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Penguins-Blackhawks averages 2.8 million viewers on NBC

Penguins Blackhawks Hockey

Fireworks go off after the national anthem before the NHL Stadium Series hockey game between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, March 1, 2014, at Soldier Field in Chicago. (AP Photo/Daily Herald, Steve Lundy) MANDATORY CREDIT MAGS OUT TV OUT

AP

A lot of numbers coming up, and all of them saying good things about the TV ratings for Saturday’s game at snowy Soldier Field.

From NBC Sports Group:

NBC’s primetime coverage of Saturday night’s NHL Stadium Series game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks (8-11:15 p.m. ET) from Soldier Field in Chicago averaged 2.8 million viewers and produced a 1.7 HH rating, making it the most-watched and highest-rated NHL regular-season game, excluding Winter Classics and regional coverage, since the advent of People Meters (1987), according to Fast National data from The Nielsen Company.

Average viewership for Saturday night’s primetime telecast on NBC, in which the Blackhawks defeated the Penguins, 5-1, was up 33% compared to NBC’s previous NHL Stadium Series game on Jan. 26 between the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils (1:27-4:30 p.m. ET, 2.1 million).

Locally, Chicago posted a 14.9 rating, making it the highest-rated regular-season Blackhawks game ever on NBC in the Chicago market, even topping the 2009 NHL Winter Classic (11.8), which saw the Detroit Red Wings defeat the Blackhawks, 6-4, at Chicago’s Wrigley Field. In Pittsburgh, the game registered a 13.3 rating. NBC was No. 1 network in both markets from 8-11:15 pm ET.