NHL posts record opening-round attendance, television viewership continues to build


NEW YORK -- With one game still to be played, the National Hockey League already has established record attendance figures for the first round of the 2004 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

In 46 Conference Quarterfinal games played through Monday, the League has set records for average attendance (18,751) and total sellouts (44). The mark for total attendance will be set tonight, when the current total of 862,556 is boosted by the sellout crowd of approximately 19,500 at Air Canada Centre for Game 7 of the Toronto Maple Leafs-Ottawa Senators series.

The figures for sellout percentage (44 of 46, 96%) and percentage of seating capacity (100.3%) are the highest since the numbers first were compiled in 1993.

The numbers reflect significant playoff attendance growth over the past decade. The first-round sellout percentage was 70% in 1992-93 (31 sellouts in 44 games), 63% in 1993-94 (30 of 48) and 55% in 1994-95 (27 of 49).

Also: Stanley Cup Playoff television viewership continues to build in the U.S. heading into the Conference Semifinals

Stanley Cup Playoff viewership has increased in the Conference Quarterfinals on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 compared to last season, according to Nielsen television data.

The NHL on ABC recorded a seven-percent increase in average viewers per game (1, 848,383 vs. 1,732,262) after the first week of Quarterfinal round coverage (4/10/04). Average viewers per game for fans watching Stanley Cup Playoff action on ESPN and ESPN2 during the first round have risen 10 percent (599,272 vs. 545,530) and 26 percent (475,000 vs. 378,149), respectively.

-Taken from NHL.com.....good news for hockey.

Song of The Day: Weezer- You won't get with me tonight
Thought Of The Day: Tired....so tired.

Yes, the playoffs are hard -- Sorry, this point is not debatable. There is no trophy harder to win than the Stanley Cup. You can email me with tales of soccer's World Cup, the NBA, the NFL, the NCAA basketball tournament, your neighborhood cumquat rolling tourney, whatever. Doesn't matter. Winning the Stanley Cup is the hardest.

If you need proof --- and by the way, if you're reading this, you probably don't require said proof -- check out these quotes for the Tampa Bay Lightning--New York Islanders series and remember, the comments are from the first round.

"That's what the series is all about," Lightning coach John Tortorella said after a win. "With a win or a loss, everything changes as far as the mind-set with the team and what you are looking to do."

"One second -- you're not on top of the world -- but you are feeling good up 2-1," defenseman Dan Boyle said after Tampa went up after three games. "But if we lose [tonight], all of a sudden it's pressure again. It happens pretty quickly."

"It just looked like it was mental," Islanders coach Steve Stirling said after a loss in Game 3. "I don't think anybody was tired. They might have thought they were tired, but that was coming from the brain. ... It just looked like at times that is was just too, too difficult tonight. And that's when you really have to pick yourself up and grind it out even though your brain might say, 'I'm not going to do it or I can't do it.' "

Mind over matter. That's one of the essential abilities needed to win the Cup. It's also among the hardest to possess. Much like the trophy the players are after.

-Taken from NHL.com, and absolutely correct. You cannot convince me that any other title in professional sports is harder to win.

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Song Of The Day: The Postal Service- Clark Gable
Thought of The Day: HiGh ScHOOL!!!!!!DAHHHHHHhahahahshaHHH!