FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, June 11th, 2015

DAY 58 – LIGHTNING-BLACKHAWKS STANLEY CUP FINAL IS SECOND-MOST WATCHED FINAL THROUGH FOUR GAMES IN 18 YEARS

2015 Stanley Cup Final Averaging 4.965 Viewers Through Four Games

Game 4 Averages 3.914 Million Viewers; Third-Most Watched Stanley Cup Final Game Ever on NBCSN

Tampa Posts Best Rating Ever (13.9) on NBCSN for Lightning Game; Chicago Delivers 22.2 Rating

Game 5 – Saturday at 8 p.m. ET on NBC – Series Tied 2-2 Following Chicago’s 2-1 Victory in Game 4 Last Night on NBCSN

First Time Since 1968 First Four Games Decided by One Goal; No Team Has Held Multi-Goal Lead in Series

STAMFORD, Conn. – June 11, 2015 – The 2015 Stanley Cup Final, featuring the Tampa Bay Lightning and Chicago Blackhawks, has averaged 4.965 million viewers on NBC/NBCSN, making it the second-most watched Stanley Cup Final through four games in 18 years, trailing only the Blackhawks-Bruins series in 2013 (5.341 million viewers). In addition, last night’s Game 4 produced the most-watched Stanley Cup Final quarter-hour ever on NBCSN (5.489 million, 10:30-10:45 p.m. ET). Over four games, this year’s Final has produced a 2.91 HH rating.

Following are the Top 5 markets through the first four games of 2015 Stanley Cup Final:

 

Rank Market HH Rating
1 Chicago 24.1
2 Tampa 15.0
3 Buffalo 6.3
4 Boston 4.8
5 Minneapolis-St. Paul 4.5
5 Ft. Myers 4.5

 

Locally, Chicago’s average rating of 24.1 through four games is up 18% vs. its four-game average rating for the 2013 Stanley Cup Final (20.5), when the Blackhawks faced the Bruins. Game 1 produced the highest rating ever in Tampa for a Lightning game on NBC (17.9), while last night’s Game 4 set the record for highest rating in the market for a Lightning game on NBCSN (13.9).

 

GAME 4 VIEWERSHIP
Last night’s presentation of Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final on NBCSN (8:03-10:56 p.m. ET), in which the Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-1, to tie the series at two games apiece, produced a 2.23 HH rating and averaged 3.914 million viewers, replacing Game 3 of the series as the third-most watched Stanley Cup Final game ever on NBCSN. Viewership of last night’s game was up 16% vs. last year’s Game 4 matchup on NBCSN between the Rangers and Kings (3.383 million), which was a potential series-clincher.

Viewership of Game 4 peaked at almost 5.5 million during the 10:30-10:45 ET quarter-hour, which now ranks as the most-watched Stanley Cup Final quarter-hour ever on NBCSN. From 8-11 p.m. ET, NBCSN ranked as the top network on television among A18-49, outperforming all broadcast and cable competition.

Locally, Tampa produced a 13.9 rating, its best ever for a Lightning game on NBCSN. Chicago delivered a 22.2 rating, up 38% from the average rating in Chicago during the 2013 Stanley Cup Final, featuring the Blackhawks and Bruins, on NBCSN (16.1). NBCSN was the top network overall in Tampa and Chicago during the game.
Following are the Top 5 markets from last night’s Stanley Cup Final Game 4 on NBCSN:

Rank Market HH Rating
1 Chicago 22.2
2 Tampa 13.9
3 Buffalo 5.3
4 Providence 3.9
5 Boston 3.7

 

 

LIGHTNING HOST BLACKHAWKS IN PIVOTAL GAME 5 SATURDAY NIGHT IN PRIMETIME ON NBC
NBC presents a pivotal Stanley Cup Final Game 5 in primetime this Saturday night, when Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning host Jonathan Toews and the Chicago Blackhawks at 8 p.m. ET, as the series shifts to Tampa tied 2-2. Saturday night’s pre-game coverage will begin at 6:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN with a 90-minute edition of NHL Live.

The Blackhawks evened the series last night with a 2-1 win in Chicago, as Brandon Saad scored the eventual game-winner early in the third period, and Corey Crawford made 24 saves in net. Click here for notes and quotes from last night’s Game 4 coverage. Chicago’s Game 4 victory guarantees a Game 6 showdown at United Center on Monday night on NBC.

This year’s series between the Blackhawks and Lightning has been one of the most tightly-contested Stanley Cup Finals in NHL history. The first four games of this year’s Final have been decided by one goal, the first time this has occurred in nearly 50 years (Montreal vs. St. Louis; 1968). In addition, neither team has led by more than one goal at any point in the series.

Three-time Emmy Award-winning play-by-play commentator and Sports Illustrated 2014 Media Person of the Year Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick, U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame member and analyst Eddie Olczyk, and Emmy Award-winning Inside-the-Glass analyst Pierre McGuire will call Saturday night’s Game 5 from Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla.

Host Liam McHugh will anchor NHL Live from inside the arena, alongside analysts and former players Mike Milbury and Keith Jones. Dave Briggs will host coverage from a set outside the arena alongside analysts and former players Jeremy Roenick and Anson Carter. In addition, analyst and former goaltender Brian Boucher and NHL insiders Bob McKenzie and Darren Dreger will join NBC Sports Group’s pre- and post-game studio coverage throughout the Final.

NOTES & QUOTES – LIGHTNING-BLACKHAWKS GAME 4 ON NBCSN

Following are excerpts of notes and quotes from last night’s Game 4 matchup on NBCSN.

Olczyk on Lightning’s late push: “The Lightning had nine attempts towards Corey Crawford in 80 seconds…some A++ chances at the end of the game, and Crawford stood tall…he made a couple of incredible saves late to make this a best-of-three for his team.”

Milbury on Game 4: “It was a heavyweight battle. I thought Tampa played better for most of the night. But because Chicago has been here before, they can find ways to win.”

Jones on the Lightning: “You look at Tampa, and you come away impressed. If you’re a Blackhawks fan, you’re nervous. I thought this Tampa Bay Lightning team was coming to the Stanley Cup Final to gain experience. That’s not the case. This is a great team. This is a team that has skating legs, that has jump, that has cohesiveness, that gave the Blackhawks everything they could handle. I came into this game thinking the Blackhawks would win. They did, but it wasn’t the way I thought they would win this game.”

 

Following is the television schedule for the 2015 Stanley Cup Final, all times Eastern and subject to change.

 

DATE GAME NETWORK TIME COMMENTATORS
Sat., June 13 Game 5 – Chicago at Tampa Bay NBC 8 p.m. Mike “Doc” Emrick,
Eddie Olczyk,
Pierre McGuire
Mon., June 15 Game 6 – Tampa Bay at Chicago NBC 8 p.m. Mike “Doc” Emrick,
Eddie Olczyk,
Pierre McGuire
Wed., June 17 Game 7 – Chicago at Tampa Bay* NBC 8 p.m. Mike “Doc” Emrick,
Eddie Olczyk,
Pierre McGuire

*if necessary

 

GAMES TELEVISED SO FAR

For the fourth consecutive year, NBC, NBCSN, USA Network, CNBC and NHL Network are combining to televise every Stanley Cup Playoff game nationally.

 

Network Games
NBC 15
NBCSN 53
USA Network 8
CNBC 10
NHL-N 1
Total 87

 

One-goal Games: 47

OT games: 19

 


COMPREHENSIVE LOCAL COVERAGE

Comprehensive coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs will be provided daily via NBC Sports Regional Networks, available in more than 50 million U.S. households. Comcast SportsNet Chicago will provide the hometown fans of the Chicago Blackhawks with comprehensive coverage throughout their Stanley Cup Playoff run, including pre- and post-game shows and extensive on-line coverage via Comcast SportsNet’s team of NHL Insiders.


NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA
COVERAGE

NBC Sports Live Extra – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets – will stream comprehensive coverage of the Stanley Cup Final via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value to for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms. The NBC Sports Live Extra app is available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play and Windows Store.

For more information about NBC Sports Group shows and properties, including press releases, photos, talent and executive bios and headshots, please visit NBCSportsGroupPressBox.com.

–NBC SPORTS GROUP–