ilitch-owned franchise, the Tigers, who made the World Series, and the Wings haven’t been as entertaining in the regular season as they were under previous coach Dave Lewis.
But even considering last season’s first-round playoff ouster, this was a massacre, the numbers down almost 50 per cent over last year’s figures. And last year’s figures were a far cry from when the sport was going strongest in 2001.
I just wonder how the league is going to try to get the NHL TV ratings up, which will be much harder considering ESPN refuses to carry any NHL advertisements.
Personally, I know I haven’t been able to watch as many games as last season because of my schedule, but then I haven’t watched as much NFL either. Last year, I watched every single Lions’ game plus another NFL game on Sunday or Monday. This year, I’ve watched three games total. In both cases, my reduction in viewing the games has nothing to do with the quality of the team- I just don’t have time. Hopefully, my workload next semester won’t be quite so heavy and there will be more Red Wings hockey for me!
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