Hockey Night In Canada garnered strong ratings for its opening telecast. From a CBC press release-
October 7, 2011 – Canadians everywhere tuned into CBC’s Thursday night hockey coverage of MolsonCanadian NHL FACE-OFF, as the season opener for CBC’s HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA attracted strong audiences from start to finish.
Ratings data from the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement (BBM) show that an average audience of 929,000 viewers 2+ got into the night with the pre-game show, a 66 percent increase over last year.
Then, 1.935 million Canadians watched the classic Game 1 match-up between the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs – beating last year’s opening-game mark of 1.923 million.
Afterwards, coverage of Game 2 between the Pittsburgh Penguins and 2011 Stanley Cup contenders the Vancouver Canucks drew a 2+ audience of 989,000, nearly matching last year’s opening-night Game 2 mark – and a sure indicator that the excitement over the 2011-2012 season of CBC’s HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA has only just begun.
(Source: BBM Canada, Total Canada, Preliminary Overnights, Ind.2+, 2011)
* Based on metered television audience data only
The Paranoid Puck 