Down 61% Will Bettman conceed "brand" of hocky is poor?

[AntiAquaman]

Remember this Quote last month by Bettman "But as long as the hockey is entertaining and exciting and competitive we're hoping and expecting that fans will tune in and watch great hockey," Your Brand has failed Sir. Admit it!!

 

Quote

Having no Canadian teams in the Stanley Cup playoffs was expected to have an adverse effect on TV ratings, but even people in the industry are taken aback at how viewers north of the 49^th parallel have tuned out this year’s tournament in CBC and Sportsnet.

Through the first five nights of hockey in the playoffs – from last Wednesday (April 13) through Sunday (April 17) – an average of just 513,000 viewers tuned into the 20 NHL playoff games. Compare that to last spring when there were five Canadian teams playing in the first round and an average of 1.306 million viewers tuned into the first 21 first-round games. That’s a drop of 61 percent from last season.

 

“Even with no Canadian teams, those are shockingly low numbers,” said one industry expert. “There were regular season games on TSN two years ago that did better than that.”

Attempts by thn.com to reach Scott Moore, president of Sportsnet and NHL properties for Rogers, were not successful.

 

It’s a shame because Canadians who have not tuned in have missed out on some pretty entertaining hockey. But when there is no rooting interest, the numbers are bound to suffer. Much of that, said one insider, is due to the fact that the life had been sucked out of the Canadian teams pretty much since the all-star break when it became clear that no Canadian teams would make the playoffs this season. That diminished interest early and since there were no Canadian teams that were even battling for a playoff spot down the wire, fans of those teams have tuned out and, apparently, remained tuned out.

Of course it doesn’t help that the biggest ratings driver in the country was basically out of the playoffs when it won just one of its first 10 games back in October. From that time, the only race the Toronto Maple Leafs were involved in was the one for 30^th place, which is exactly where they finished.

 

The question now is, can the ratings improve over the course of the rest of the playoffs? Typically, interest in the playoffs diminishes after the first round, but there are some compelling possibilities. The Washington Capitals are serving notice that they mean business in this post-season and they are a compelling story. And if the Pittsburgh Penguins can get past the New York Rangers in the first round, it sets up another Alex Ovechkin–Sidney Crosby matchup in the second round, which is bound to draw in more than just the hard-core hockey fans. In the west, the St. Louis Blues are giving the defending Stanley Cup champions all they can handle and the San Jose Sharks- Los Angeles Kings matchup is proving to be the heavyweight battle that was predicted.

 

Each game costs about $100,000 to produce and thus far, Hockey Night in Canada has had broadcast crews on hand for four series – Los Angeles vs. San Jose, Detroit vs. Tampa Bay, Pittsburgh vs. the Rangers and Washington vs. Philadelphia. One source close to the situation said that if the Capitals close out the Flyers in four games on Wednesday night, perhaps the crew working that series would move to the series between the New York Islanders and Florida Panthers.

 

In terms of the bigger picture, what does it mean when just one in every 69 Canadians is regularly tuning into NHL games at the most crucial time of the year? Even with no Canadian teams, that’s a low number. Perhaps people in Canada are more fans of Canadian teams than they are of the game itself. One thing is certain, broadcasters are missing out big-time on the casual hockey fan, the one who tunes in during the playoffs because he/she has a rooting interest, and that is showing up loud and clear in the ratings numbers.

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/sports/nhl/playoff-tv-ratings-down-a-%e2%80%98shocking%e2%80%99-61-percent-in-canada/ar-BBrYJFN?ocid=spartanntp

 

as of 1820 MST link not available at MSN anymore(Bettman?) here is the Hockey News link to article.

http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/playoff-tv-ratings-down-a-shocking-61-percent-in-canada/

[aGENT]

No Canadian teams in the playoffs and people are shocked/spinnning this...

[Spotted Zebra]

10 minutes ago, J.R. said:

No Canadian teams in the playoffs and people are shocked/spinnning this...

What a shame. The hockey is the best it's been in years. People who only watch for Canadian teams are missing out

[Down by the River]

How much of this is related to new options for watching games? I cancelled cable half a year ago. I use gamcenter (now NHLtv) and CBC streaming to watch all games.

[aGENT]

Just now, Spotted Zebra said:

What a shame. The hockey is the best it's been in years. People who only watch for Canadian teams are missing out

I don't disagree but let's face it, that 61% probably largely accounts for 'casual' viewers. The hardcore hockey fans who are still religiously on their team's forum after they're long out of the playoffs are likely largely the other 39%.

[Blue Jay 22]

Bettman could care less. The only ones hurting by this are NBC, USA, and the other networks.

 

Maybe if TSN didn't crap the bed and bend over to SportsNet in 2014, they would have more viewers in the East Coast.

 

Also, I'm pretty sure Edmonton, Toronto, and Ottawa being perennial losers is not Bettman's fault. Nor did Bettman order a hit on Carey Price, knocking the Habs out or have the Sedins magically age their bodies 5 years in a span of 1.

 

There is some good Canadian boys that are worth to watch. Toews, Crosby, Thornton, Getzlaf, Perry, Keith, Giroux, Benn, Seguin, Weber, Doughty....and that's not even considering the skilled Euro's and Americans.

[Spotted Zebra]

Just now, Blue Jay 22 said:

Bettman could care less. The only ones hurting by this are NBC, USA, and the other networks.

 

Maybe if TSN didn't crap the bed and bend over to SportsNet in 2014, they would have more viewers in the East Coast.

 

Also, I'm pretty sure Edmonton, Toronto, and Ottawa being perennial losers is not Bettman's fault. Nor did Bettman order a hit on Carey Price, knocking the Habs out or have the Sedins magically age their bodies 5 years in a span of 1.

 

There is some good Canadian boys that are worth to watch. Toews, Crosby, Thornton, Getzlaf, Perry, Keith, Giroux, Benn, Seguin, Weber, Doughty....and that's not even considering the skilled Euro's and Americans.

I agree with this, TSN had the best production value I've seen for hockey. It sucks that they lost the rights to even the draft, I would never watch sportsnet back in the day, unless Taylor was doing the 10pm show

[Ghostsof1915]

4 minutes ago, J.R. said:

I don't disagree but let's face it, that 61% probably largely accounts for 'casual' viewers. The hardcore hockey fans who are still religiously on their team's forum after they're long out of the playoffs are likely largely the other 39%.

Some series like SJ/LA is good. I can't say Dallas/Minny is entertaining.

[GLASSJAW]

HATER ALERT

 

Can't stand the NHL lately. I feel like it has gone from being an entertaining sport to being a spectacle aimed at the lowest common denominator. I felt legitimately self-conscious and embarrassed during the last years playoffs when that Flames announcer was gurgling out the Flames roster through his cancerous throat, with actual fire bursting out of various holes in the arena. It was like a f-cking monster truck rally -- only with more white trash in attendance

 

It's bizarre how almost every stadium has the same audio queues and fan involvement solicitations. The hockey "culture" is depressingly kitschy.

 

Canucks are not entertaining.

 

Canadian broadcasting relies heavily on the same old lame-brained analysts who treat guesswork like a science, and "human interest" stories that drip of sentimental nationalism to pad a 3 hour broadcast.

 

I'd rather just watch a movie.

[Blue Jay 22]

5 minutes ago, GLASSJAW said:

HATER ALERT

 

Can't stand the NHL lately. I feel like it has gone from being an entertaining sport to being a spectacle aimed at the lowest common denominator. I felt legitimately self-conscious and embarrassed during the last years playoffs when that Flames announcer was gurgling out the Flames roster through his cancerous throat, with actual fire bursting out of various holes in the arena. It was like a f-cking monster truck rally -- only with more white trash in attendance

 

It's bizarre how almost every stadium has the same audio queues and fan involvement solicitations. The hockey "culture" is depressingly kitschy.

 

Canucks are not entertaining.

 

Canadian broadcasting relies heavily on the same old lame-brained analysts who treat guesswork like a science, and "human interest" stories that drip of sentimental nationalism to pad a 3 hour broadcast.

 

I'd rather just watch a movie.

So what is your solution?

[Nuxfanabroad]

"Could care less", is an expression that kills me. Doesn't make sense, & sounds bloody-well backwards.

 

If a person doesn't feel one iota of concern, why is "could" not expressed in the negative? To say one 'couldn't care less', implies their personal concern is at the absolute MINIMUM!

 

& yes the game sucks today. The NHL's a rigged farce. Proudly I declare they have not extracted a plugged nickel from my pocket, in the 21st C. F*ck'em. My private boycott will roll on, & Bettman blows(corrupt little lawyer with Napolean-complex).

 

Love ice hockey(& the Canucks)..& personally see what happened to this league as a damn shame.

 

/end rant.

[Down by the River]

The quality of hockey has been phenomenal, the problem is that the quality is surrounded by people that I don't want to listen to. Bob Cole is the only guy I like, and most people hate him. 

 

Romanauk spends the entire broadcast trying to get Mike Johnson to answer questions for him. Glen Healy is pompous, I can't even recall whether Hughson is doing the playoffs because he has completely mailed it in. Guy is a shell of his former self. Then you get the local broadcasts for some games like FLA/NYI and it is just brutal to listen to. 

 

On top of that, your intermissions are filled with Strombo making me feel uncomfortable and Friedman fidgeting nervously now that a bunch of his emails were leaked. When the panel is not talking, profiles of players are given to try and pump some Canadiana into the playoffs. 

 

Chris Cuthbert and Ray Ferraro are the best duo in the game and they've been relegated to CFL and radio, respectively. 

[GLASSJAW]

6 minutes ago, Blue Jay 22 said:

So what is your solution?

Who knows, I'm a whiner not a helper.

 

But I will say that I don't know a single person (outside of CDC) who followed the NHL this year. Is that a Canucks problem? Maybe, but I just think that for a lot of people the product becomes boring when it's bogged down with sentimentality and fireworks.

 

Idk if there's a solution, but maybe it's just like other cyclical forms and genres of entertainment where people get invested, then lose interest, then get re-invested.

 

Does anybody know if the regular season viewer numbers were down this year?

[Ghostsof1915]

4 minutes ago, Blue Jay 22 said:

Bettman could care less. The only ones hurting by this are NBC, USA, and the other networks.

 

Maybe if TSN didn't crap the bed and bend over to SportsNet in 2014, they would have more viewers in the East Coast.

 

Also, I'm pretty sure Edmonton, Toronto, and Ottawa being perennial losers is not Bettman's fault. Nor did Bettman order a hit on Carey Price, knocking the Habs out or have the Sedins magically age their bodies 5 years in a span of 1.

 

There is some good Canadian boys that are worth to watch. Toews, Crosby, Thornton, Getzlaf, Perry, Keith, Giroux, Benn, Seguin, Weber, Doughty....and that's not even considering the skilled Euro's and Americans.

12 years and $433.33 million per, $150 million over 2 years, and $5.2 billion is not TSN crapping the bed. That's Rogers hoping a lot of other profitable media like Internet, mobile, and print media gives them leverage and maximizes value. Given that NBC got 10 years and $2 billion shows Rogers took a massive gamble and probably vastly overpaid to "stick it" to TSN and Bellmedia. I bet TSN was looking at similar deal and got blindsided. Rogers better hope Canadian teams get in the playoffs next year.

[Nuxfanabroad]

15 minutes ago, GLASSJAW said:

HATER ALERT

 

Can't stand the NHL lately. I feel like it has gone from being an entertaining sport to being a spectacle aimed at the lowest common denominator. I felt legitimately self-conscious and embarrassed during the last years playoffs when that Flames announcer was gurgling out the Flames roster through his cancerous throat, with actual fire bursting out of various holes in the arena. It was like a f-cking monster truck rally -- only with more white trash in attendance

 

It's bizarre how almost every stadium has the same audio queues and fan involvement solicitations. The hockey "culture" is depressingly kitschy.

 

Canucks are not entertaining.

 

Canadian broadcasting relies heavily on the same old lame-brained analysts who treat guesswork like a science, and "human interest" stories that drip of sentimental nationalism to pad a 3 hour broadcast.

 

I'd rather just watch a movie.

Great post.

[19Nazzy91]

37 minutes ago, AntiAquaman said:

Remember this Quote last month by Bettman "But as long as the hockey is entertaining and exciting and competitive we're hoping and expecting that fans will tune in and watch great hockey," Your Brand has failed Sir. Admit it!!

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/sports/nhl/playoff-tv-ratings-down-a-%e2%80%98shocking%e2%80%99-61-percent-in-canada/ar-BBrYJFN?ocid=spartanntp

Bettman is horrible at what he does, but it isn't really his fault the Canadian teams are all out of the playoffs.

And please... the title of this post is driving me crazy... it's spelled "hockey" not "hocky"

[peaches5]

People are blaming play by play for the lack of viewers? The NFL has TERRIBLE play by play guys. Nobody likes them but do they have problems getting viewers? Nope. Swing and a miss.

[WHL rocks]

19 minutes ago, Ghostsof1915 said:

Some series like SJ/LA is good. I can't say Dallas/Minny is entertaining.

Really? I thought DAL/MIN game was very entertaining yesterday. It was a great game. 

[Guest]

I don't really get the "At least it's Canadian team" thing. Once the Canucks are out, I don't really care who wins besides our rivals.

 

I'd never cheer Calgary on over Nashville for example 

[DIBdaQUIB]

25 minutes ago, Spotted Zebra said:

What a shame. The hockey is the best it's been in years. People who only watch for Canadian teams are missing out

You must not have been around in the 70s to watch the end to end "entertainment" hockey used to provide.  The modern product is a result of bigger, faster and much better coached players crammed onto a playing surface too small for their abilities. 

Modern hockey resembles rugby on skates with some teams basing their entire systems on playing along the boards and in the corners.

With the modern practise of having everyone get in the shooting lanes and having two players play in the crease with the goalies to block shots (a result largely of huge gear that protects players from shots), the sport might be more aptly called "Blockey".   The way teams now clog up the are in front of the net, the new strategy is to shoot form the sides and back in an attempt to bounce the puck in off a skate or player...how thrilling. 

 

Having said that, I have been watching because I am a  hockey fan and can't help myself but the product you think is so high quality  is sadly lacking compared to the good old days when Gretzky, LaFleur etc. strutted their stuff.  Gretzky would be lucky to get 5 shots per game let alone 5 points if he played now and likely, some A-hole would hit him from behind into the boards or break his wrist with a slash before the first series was done.

 

I may be dating myself but I miss the old days where entertainment was provided by fast, exciting offensive action and where goals were scored at a much higher pace. We had the opportunity to celebrate frequently for both chances and goals.  Now a days, a shot on net is worthy of jumping up and fist pumping. 

 

As another poster stated...lowest common denominator management in the interest of parity and appealing to a US market that only attracts fans if the team is winning and often not even then.

 

I wonder what the USA viewing numbers would be like if there were no American teams in the playoffs?  My guess is down 85%.