Connor Bedard certainly piques the curiosity of hockey fans eager to discover the phenomenon, given ESPN’s record ratings during his first NHL game on Tuesday.
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The network reported that an average of 1.431 million viewers watched Bedard score his first point in the Chicago Blackhawks’ 4-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
According to Sports Media Watch, it is the most-watched game of all time on cable television, along with the Winter Classic games.
The matchup also drew the largest opening night crowd since the start of the 2013 season. For comparison: In the same time window last year, the opening game between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the New York Rangers attracted half as many spectators, or 744,000.
On Tuesday, the other two games on the schedule were significantly less popular than the game with Bedard and the Hawks. The Nashville Predators and Lightning drew 598,000 viewers, while the Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights drew ratings of 691,000 for their opening game against the Seattle Kraken.
The ESPN network has been giving the NHL more airtime on its various broadcasts lately. Connor Bedard was even featured on the popular Pat McAfee Show, which devotes most of its time slot to the NFL.
Bedard’s debut in the United States ranked third in television ratings for the various sports games broadcast on Tuesday, behind the day’s two playoff matchups in Major Baseball, featuring the Baltimore Orioles against the Texas Rangers (4.139 million) and the Minnesota Twins took on the Houston Astros (2.723 million).