Canadian TV ratings surge after thrilling start to Oilers-Panthers Stanley Cup final

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With apologies to diehard Flames fans down province in Calgary and loyalists of the eliminated Maple Leafs, it appears that hockey fans from coast-to-coast are embracing the Edmonton Oilers as Canada’s team.

Games 1 and 2 of the wildly entertaining best-of-seven series between the Oilers and Florida Panthers drew huge ratings on Sportsnet and CBC.

The opener, won 4-3 in overtime by the Oilers last Wednesday, drew an average audience of four million viewers while Game 2, won 5-4 in double overtime by the Panthers two nights later, brought in 4.2 million.

Combined, the two opening games mark a healthy increase of 14% over the 2024 Cup final contested between the same two teams.

Of note, those two big numbers came despite the ridiculous schedule for the final, one that had almost a week off between rounds to dull momentum. As well, with games played on Wednesday and Friday, the opening salvos for a repeat of last year’s combatants was without the ratings bonanza slot of Hockey Night In Canada‘s traditional Saturday night home.

Making up for it, of course, was the wildly entertaining action of both games, with lead changes and plenty of scoring from both teams. As usual, the NHL will mercilessly drag out the schedule with two off days between Game 2 and Monday’s Game 3 and another two days of before Thursday’s Game 4.

Meanwhile, the big Canadian audiences are in sharp contrast to what is happening with TNT south of the border.

According to reports, the Game 1 audience in the U.S. was just 2.42 million viewers, a plunge of 22% from last year and the lowest Game 1 rating for the final (not including the COVID-affected 2020 and 2021 versions) since 2008.

A year ago, with all seven games on ABC — which offers much better reach — an average of 4.17 million viewers tuned in over the seven games.