NHL Television Audiences as at mid-season

William Houston, a respected journalist, writes one of his final columns for the Globe and Mail. He recently accepted a buyout - a sign of the impending collapse of the newspaper business.

Some snippets:

TSN's average viewership is up 17 per cent from last year to 481,000 a game.

Versus in the United States is averaging 308,695, a rise of 18 per cent.

And the CBC, despite losing three Toronto Maple Leafs telecasts in its new NHL deal, is drawing prime-time audiences that are up 4 per cent from last year, to 1.206 million a game.

REGIONAL

Regional audiences on Rogers Sportsnet also reflect team performances. The Leafs' average of 321,000 is down 22 per cent from last year. Audiences for another losing team, the Senators, have dropped 33 per cent, to 67,000 a game.

Numbers for the Vancouver Canucks are down 8 per cent (227,000 viewers). For the Flames (135,000) and Oilers (146,000), audiences are up 15 per cent and 17 per cent, respectively.