NHL Ratings Surge

The NHL begins the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs riding its highest U.S. TV ratings in 14 years, industry reporting shows. (sportsmediawatch.com) The 2025–26 regular season averaged 546,000 viewers across ESPN/ABC and TNT Sports, roughly a 25% increase from last year. (sportsmediawatch.com) ESPN games averaged 602,000 viewers (up 48%), ABC averaged 1.1 million across 16 games, and TNT averaged about 385,000 viewers (up 21%). (sportsmediawatch.com) ESPN noted its expanded seven‑game Sunday slate averaged 937,000 viewers and said the Bruins–Lightning Stadium Series on Feb. 1 drew 2.1 million viewers, the season’s biggest single-game audience. (espnpressroom.com) The playoff TV map gives national exposure to key matchups: TNT and truTV are scheduled to carry Boston at Buffalo on April 23, and first-round games are split among ESPN, ABC, TNT and truTV. (nhl.com) Industry coverage notes the viewership gains — and networks’ stronger Sunday windows and post‑Olympics lifts — could shape advertising buys and broadcast planning across the postseason. (sportico.com) TNT Sports said its Sunday games were up 77% and its post‑Olympics slate averaged 453,000 viewers, figures the network used in spring promotional material. (thefutoncritic.com) The 546,000 average approaches the roughly 590,000 viewers NBC and NBCSN averaged in 2012–13, the last season with higher U.S. regular‑season TV averages. (independent.co.uk) Nielsen will publish opening‑weekend postseason ratings in the coming days; those early playoff numbers will be the first concrete test of whether regular‑season gains hold through the Stanley Cup hunt. (sportsmediawatch.com)