The NHL took a risk when it decided to play six outdoor games this season. There was every chance that they could dilute the product and make people sick of them. However, the NHL's Stadium Series — following the Winter Classic — has gotten off to a pretty rollicking start.
The New York Rangers 7-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils at Yankee Stadium on Sunday drew 2.1 million viewers. Outside of the various Winter Classics, it was the most watched NHL regular season game ever on NBC. The game drew a 5.1 rating in the New York market, tying for the highest-rated NHL game ever in the market on NBC (tying with Game 1 of the 2012 Stanley Cup Final).
Completing the top five markets were Buffalo, Boston, Detroit and Providence.
Meanwhile, out in Los Angeles, the NHL tried its first American outdoor game west of the Mississippi between the Kings and the Anaheim Ducks at Dodger Stadium. The Ducks' 3-0 shutout win over their freeway rivals drew 622,000 viewers on NBCSN. While not lighting the world on fire, the game was the most-watched regular season tilt ever from California on NBCSN, VERSUS or OLN. Especially considering the game took place on a Saturday night at 10 p.m. ET for such a heavily east coast league.
In Los Angeles, the game drew a 2.3 rating, making it the highest-rated regular season game ever in Hollywood. Buffalo, Phoenix, Chicago and Pittsburgh rounded out the top five local markets.
NBCSN will air two more outdoor games (Rangers-Islanders at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday, Senators-Canucks at BC Place on March 2) and NBC will broadcast one additional outdoor tilt (Penguins-Blackhawks on March 1). There's no reason to think those games won't perform well too. The NHL continues to find ways to do event programming more frequently.
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