Olympic Gold Medal GDT: Canada vs. USA

timber09 said:
The top local TV markets include Buffalo, where the game drew 32.6%; and Pittsburgh, where it drew 31.9%.
Click to expand...

Interesting, are these that strong of hockey markets or was it "star" power that drew in the fans? I have to think it's star power because both of these cities have flirted with the "we might be moving if..." in the last decade if I recall correctly.

Kevin
 
I think the proof is right there that a hard hitting, tight checking game is both very exciting and what fans want to watch.

IF you tuned into a game every night and saw players playing that hard and hitting and checking like that, playing like your life depended on it, hockey would be the #3 sport, light years in front of the NBA.
 
kmitchel said:
Interesting, are these that strong of hockey markets or was it "star" power that drew in the fans? I have to think it's star power because both of these cities have flirted with the "we might be moving if..." in the last decade if I recall correctly.

Kevin
Click to expand...

5 words for you:

Sidney Crosby vs. Ryan Miller.
 
Here's some perspective for you guys:

IF the "70%" number is correct for Canada, that equals 24.5 million people. That link above says 27.6 million Americans watched the game... more Americans watched than Canadians... unreal.

This event will be built upon by the US national team and hopefully US networks get on board with showing more games! Very interesting outcome.
 
meatmancgy said:
Here's some perspective for you guys:

IF the "70%" number is correct for Canada, that equals 24.5 million people. That link above says 27.6 million Americans watched the game... more Americans watched than Canadians... unreal.

This event will be built upon by the US national team and hopefully US networks get on board with showing more games! Very interesting outcome.
Click to expand...


Bruce,

The numbers were between 70/80% for Canada.
The first numbers I have heard for Canada were in the 29.5M people watched the game. Of course the population of Canada probably swelled by 1 Million for the Olympics alone! None-the-less, the US viewership is just astounding - no one could have imagined these kind of numbers.

While there is no way to even approach those US viewership numbers for NHL hockey in the US - it still does bode well. I think that they should consider upping the visability of a few of the Sunday games especially Chicago/Detroit next Sunday.

I would also like to address the issue of the perception that this was an NHL game with close checking and physical play. To me the game was much more flowing than an NHL game - I was under the impression that the rink used in Vancouver was not quite as big as the normal Olympic Rink - but bigger than an NHL rink - anyone know the dimensions???
I know it is impossible to redo the NHL rinks, but they should think about for the newer rinks being built. The extra room just really frees up the game. Please I understand the purists - but we are talking about ways to grow the game. The larger surface really shows off player skills instead of pinching defensive systems.
 
suitman19 said:
I would also like to address the issue of the perception that this was an NHL game with close checking and physical play. To me the game was much more flowing than an NHL game - I was under the impression that the rink used in Vancouver was not quite as big as the normal Olympic Rink - but bigger than an NHL rink - anyone know the dimensions???
Click to expand...

They did not do anything with the dimensions of the playing surface. It is a standard NHL rink (200 x 85). The second rink at UBC is a standard international surface (200 x 98.4).
 
kmitchel said:
Interesting, are these that strong of hockey markets or was it "star" power that drew in the fans? I have to think it's star power because both of these cities have flirted with the "we might be moving if..." in the last decade if I recall correctly.

Kevin
Click to expand...

Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Detroit all usually bring in HUGE ratings for hockey games. Those numbers don't look that far off from what they would typically get for a playoff game if their team was in it. I've seen ratings numbers that high before for local markets.
 
TanguayFan said:
5 words for you:

Sidney Crosby vs. Ryan Miller.
Click to expand...

I agree - but look at #5, Milwaukee - that just stands out like a sore thumb. So do a few others.

It's an interesting way to look at the market share.

Kevin

Top 25 Metered Markets for USA-Canada Olympic Gold Medal Hockey Game:

1. Buffalo, 32.6/51
2. Pittsburgh, 31.9/50
3. Detroit, 26.9/47
4. Minneapolis, 26.4/53
5. Milwaukee, 24.5/43
6. Boston, 24.1/46
7. Chicago, 23.5/41
8. Columbus, 22.3/37
9. Denver, 22.2/42
10. Philadelphia, 20.9/35

11. West Palm Beach, 20.3/33
12. Kansas City, 19.5/35
13. St. Louis, 19.4/39
14. Seattle, 19.3/45
15. Cincinnati, 19.2/31
16. New York, 19.0/36
17. Hartford, 18.5/30
18. Providence, 18.4/34
T19. Salt Lake City, 18.3/38
T19. Cleveland, 18.3/32

T21. Washington, D.C., 18.1/33
T21. Baltimore, 18.1/32
23. Ft. Myers, 18.0/34
T24. Austin, 17.1/34
T24. Indianapolis, 17.1/29
 
GrimUSMC said:
I think the proof is right there that a hard hitting, tight checking game is both very exciting and what fans want to watch.

IF you tuned into a game every night and saw players playing that hard and hitting and checking like that, playing like your life depended on it, hockey would be the #3 sport, light years in front of the NBA.
Click to expand...

True, but I dont think casual fans turned the game on to watch tight play and hard hitting. They turned it on because it was the momentous culmination of the Olympics.

These numbers do not mean fans want this type of game, simply that they watched it. That being said, it was a perfect game for the entire country to tune to.

Like I said like 3 times in this thread alone, hockey registrations across the board will rise significantly in the US. I am half expecting ratings to be higher for the rest of this year (and playoffs) than in the last decade. Sure maybe its partly wishful thinking, but I dont think so.

Personally, I was always a football, baseball person. But I got sick of the endzone dance charades (like in basketball) and the steroids in baseball. Hockey is the greatest pure sport in the world today, it is simply awesome that so many people saw that game.
 
from tsn.ca

OH CANADA! 80 PERCENT OF CANADIANS WATCH GOLD MEDAL GAME

It was an epic game that delivered an epic audience.

Sunday's gold medal Men's Hockey game has become the most-watched television broadcast ever in Canadian history, with an average audience of 16.6 million viewers.

Nearly half of the Canadian population watched the entire game on average, while 80 percent of Canadians watched some part of the game (26.5 million). The game aired live on nine television networks in eight languages via Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium.

"Crosby scores! Sidney Crosby! The golden goal! And Canada has once-in-a-lifetime Olympic gold!," called play-by-play announcer Chris Cuthbert as Canada clinched its record-breaking 14th gold medal. "These Golden Games have their crowning moment."

Additionally, the 2010 Winter Games Closing Ceremony becomes the second most-watched broadcast ever, as 14.3 million viewers said goodbye to Vancouver 2010. A total of 24.5 million watched some part of the broadcast.
 
For the NHL to truly improve on the ratings numbers in the States and capitalize on the Olympics, something MUST be done about the TV contract.

Versus carrying NHL games is tragic, because casual American fans wont watch the games if they either can't get the games on TV or have to look too hard to find them. To increase the NHL's exposure, they're going to have to bite the bullet and pony up whatever ESPN/ABC wants for the next TV contract. Otherwise, a big hole will be popped in their balloon and all this momentum will just fizzle out.

True, ratings will likely improve for the rest of the season on NBC (and maybe Versus), but the only way to get Americans to really take the NHL on TV seriously is for ESPN to show games in HD 3-4 nights a week.
 
timber09 said:
Here is a quick blurb on it as well from USA Today...

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/hiestand-tv/2010-03-01-vancouver-olympics-ratings-nbc_N.htm

NBC's U.S.-Canada Olympic hockey overtime title game Sunday drew an 17.6 overnight rating, which translates to 17.6% of TV households in 56 U.S. urban TV markets. The overnight rating peaked at 21.6% from 5:30-6:00 pm ET.
The top local TV markets include Buffalo, where the game drew 32.6%; and Pittsburgh, where it drew 31.9%.

The 17.6 overnight was higher than the overnights of all but two of the NFL's regular-season games last season and all college football games except the Texas-Alabama BCS title game.
Click to expand...

Puckrakers is reporting that Columbus was 8th best in American markets at 22.3.
Columbus 22.3 Share - Second item from the bottom
 
For those interested I did some searching and found this list of the top 25 cities for the US vs. Canada Gold Medal Game:

Top 25 Metered Markets for USA-Canada Olympic Gold Medal Hockey Game:

1. Buffalo, 32.6/51

2. Pittsburgh, 31.9/50

3. Detroit, 26.9/47

4. Minneapolis, 26.4/53

5. Milwaukee, 24.5/43

6. Boston, 24.1/46

7. Chicago, 23.5/41

8. Columbus, 22.3/37

9. Denver, 22.2/42

10. Philadelphia, 20.9/35

11. West Palm Beach, 20.3/33

12. Kansas City, 19.5/35

13. St. Louis, 19.4/39

14. Seattle, 19.3/45

15. Cincinnati, 19.2/31

16. New York, 19.0/36

17. Hartford, 18.5/30

18. Providence, 18.4/34

T19. Salt Lake City, 18.3/38

T19. Cleveland, 18.3/32

T21. Washington, D.C., 18.1/33

T21. Baltimore, 18.1/32

23. Ft. Myers, 18.0/34

T24. Austin, 17.1/34

T24. Indianapolis, 17.1/29
 
Metrags said:
True, but I dont think casual fans turned the game on to watch tight play and hard hitting. They turned it on because it was the momentous culmination of the Olympics.

These numbers do not mean fans want this type of game, simply that they watched it. That being said, it was a perfect game for the entire country to tune to.

Like I said like 3 times in this thread alone, hockey registrations across the board will rise significantly in the US. I am half expecting ratings to be higher for the rest of this year (and playoffs) than in the last decade. Sure maybe its partly wishful thinking, but I dont think so.

Personally, I was always a football, baseball person. But I got sick of the endzone dance charades (like in basketball) and the steroids in baseball. Hockey is the greatest pure sport in the world today, it is simply awesome that so many people saw that game.
Click to expand...

I agree with you in saying the numbers showed people watched. BUT the amazing news and sports coverage, and what was said about the game, shows that people agree with you and me. This was a GREAT game. Problem is this is not what the NHL puts on the ice. When the NHL takes steps to replicate this product, I would be all for it.

Now the TV contract, thats another mess in and off itself. The sooner they put this on ESPN and get rid of Versus, the better off they will be.
 

Latest posts

Forum statistics

Threads
390,147
Messages
2,238,869
Members
4,169
Latest member
Misso
Back
Top