Made for (U.S.) TV

It features neither Alex Ovechkin nor Sidney Crosby, but NBC has to be pretty happy nonetheless with the matchup for this year’s Stanley Cup Final. In fact, this year’s confrontation between the Chicago Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers is the third season in a row in which the final round involves two teams from major U.S. hockey markets. And, unlike the past two seasons in which one of the markets (Detroit) straddled the Canadian border and split the local audience with CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada, fans in both Chicago and Philadelphia will have no alternative to the U.S. telecasts.

As in past years, however, NBC will only show five of the potential seven games in the series, with the other two contests available to the American audience via cable only. The problem for NBC is that three of its five games will only be played if necessary, meaning that the network would only have two games to air in the event of a sweep. And should a sweep materialize, NBC would not air the clinching game. Of course, considering NBC’s level of “commitment” to hockey in general – particularly in the coveted prime-time spot in which all of the games will now air – the network may very well consider a short series to be a good thing.

In Canada, although CBC would have much preferred to see the Montreal Canadiens representing the Eastern Conference, the Flyers-Blackhawks matchup should still deliver good ratings – most notably for the first game which is scheduled for the public broadcaster’s traditional Saturday evening timeslot. Look for Jim Hughson, Craig Simpson, and Glenn Healy to work this series. The real loser in all of this is French-language RDS, which had benefited from amazing ratings with the Canadiens, but will now have its numbers plummet back to earth. Of note, Jacques Demers, who has been named to the Canadian Senate, saw his broadcasting career end last night with the elimination of the Canadiens. Demers will not work the final round.

STANLEY CUP FINAL - SCHEDULE:
1 - Sat. May 29 at Chicago, 8 p.m. (NBC)/(CBC)/(RDS)
2 - Mon. May 31 at Chicago, 8 p.m. (NBC)/(CBC)/(RDS)
3 - Wed. June 2 at Philadelphia, 8 p.m. (CBC)/(RDS)
4 - Fri. June 4 at Philadelphia, 8 p.m. (CBC)/(RDS)
*5 - Sun. June 6 at Chicago, 8 p.m. (NBC)/(CBC)/(RDS)
*6 - Wed. June 9 at Philadelphia, 8 p.m. (NBC)/(CBC)/(RDS)
*7 - Fri. June 11 at Chicago, 8 p.m. (NBC)/(CBC)/(RDS)

*if necessary