NHL All Star game mid-week bomb

Shifting the game to mid-week up against American Idol killed the ratings. The NHL seems to made a poor decison with this mid-week game. Maybe this isn't a problem for hard core NHL viewers but for a sport looking for a rebound after a season long strike it might be best to look for the best time slot for a showcase event like the All-Star game.
http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news;_ylt=At6306tiPKHaRoJNga0iIm05nYcB?slug=ap-all-starratings&prov=ap&type=lgns

 

0.7 rating, less than 1 million viewers. Ouch.

 

Firing Bettman has to be rising on the NHL agenda. He's turning into the GWB of sports commissioners -- everything he touches turns to shit.

 

0.7...............

Linda Cohn's beaver gets more than 0.7.

 

As well it should

 

Doesn't help that the NHL is on that fucking shitty network that is on NONE of the cable tiers here.

 

Exactly. A test pattern on NBC gets more than an 0.7. They bought broadcast time for some regular-season games, why the hell not use one of those time slots for the All-Star Game?

Sticking the game on an obscure, irregularly-available cable channel GUARANTEES the only audience for the game will be the hardcore mavens who go way out of their way to seek it out.

The same incestuous inbreeding market strategy Wirtz has used to convert the Chicago Blackhawks into the gleaming flagship franchise of the league. If Wirtz and Bettman had their way, they'd probably lock the doors to the arenas to make sure fans don't steal sheets of toilet paper out of the restrooms.

 

I see no scenario in which the NHL can get back to where it was before. Even doing everything right (which hasn't been tried yet) ... I just don't think it can return to "Big Four" status.

 

The kids these days couldn't care less about hockey. Believe me.

 

Agreed.

 

Fixed.

Well, the All-Star game is a giant snore anyway. You see more hitting in your neighbourhood game of shinny.

As Don Cherry said, hockey players are all cheap. Put some money on the game --he actually suggested a paid vacation in the Bahamas plus $5,000 spending money--and that would turn it into a game.