2017 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS TOTAL AUDIENCE DELIVERY AVERAGES 726,000 VIEWERS THROUGH FIRST FIVE DAYS, UP 9% VS. 2016

NBC Sports' Stanley Cup Playoff Coverage on Cable Networks Off to Best Start Ever

Toronto-Washington is Most-Watched First-Round Series Featuring Canadian Team in NBC Sports' Cable History

Stanley Cup Playoffs Set Live Streaming Records

STAMFORD, Conn. - April 18, 2017 - On the strength of 13 one-goal games, seven overtime games, surprising outcomes, and exciting new stars, NBC Sports Group's multi-platform coverage of the first five days of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs has delivered year-over-year increases, record-setting digital consumption, and the best start ever for its cable networks.

Total Audience Delivery (TAD) for the first five days of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs (18 telecasts) averaged 726,000 viewers across NBC, NBCSN, CNBC, USA Network, NBCSports.com, and the NBC Sports app, up 9% compared to the same time period last season (669,000). TAD measures consumption across multiple platforms, combining the average minute audience for television and digital.

NBC Sports Group's cable coverage of the playoffs on NBCSN, CNBC, and USA Network (and their live streams) is off to its best start ever, with TAD averaging 581,000 viewers for 15 telecasts, up 14% vs. last year (509,000).

The Toronto-Washington series is currently the most-watched first-round series to feature a Canadian team in NBC Sports cable history, averaging a TAD of 724,000 viewers through its first two games (data is not yet available for last night's game). All three games in the series have gone to overtime, with the Maple Leafs now holding a 2-1 lead.

Through Sunday's games, NBC Sports Digital's live streaming coverage of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs delivered 437,000 unique users and 53.1 million minutes, both postseason records, and up 15% and 17%, respectively, vs. the same time period last season (379,000 and 45.2 million).

First-round viewership is being bolstered by side-by-side coverage in local markets. For the first time since NBC Sports Group acquired NHL rights prior to the 2005-06 season, coverage of Stanley Cup Playoffs first-round games on NBCUniversal cable networks (NBCSN, CNBC, USA Network) as well as NHL Network, are airing side-by-side in local markets alongside regional sports network telecasts. In addition, NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app are providing streaming coverage of every first-round game. Prior to this season, NBC Sports' national first-round cable telecasts were blacked out in all local U.S. markets. Local television and streaming blackouts still apply in Boston and Pittsburgh in the first round.