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| Sources: Flyers are favorites to take on Bruins at Fenway | 06.22.09 at 9:11 pm ET |
The Flyers are the favorites to face off against the B's at Fenway Park next winter
Sources confirmed months ago the Bruins have been awarded next year’s NHL Winter Classic and will play at Fenway Park on Jan. 1, and multiple reports had previously indicated that the Washington Capitals would be the Black and Gold’s opponent in hockey’s showpiece event.
The Boston Metro has reported that Boston College is already confirmed to play in an outdoor college hockey game that’s been added to the festivities. Boston University is also in talks to play in the outdoor college hockey game paired with the Winter Classic, according to the Metro report. NHL sources have also confirmed a second portion of the report to WEEI.com that the Philadelphia Flyers have taken the lead as the opponent for the Bruins on Jan. 1, 2010.
Several reports had named Washington as the leader in the clubhouse to take on the B’s on New Year’s Day, but multiple sources revealed to WEEI.com that there are concerns from NBC over television ratings with the Capitals – who are being pushed by the NHL to be the choice. NBC is instead campaigning for Philadelphia, according to one source, and the odds are improving by the day that the Flyers will be traveling to the Fens in January.
The lackluster playoff ratings for NBC during an opening round Stanley Cup playoffs matchup between Alexander Ovechkin and his Washington Capitals vs. the New York Rangers – the hockey team from the nation’s #1 TV market – is believed to at least be partly behind the network’s motives.
Last season’s first round’s Game 6 between the Rangers and Capitals drew a paltry 0.7 rating, off 30% from a 1.0 for Red Wings/Predators Game 6 during the 2008 playoffs. An expected marquee matchup pitting Ovechkin against the Rangers averaged a mere 0.7 for two games on NBC, which was down 22% from a 0.9 for two comparable Red Wings/Predators matchups in ‘08.
Surprisingly the 1.4 rating for NBC’s Game 1 between the Capitals/Penguins was 18% below the 1.7 that Penguins/Flyers Game 3 drew on the network just two weeks prior in the first round of the 2008-09 postseason. That may be the exact kind of number that NBC is looking at in pulling the strings for the Broad Street Bullies.
Locally in Washington, playoff TV ratings for Capitals games were labeled a disappointment as they were down from the 2007-08 postseason — a surprising development given the dream matchup between Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby in the second round of the playoffs. (Haggs’ Note: I had a Washington Caps’ official check in with me and assure me that the Caps’ local ratings were way up during the playoffs last year, and that didn’t have any bearing on NBC’s decision.)
In a conference call with Washington reporters Capitals GM George McPhee stated that he hadn’t heard anything from the NHL about the Winter Classic, and expressed doubt that the Caps would be a part of the game at Fenway Park.
“I have not,” McPhee said when asked if he had heard anything from the NHL regarding the Winter Classic. “You think we would know by this point.
“It doesn’t sound like we will be part of it. Maybe that’s not a bad thing. When you go, you have to play in front of 40,000 or 50,000 of the other team’s fans. …I would just assume if we were in it that we would know by now.”
The Bruins and NHL officials are expected to make the Winter Classic announcement official next month in a press conference at Fenway Park. Expect the Flyers to be the hockey team that suits up against the Bruins inside the Lyric Little Bandbox on Yawkey Way unless NBC has a change of heart concerning their top choice.
18 Comments for “Sources: Flyers are favorites to take on Bruins at Fenway”
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June 23rd, 2009 at 12:10 am
Haggs,
What do you mean the Caps are being “pushed?”
I want the Habs, but I understand the market.
June 23rd, 2009 at 1:53 am
The league wants to showcase one of their superstars in Alex Ovechkin. Nothing wrong with that. The Caps TV ratings weren’t consistently all that strong during last season’s playoffs, and NBC wants markets that will be ratings home runs for the event. Philly and Boston could be those, and there’s some level of rivalry/history between the two teams as well.
–Haggs
June 23rd, 2009 at 2:06 am
its a shame that TV drives this, who doesnt want to see the Canadiens vs Bruins at Fenway? next year make it Flyers vs Caps or Rangers
June 23rd, 2009 at 10:52 am
Even as a Northeastern grad, I think a BC vs. BU hockey game would make an awesome addition to The Classic festivities. The Michigan/Mich. State out door game was such a success I don’t see how they cant give this a shot. Too bad this didn’t take place in February so the Bean Pot could be held there.
June 23rd, 2009 at 1:22 pm
It doesn’t look like the college hockey game — whether it’s BC/BU or something else — will take place on Jan. 1, so perhaps it’ll be at least a little bit closer to Beanpot season.
–Haggs
June 23rd, 2009 at 7:19 pm
I hope they dont ruin the ice by playing the college game before the Bruins game. The NHL is really pushing the envelope here with college games and two NHL games in one day, this is the NHL’s (Bettmans) main problem, they find something good and they dilute and exploit it to the point where its just another game.
June 23rd, 2009 at 10:35 pm
The college hockey game is expected to be played as much as a couple of weeks after the Jan. 1 Winter Classic game. I’ll admit that I also think a game in Calgary would be severe overkill. The NHL should be very concerned about “killing” the golden goose. It’d be a shame if it happened on the Bruins’ watch.
–Haggs
June 24th, 2009 at 2:13 am
Why doesn’t NBC blame the Rangers who are a boring team with no offensive stars to draw the outside market viewer also were pushed down the nations throat so they stopped caring anyway which also doesn’t capture enough of their market which is the largest in the US to draws
June 24th, 2009 at 10:10 am
OK, I have better things to do with my money now than to go freeze my backside off to watch the FLYERS. I’m betting the Rangers are more to blame for the Caps’ poor ratings showings than the Capitals are… :-p
As a Caps fan, I would have gone to watch the Caps play outside, but no way, no how, am I watching the Philthadelphia Flyers play. No way, no how.
June 24th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
I was not under the impression that local Caps playoff TV ratings were down, I thought that Comcast Sportsnet reported stronger ratings than in years past.
June 24th, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Do you realize how many Flyers fan will be at this thing? At least 5,000. Philadelphia sports fans are some of the most traveled in the country.
June 24th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
Well traveled?
Like a UMASS co-ed?
June 24th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
flyers will be the better team next season anyway…and yea they will draw more viewers AND fans. good move
June 24th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
Bettman really blew it on this one. Nowadays, fans connect to a superstar like Ovechkin (LeBron) not with the franchise. HE and Fenway Park would be a huge draw. The Flyers? No one outside of Philly gives a crap about them.
June 25th, 2009 at 6:17 am
Agree with Alec.There will be at least 5,000 Flyers fans there. Flyers fans are the redsox nation of hockey. We are everwhere and support the team in big numbers. Sorry to the few Caps fans but you are bandwagon, Flyers fans are ticket buyers who will travel in big numbers for something like this. We have lived here 20 years and are still Flyers fans and see them every time at The Garden. And every year there are many, many Flyers fans in attendance. And now let all the lame, stupid, negative remarks begin about Philadelphia from all the “great,” “wonderful,” “smart,” New England fans. See you on New Years Day.
June 25th, 2009 at 10:25 am
Seriously? The Habs would draw rediculous amounts of fans to Boston, and would be a better rival for the networks to pitch. It sells it self. Second place would be NY Rangers, because of the of the obsvious. No one else should be in the discusion.
June 25th, 2009 at 10:33 am
GO FLYERS!
(Although the last two years the team that has won the winter classic has gone on to MAKE the Stanly Cup, both teams lost in the postseason)
June 26th, 2009 at 9:29 pm
The caps may have the best player in the league but they still can’t draw the quality fans or ratings as the Flyers. I can’t wait to see Pronger and Timonen quarterbacking our powerplay next new years day in Fenway….good luck BAAASTIN!