NBC's Choice Backfires

Remember back when the Winter Classic was close to being announced, NBC made a push for the Flyers to be included over the Capitals, with the wisdom being Philadelphia would provide better national television ratings?

Well, the ratings are in, and this year's telecast slipped to a 2.6 national share, which is back to what the 2008 Winter Classic produced after hitting 2.9 for last year's Blackhawks-Red Wings tilt.

With the primary pull being from the home markets being the catalyst for a good number, Boston held its end, as per Puck Daddy, the ratings in the Hub pulled in a 14.4 and 29 share, very impressive number.

The problem was down I-95, where the game was third in local ratings. Joe Paterno - and the Mummers - both beat the Flyers in the local ratings, which certainly had a big pull downward on the national numbers.

Penn State won the big battle on New Year’s Day as its victory over LSU in the Capital One Bowl earned a 10 rating/19 share for 6ABC. The Mummers Parade on myPHL17 strutted to second place with a 6 rating/12 share, and the Winter Classic featuring the Flyers was third with a 6 rating/11 share.

I guess NBC should be careful what it wished for.