Buffalo viewership soars for deciding Stanley Cup Finals game

Game 6 on NBC delivers third-best Stanley Cup Final Game 6 overnight on record

Monday night's Stanley Cup Final series-clinching Game 6 on NBC delivered at 5.6 metered market rating, the third-best for a Game 6 on record (since 1995) and NBC's fourth-best NHL overnight ever, according to The Nielsen Company.

The 5.6 overnight for Game 6, in which the Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-0 to win their third Stanley Cup in six years, trails only the 2010 Game 6 between the Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers (5.8) and the 2013 Game 6 between the Blackhawks and Boston Bruins (5.7). Last night's game is up 40 percent vs. the 2012 Game 6 between the New Jersey Devils and Los Angeles Kings (4.0).

Locally, the Chicago market delivered a 41.0 HH rating - its highest ever for a Blackhawks game - and a 57 share. The Chicago rating is the highest local rating for any market for a non-Game 7 on NBC. Tampa posted a 15.2 HH rating, its second-best ever on NBC.

Buffalo rose to a 10.5, to finish as the third-highest market. The Queen City drew a 9.2 in 2014 for the deciding Stanley Cup game between the champion L.A. Kings and New York Rangers.

Following are the top 10 markets for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final:

UPDATE:

The 2015 Stanley Cup Final averaged 5.551 million viewers and a 3.19 household rating across NBC and NBCSN, making it the second-most watched finals on record (since 1994), according to The Nielsen Company. In addition, the deciding game on NBC (8:08-11:16 p.m. ET), in which the Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-0, to claim their third Stanley Cup in six years, averaged 8.005 million viewers and delivered a 4.44 HH rating, making it the third-most watched Stanley Cup Final Game 6 on record.

Game 6 was the culmination of one of the most competitive Stanley Cup Finals in history. It was the first time in 64 years that each of the first five games were decided by one goal and, until late in the third period, when Chicago went ahead 2-0, no team had had more than a one-goal lead throughout the series.

Overall, the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs (88 games) averaged 1.430 million viewers across NBC, NBCSN, CNBC and USA Network, making it the third-most watched post-season in 18 years.

NBC Sports Live Extra and numerous local markets also scored record metrics throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The 5.551 million viewers for the six-game 2015 Stanley Cup Final makes it the second-most watched on record, trailing only the 2013 Final, which featured the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins and averaged 5.753 million viewers through six games. This year's final is up 11 percent vs. last year, which featured the New York Rangers and Los Angeles Kings and ended in five games (5.009).

Among the six Stanley Cup Finals on record to average at least 5.0 million viewers since 1994, NBC/NBCSN has televised four of them, including each of the past three years.

Following are the Top 10 local markets for the entire 2015 Stanley Cup Final series: