Stanley Cup Final Delivers Drama but Struggles for Eyeballs in U.S.

There has been no shortage of drama or star power in the first five games of the Stanley Cup Final, with three of the games between the Oilers and Panthers going into overtime, and the matchup boasting top talents such as Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and Florida’s Aleksander Barkov. Audiences, however, remain somewhat indifferent, particularly in the U.S. 

TNT Sports parent company Warner Bros. Discovery, already in the midst of a larger transition, said that U.S. viewership for the series through Game 5 has averaged about 2.5 million viewers, down 28% from a year ago and down 5% from 2023, when the network last carried the Stanley Cup Final. 

Viewer attrition in the U.S. was likely compared to last year, when Disney carried the event on both ABC and ESPN. That exposure on broadcast with a significant emphasis on streaming contrasts significantly from the cable-led presentation on TNT and truTV, joined by a simulcast on Max. That rights rotation will continue through the 2027–28 season. 

Still, the current Stanley Cup Final results are something of a surprise given not only the inherent factors, but the momentum the NHL saw earlier this season in events such as the wildly successful 4 Nations Face-Off.  

The U.S. situation for the Stanley Cup Final also contrasts notably from Canada, where Sportsnet and CBC have averaged 3.8 million viewers through Game 5, up 2% from a year ago. In a country of nearly 42 million people, that total is equivalent to a U.S. audience of about 31 million. That latter figure is on par with what the NFL draws for a wild-card playoff game. 

Before the start of the Stanley Cup Final, commissioner Gary Bettman dismissed any viewership concerns.

“You’ve got some in the media saying, ‘Well, the ratings are going to be soft in the U.S.’ They’re going to be great in Canada, they’ll be fine in the U.S.,” Bettman said on NHL Network Radio. 

The Panthers currently lead the series three games to two, but should the Oilers win Game 6 on Tuesday and force a deciding game, the entire complexion of the series viewership will change considerably. Last year’s Game 7 between the two teams drew an average U.S. audience of 7.7 million, the largest total for any NHL game in five years. That final figure, more than twice the average level of the first five games of the series, also elevated the final average considerably.