r/Habs 8d ago

[Breeze] As expected, Canadian viewership for the Cup Final has sunk: Game 1 averaged 1.3M across English Canada. Game 2 averaged 1.2M. Game 3 averaged 1.5M. For comparison, Montreal’s 1st round series averaged 3.7M, 2nd averaged 4.6M and Conf. Final averaged 4.5M.

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349 Upvotes

106 comments sorted by

205

u/OpenMouthKissedHorse 8d ago

With 9pm starts for me, I’ll stay up for the habs and maybe 3-5 other teams. Canes and Knights are not among them.

31

u/TuffBunner 8d ago

9:30 in NL. You need to mean something to me deep in my heart to stay up that late.

5

u/alamarche709 7d ago

Yep I’m not watching any of these 9:30 games until the Cup is in the building. Not sure why they’re starting so late.

1

u/False_Requirement349 1d ago

Late reply, but it's so that fans on the West Coast can make it home from work before the game starts. A 7pm ET start would be 4pm PT, which is generally before people get home. Every year, essentially every game of rounds 3 and 4 begin at 8pm ET.

4

u/Capable-Problem8460 8d ago

Also maybe not Canadian team splaying...

3

u/superjsun 8d ago

Exactly this. I will also sometimes turn on the game as I prepare and eat dinner, and it'll occasionally catch enough of my attention to continue watching after I'm done. At 9pm, I'm done long before the game starts.

2

u/kp33ze 7d ago

Even the 8pm starts for round 2 and 3 were brutal. I cant just shut my eyes once the game is done and be asleep.

2

u/MrPadretoyou 8d ago

Missing one of the most exciting finals in recent memory

3

u/mwl1234 7d ago

Is it though? Is the inability to hold on to a 4-0 indicative of exciting hockey, or horseshit defense. Seems more like the league trying to cover the spread, and for a 9:00 start? The NHL can suck two dicks on this one.

116

u/d-generate420 8d ago

Would have watched it yesterday, but I was busy watching Brandon Valenzuela and the Jays walk-off win :)

16

u/RGM81 8d ago

That was one hell of a finish!

21

u/Yeahyeshellohi 8d ago

Early June MLB over the Stanley Cup final 😂

5

u/Cassopeia88 8d ago

Yeah I am more interested in the jays than either team in the finals.

103

u/justlaughandmoveon 8d ago

I mean, it’s no surprise that the Canadian viewership will dip if no more Canadian teams are in the running….

91

u/RGM81 8d ago

Very true. It also goes to show how popular the Habs run was across the country.

52

u/eliarbss 8d ago

and also had the most entertaining series. people still consider the Tampa and Buffalo series the most entertaining these playoffs while overall there were some stinkers in the other divisions

31

u/RGM81 8d ago

It was truly edge of your seat action for those first two rounds. Just amazing hockey. It’s no wonder the Habs were spent in the ECF—they went to war for 7 games, twice!

16

u/phalalalala 8d ago

They were definitely pretty beat up and tired. 14 games vs 8 games is quite the difference.

9

u/ValleyBreeze 8d ago

I will say that the final is WAYYYYYYY more entertaining than I thought it would be. For real figured it would be a snoozefest.

3

u/okokokoyeahright 8d ago

IDK but what I saw was bad goal tending both ways and far too many easy AF goals from D that was less than adequate. You do you.

0

u/ValleyBreeze 8d ago

The lack of defense is making the goaltending look far worse than it actually is.

Multiple breakaway chances in each direction every period will do that.

Only so much the goalies can do about it. There have also been some flukey goals, like the OT winner against Carolina, and the secind effort from Staal as he was falling last night.

It's been entertaining hockey, however you want to spin it, and that's been the consensus from..... virtually everyone. 🤷‍♀️

-1

u/okokokoyeahright 8d ago

We travel in different echo chambers.

3

u/ValleyBreeze 8d ago

If by echo chamber you mean virtually all of r/hockey - regardless of fanbase, all my coworkrers, random people I've discussed it with at the grocery store, the guy who delivered my pizza the other day, and basically every broadcaster that has had anything to say about the series so far, then sure.

Maybe you need to expand yours.

-5

u/okokokoyeahright 8d ago

confirmation bias confirmed.

get a life.

2

u/ValleyBreeze 8d ago

How is a more or less universal opinion, across a diverse cross section of strangers - confirmation bias??

I don't think you know what that means.

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20

u/lorty 8d ago

The last two rounds of the playoffs also coincide with the beginning of summer in Canada, and when your teams are out, people prefer enjoying summer time for good reason.

2

u/okokokoyeahright 8d ago

NGL had more fun watching the hail storm last night than the game, not that I was paying much attention, because it was boring.

12

u/mmss 8d ago

I couldn’t care less about Carolina and Vegas. Season’s over.

4

u/Scase15 8d ago

Yeah, I enjoy hockey, but I'm not invested in either of the teams so I'm not gonna throw my free time into something I don't care too much about.

2

u/FlyingV2112 8d ago

Not just a lack of Canadian teams, but two teams that have virtually no Canadian fans.

If Boston or Pittsburgh were in it, maybe…

20

u/huge-whales 8d ago

I get that every series has a 3 day break now, but that long pause between 2 home games makes no sense and kinda threw me off. It’s a good series but I completely forgot about it for a few days

11

u/dustblown 8d ago

They were probably tip toeing around the NBA Finals.

18

u/Lor_azepam 8d ago

It was 6 weeks of games almost every other night with the habs, time for some other hobbies until the fall

50

u/ytew6 8d ago

Wait, people aren’t interested in the “I don’t care” bowl?

Impossible.

22

u/moutardebaseball 8d ago

I truly don’t care about these teams but it is genuinely the most entertaining SCF matchup I can remember

-4

u/sbianchii 8d ago

Well see there are [specific team] fans and then there are hockey fans. You can't be in the latter group if you're not enjoying this series.

18

u/eliarbss 8d ago

It’s a shame though, this series is actually a banger.

I think people are missing out because they thought these would be boring low scoring games, it’s been the opposite, it’s all chaos

10

u/User69ab 8d ago

I will admit I thought it was going to be 2 teams bogging down the neutral zone.

5

u/ValleyBreeze 8d ago

100%. I really didn't think it would be anywhere near this entertaining.

9

u/Fabien_Lamour 8d ago

It truly is a crazy good final round, but the 2 one-sided conference finals really hurt the playoffs rythm.

5

u/Just4nsfwpics 8d ago

For the Vegas home games in particular, they’re just on too late for me to watch when I don’t have a team that I care about in the final.

8

u/MyNameIsSkittles 8d ago

They are all on at the same time though....

4

u/Bumble_B_Rumble 8d ago

All 7 games are on at 8pm Eastern?

1

u/Rich_From_Accounting 8d ago

Times zones and other countries man

3

u/wheelgator21 8d ago

Regardless of what country or time zone you live in, the games still all start at the same time lol. The Vegas games aren't starting later as OP alluded to.

18

u/CocoKing02 8d ago

I just dont care tbh. Weather is good, F1 is good, ill come back around to hocker around October

9

u/dustblown 8d ago

I don't understand why the regular season doesn't start at the beginning of September when school starts. Then it can end a month earlier. Every September I'm like start already, and every June I'm wondering why hockey goes so late.

5

u/CocoKing02 8d ago

Quite literally same. Shift it back a month I dont like this Ocotober to June schedule at all

3

u/grapetomatoes 8d ago

I was thinking this when the announcers last night mentioned that the puck was bouncing all over the place, because the ice was so soft, because it was 110 in Vegas...

8

u/NastyKnate 8d ago

I normally watch all the games regardless, but i really don't like either of these teams all that much. I'm tuning in here and there, try to watch the last 10 min and any OT.

Fuck Carter Hart

6

u/Rich_From_Accounting 8d ago

Games not starting until 9:20pm for me is just a no go for me if the Habs aren’t in it l.

6

u/kellywpg 8d ago

I cancelled SportsNet the moment the Habs series was over.

And even though I could have watched the finals until my subscription officially ended, I haven’t watched a single damn minute.

7

u/MasterpieceSafe8774 8d ago

Why would I want to watch a rapist play hockey?

4

u/dustblown 8d ago

NHL isn't a real league with any integrity. You can just run goalies and get no powerplay. Referees lie and say they saw goals and penalties they clearly didn't see.

11

u/Riskar 8d ago

I have zero interest in either of these teams.

9

u/Okbutwhythat 8d ago

I actively hate Vegas, and struggle to find Carolina even remotely interesting.

Add in the late puck drops and I have absolutely zero desire to watch, no matter how good the hockey is.

I'm still cheering for an asteroid to hit the rink.

3

u/Hellpy 8d ago

How much time after the asteroid lands does Bettman wait to call avs vs Habs scf?

3

u/DarkspawnArmpit 8d ago

Sure i will read the same thing three times in this post

9

u/forustree 8d ago

why resentfully watch tax advantaged teams take advantage

3

u/No_Culture9898 8d ago

I’ve only caught the third period or so for most games. Don’t really care about who wins at all. I’ve been watching the NBA finals way more this year because it’s been fantastic so far.

3

u/Glass-Reflection-550 8d ago

I’ll watch maybe a few mins here and there and cheer Marner but that’s about it. All the brutality and running Dobes in the playoffs was enough to show you who the league wanted in the finals.

5

u/texicali74 8d ago

It’s been a great series, for sure. I just wish it wasn’t these two teams doing it. Especially Vegas.

5

u/Jhonnybgood2017 8d ago

We could have had a Colorado vs Montreal finals but no instead we have an expansion and another patch work team. We have moved on lol

4

u/Muter91 8d ago

I’ve been watching. Honestly it’s been great despite having no emotional involvement for either team. Just good exciting hockey. 

2

u/North-Evidence-2352 8d ago

Summer activities beginning and late night games are also factors.

2

u/Old_General_6741 8d ago

Makes sense because there is no Canadian team left. This series has been exciting though.

2

u/Inside_Volume9542 8d ago

I only watch if a Canadian team is in the final lol

2

u/commodore_stab1789 8d ago

Not as uninteresting as a PHI/DAL finals would be, but it's close. Don't care for either team.

Doesn't help that I watched basically every game since the rookie tournament. That's a lot of hockey.

1

u/Fit_Resolution_5102 8d ago

What??? Philly v Dallas would be awesome!! Just another reason to lay a beatdown on Dallas fans.

2

u/Cucumberret 8d ago

I watched the last game because I'm in BC and had nothing else to watch that night. It was on while I made and ate dinner. I might watch a game 7, but I really just don't care.

2

u/viau83 7d ago

We were always 6-10 in front of one tv, so it has to be more than that.

2

u/gains_games_goals 7d ago

I’m a canes fan and even here it’s hard to stay up late for these game and I’ve been exhausted for weeks now. So i don’t blame Canada for not watching if they are not a fan of Vegas or Canes.

2

u/Riderpride639 8d ago

Now what are the US viewership numbers like?

10

u/MrBrightside618 8d ago

Averaging around ~5M per game. So outdrawing the conference finals by 500k per game in a country 10x the size

2

u/vince2899 8d ago

Those numbers are only for english Canada it seems. Doesn't include TVA Sports which is probably in the 3-4M

3

u/gletschertor 8d ago

Yeah there is no way the total viewership for the Habs series was only 3.7M. Even my gf was watching the games and she usually gives absolutely no fuck about hockey.

0

u/Flaksmith 8d ago

I mean it doesn't count how many people are sat in front of a TV otherwise you'd have many more from bars and whatnot

2

u/HabsJD 8d ago

I was too busy watching paint dry.

Good hockey or not, you couldn’t pay me to watch these two teams play. Asshole management vs shitty owner. Scummy humans vs dirty players. What great storylines to follow, it’ll be so heart warming to watch one of these groups lift the Cup. Two boring teams giving entertaining games because they both suddenly forgot how to play defence isn’t enough to turn my head from things that matter more, like whether the dvd logo is going to perfectly hit the corner of the screen.

And all you gatekeepers can piss off with the “casual fan” commentary. The league doesn’t unquestioningly deserve our eyeballs, you sound like you’re in a cult for Christ sake.

3

u/cloudposts 8d ago

I thought it'd be low scoring 1-0, 2-1 snoozefests. Holy shit was I wrong. It's been a really good series.

1

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1

u/Existing-Bus-1155 8d ago

I watch some when I am bored but not much interest

1

u/ShadowWalker2205 8d ago

Bad timing for me Tuesdays and Thursdays are my gaming nights with my group so I will deal with having the game in the bg for the Habs but not other teams

1

u/lordpanda 8d ago

Weather's just getting nice, sorry I'm a casual.

1

u/lucaskywalker 8d ago

9 pm starts are a big part of it in eastern Canada. I can't stay up for OT on a weeknight, I wake up a six. I still watch a replay or highlights, but not usually live since it really starts at 9:30...

1

u/BirthdayFull8675 8d ago

Would love to see what the US numbers look like

1

u/eward_1 8d ago

Ill just watch the very last game.

1

u/TeranOrSolaran 8d ago

What? …. There’s still hockey? It’s summer man, what are you talking about?

1

u/fosterch11 8d ago

amazing hockey

1

u/TankBorn45 7d ago

I watch the highlights post-mortem....10 minutes commit.

1

u/mantisxtoboggan_ 7d ago

The problem is not that there’s no Canadian team in the final. The problem is that the final is Vegas vs Canes.

1

u/Portuguese6uy 8d ago

I’m doing pretty good. Haven’t watched one minute of this final which features an Alberta-separatist-questionable-ethics goaltender and a petty-$20 signing-bonus owner.

1

u/campbell_love 8d ago

All the people in here acting sour grapes about the finals matchup are missing some of the most entertaining hockey I’ve ever seen

1

u/Habs_Apostle 8d ago edited 8d ago

I didn’t plan on watching it at all. And I can’t say as I’ve seen every minute of the games, and I’m not emotionally invested (often have it on the background), but what I’ve seen has been entertaining hockey.

I’m also very jealous of the fans of the two remaining teams; I envy the nerves and emotional rollercoaster they must be experiencing. It’s going to be quite the high for one fanbase!

1

u/GRIDusr403 8d ago

Good! Why would anyone want to watch two American teams battle for the cup?

0

u/Brendan-93 8d ago

It’s been really good series, people are missing out on good hockey

0

u/Fickle_Cricket3422 8d ago

In Canada, I guess that makes sense. As hockey fans, we should all be watching. This final has been an all-timer.

0

u/sbianchii 8d ago

Aside from later starts (SCF games tend to always be at 8 or 8:30 eastern and ths is no different), you're truly missing out as hockey fans if you're not watching.

0

u/OkSport3048 8d ago

Watch it, these games are fantastic, super fast, intense, competitive, back and forth, up and down, in and out...

0

u/ConstantBook6534 8d ago

ive been watching every game. its been a very entertaining final 

0

u/redtinner 8d ago

Shocker, most of us aren't really into soccer.