Minnesota Wild: Is NHL's Television Schedule Fair to the Wild?

The NHL yesterday released its nationally televised scheduled for the US. The Minnesota Wild did well picking up twelve games televised, but was it a fair reflection of team’s popularity, and did certain franchises benefit at the expense of others?

As all of you know I’m not one to really pen pure opinion pieces, but after reading the US national TV schedule and seeing how many times the Minnesota Wild are on NBC and NBCSN next season it just makes me have to speak up. The Wild are televised 12 times which seems to actually be a bit above the league standard, but the issue I have is that the Wild are not at the league standard, they are above it.

The issue at hand really is that the Wild are sixth in the league in local television average rating according to a SportsBusiness Journal report in April of this year, and the NBC schedule has eight teams that will appear as much or more than the Wild. Only four of those teams are above the Wild in local TV ratings the Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins, St. Louis Blues, and Chicago Blackhawks.

The NHL and NBC are showing bias towards the large East Coast markets (and one Midwest one but more on that later) as always. Washington, Philadelphia, Detroit, and the NY Rangers all have more national games scheduled than the Wild but all finished below the Wild in local TV ratings rankings. That says numbers seem to be ignored for “larger” markets where they hope to gain more viewership. The issue with that though is that if the team doesn’t’ perform well locally why would the viewers of that market tune in if they are on national TV vice local TV?

Additionally, the top team on this ratings report was the Buffalo Sabres who are making only eight appearances. There are twelve teams that are at or above that number on NBC’s schedule this season. So if the argument is that the highest rated markets get the most nationally televised games, then why are the Sabres so low? Also of the eight teams above the Wild, the Sabres only have one game that is not against one of those eight teams. That basically means that the NHL thinks the largest rated local market can’t draw enough without playing one of those eight teams.

Sep 29, 2014; Saint Paul, MN, USA; A general view of the Xcel Energy Center during the first period between the Minnesota Wild and the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Wild defeated the Penguins 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports /

Taking that a step further when looking at the Wild’s schedule, they have seven of their twelve games against one of those eight teams. The Wild play the Blackhawks four of those seven games showing that the NHL isn’t necessarily interested in the Wild but rather who they are playing.

The final and perhaps biggest rub I have with this schedule is the fact that the Blackhawks are playing 21 times on NBC and NBCSN. That is three more times more than Boston who is second with 17 national games, 13 more times than the Sabres who have the best local market, and nine more times than the Wild. Taking that a step further, the Blackhawks are playing 17 more times nationally than the Dallas Stars who won the Western Conference in the regular season of 2015-16. And if that wasn’t enough the Blackhawks are set to play in their third Winter Classic to make three straight years of outdoor games.

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It’s obvious that the league wants to showcase the Blackhawks, but how are we to grow the game in other areas if the overwhelming amount of national games is one team? It’s not always about where the team plays that can make them popular. The best way to describe this argument is a conversation I had with someone on the Metro in DC. When I saw his Wild hat and asked if he was from Minnesota, he said no but he was a Wild fan because it seemed like the best place for hockey in the country so why not follow that team. It just goes to show you hockey fans want to watch good hockey, and nationally they all aren’t necessarily picking the Blackhawks to follow or whomever the league drapes in front of them.

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In the end 12 nationally televised games for the Wild may seem like a good haul comparatively to the rest of the league, but it really is not a reflection of the fan base and the team’s performance. The NHL is a business, but it seems like they have a core of that business that surrounds a few franchises and often excludes other ones. Should we be surprised the league gave 21 nationally televised games to the Blackhawks…no, but still doesn’t mean its right.

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