Penguins Opener Breaks Multiple Viewership Records
The battle between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks lived up to the expectations with multiple records.
Everyone knew heading in that the opening game of the season between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks was going to be a big deal.
From the moment the schedule was released, the Penguins and Blackhawks knew it was going to be more than just an average season opener.
The main draw for the game was the NHL debut of rookie sensation Connor Bedard going against the old guard of the sport in Sidney Crosby.
With 18,411 on hand at PPG Paints Arena, the viewing audience for the game broke multiple records.
According to sportsmediawatch.com, the Bedard debut pulled in 1.43 million viewers on ESPN.
Excluding Winter Classic games, the opening contest between the Penguins and Blackhawks is now the most viewed regular season game ever broadcast on cable.
The previous leader was Mario Lemieux’s return game between the Penguins and Toronto Maple Leafs in 2000 which grabbed 1.36 million viewers, also on ESPN.
1.43 million viewers also makes it the most watched season-opening contest ever broadcast; the previous leader was the Penguins against the Tampa Bay Lightening on ESPN in 2021
More than just the Bedard debut against his childhood hero, the Penguins had multiple storylines to follow along with themselves.
Erik Karlsson made his official debut with the team and it was the first regular season Penguins game with Kyle Dubas in charge in the front office.
Thanks to the massive numbers pulled in by the Penguins and Blackhawks, the NHL saw a 40% increase in opening night viewership from last year with each game averaging 909,000 viewers.
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