Horrible Scheduling Sees Record Low and Embarrassing Viewership Numbers For Latest NHL Winter Classic
The Winter Classic between Chicago and St. Louis was a fun spectacle for the NHL, but a few decisions have led that to all-time low viewership numbers in what ended up being a 6-2 blowout in favour of the away team.
The NHL has some major events on their calendar each and every year, and this season's Winter Classic took place between the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues at the iconic Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs.
The league already faced backlash for one of their musical acts during the event, and now, their questionable scheduling call has seemingly cost them in a big way with the viewer.
According to a report, the matchup between Central Division rivals had the lowest viewership of any Winter Classic in history, seeing an average of under a million viewers throughout the game.
There may be several reasons for this dip in viewership, with two dreadful teams doing battle, but perhaps the biggest of all is the way that Gary Bettman and the league scheduled the event.
Usually, the Winter Classic would stand alone and be a marquee event, but this year, the league put it on the same day as 12 other games, with most fans likely to watch their own team over the Winter Classic.
The next day on New Years Day however, the league had just one game, leading many fans to question why the league simply wouldn't put the Winter Classic on that day instead.
Ultimately though, traditional viewership numbers are down across the board for the NHL and the NBA this season anyway, with those numbers not taking into account streaming viewers, but hopefully, this is a lesson to Bettman and the league to schedule things more carefully in the future.
