Last night the coolest trophy in all of pro sports was awarded on national television, and in the process Lord Stanley’s Cup achieved two noteworthy milestones: The Chicago Blackhawks won their first Stanley Cup since 1961 and television viewers actually seemed interested in watching someone win the Stanley Cup for the first time in thirty-six years.
It’s no secret that the NHL struggles in television ratings. Even the Stanely Cup Finals never seem to get the viewership they deserve. But this year, that changed. Note to the NBA: You don’t have to have the same two big-market teams in the finals every year in order to get people to watch. There’s more to sports than LA, Boston, and New York.
Last night’s series-ending game 6 between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Philadelphia Flyers earned a 5.8/10 rating, the best rating for any Stanley Cup match in more than 36 years. Yep, that’s even more than the NHL’s poster child Sidney Crosby managed to earn last year. In fact last night’s final was up 41% from last year’s final between the Detroit Redwings and Crosby’s heavily marketed Pittsburgh Penguins.
Look out world, the NHL is cool again. We want the Cup.
