-8 million Canadians watched some or all of Sportsnet’s NHL Opening Night broadcast –
-Vancouver at Calgary attracts average audience of 1 million Canadians –
TORONTO (October 9, 2014) Sportsnet kicked off its 2014-15 NHL national broadcast schedule last night, setting a network record, as an average of 2.01 million viewers (2+) tuned into the Toronto Maple Leafs home opener vs. the Montreal Canadiens on Scotiabank Wednesday Night Hockey, marking the most-watched broadcast in network history. It was also the No. 1 program of the night across Canada.
Overall, 8 million Canadians watched some part of the record-setting night on Sportsnet, which included three NHL games (Montreal at Toronto; Vancouver at Calgary; San Jose at Los Angeles).
Key audience highlights of Sportsnet’s NHL opening night broadcasts include:
- Scotiabank Wednesday Night Hockey Pre-Game Show average audience: 377,000 viewers
- Montreal at Toronto average audience: 2.01 million viewers. Marks highest audience in network history; beats previous No.1 audience on Sportsnet by 40% (Toronto Blue Jays MLB Home Opener on April 2, 2013 – Cleveland Indians at Toronto Blue Jays; 1.44 million average audience)
- Vancouver at Calgary average audience: 1 million viewers
- Game One of the Scotiabank Wednesday Night doubleheader (Montreal @ Toronto) was No. 1 show of the night in Canada, beating closest competitor by 9%
- Sportsnet won the night in the F18-34 category across Canada
Fans also flocked to Sportsnet’s digital properties yesterday, marking the highest day of the year for Rogers Digital Sports (including Rogers GameCentre LIVE):
- 1.8 million page views for Sportsnet.ca (151% higher than 2014 year-to-date average)
- 561,000 visits (115% higher than 2014 year-to-date average)
- 432,000 unique visitors (148% higher than 2014 year-to-date average)
- 95% more page views, 87% more visits and 114% more unique visitors to Sportsnet.ca than NHL opening day in 2013
- More than 6,000 NHL-related mentions associated with the @Sportsnet twitter handle
Television Broadcast Source: Numeris, October 8, 2014 Overnights Data
Digital and Social Media Sources: Radian 6 / Adobe Site Catalyst, Jan 1, 2014-Oct 8, 2014 vs. Oct 1, 2013
NHL on Sportsnet will deliver more than 550 national and regional regular season NHL games across nine networks this season, including CBC, City, Sportsnet (East, Ontario, West, and Pacific), Sportsnet ONE, Sportsnet 360, and FX Canada, while Rogers NHL GameCentre LIVE will deliver more than 1,000 regular season games and the entire Stanley Cup Playffs. The NHL on Sportsnet has exclusive Canadian broadcast coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Stanley Cup Final, NHL All-Star Game, NHL Draft Lottery, NHL Draft, and the NHL Awards. Sportsnet is also the official regional television broadcast rights holder for the Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs (including radio rights on Sportsnet 590 The FAN), and Calgary Flames (including radio rights on Sportsnet 960 The FAN).
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About Sportsnet
Sportsnet connects Canadian sports fans to their favourite teams and athletes, using five platforms: TV, Radio, Print, Online and Mobile. Sportsnet is Fuelled By Fans, and delivers storytelling on a local, regional, national and global level. The multiplatform brand consists of Sportsnet, sportsnet.ca, Sportsnet 590 The FAN, Sportsnet 960 The FAN, Sportsnet magazine, Sportsnet Mobile and Sportsnet NOW. Sportsnet consists of four regional channels (Sportsnet East, Ontario, West and Pacific), and the nationally-distributed Sportsnet ONE, Sportsnet World, and Sportsnet 360. Sportsnet is the official Canadian NHL national rights holder, and is also the official regional television broadcast rights holder for the Calgary Flames (including radio rights on Sportsnet 960 The FAN), Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs (including radio rights on Sportsnet 590 The FAN), Vancouver Canucks and Montreal Canadiens. Sportsnet is the Canadian leader in MLB television broadcasts and is home to 162 Toronto Blue Jays games, plus MLB Playoffs and the World Series. Sportsnet also offers an exciting sports lineup including the NFL, the Memorial Cup, CIS Vanier Cup, Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Grand Slam of Curling, IndyCar, the Rogers Cup tennis tournament, and extensive soccer programming including Barclays Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, CONCACAF and Canadian national team matches for men and women. Sportsnet Central is the network’s nightly news program, providing regional and national coverage of the day’s events in the world of sports.