By forcing Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final on Friday night, the Edmonton Oilers not only put themselves in position to make NHL history, but also gave Disney a solid foothold in the advertising sales front.
After falling into a 3-0 hole against the Florida Panthers, a run that coincided with three consecutive scoreless games from Connor McDavid, Edmonton seemed primed for a demoralizing sweep. But once McDavid’s stick came to life – in Games 4 and 5, the center had three goals and five assists – the Oilers threatened to flip the script on the Panthers in a very unlikely way.
While McDavid went scoreless in Edmonton’s 5-1 home win, Leon Draisaitl finally made his presence known in Game 6 with a nice assist to Warren Foegele. By helping light the lamp at the start of the first period, Draisaitl did his part to book one last 2,568-mile flight to South Florida.
If the Panthers seemed poised to extend their 31-year Canada Cup drought, the Oilers’ three-game rally put them in position to achieve something that has happened exactly once before. The first and only time a team raised Lord Stanley’s beer mug after starting the series 0-3 was in 1942, when the Toronto Maple Leafs turned the tables on the Detroit Red Wings with a 2-1 home victory. .
Look how long ago that was: Toronto’s goaltender was a burly gentleman named Turk Broda, who was once photographed sitting cross-legged on the ice with a plate of pancakes on his lap. The photo was staged the day after the Leafs general manager ordered Broda to lose 10 pounds or climb the pine tree. Although Broda’s discipline was always a little shaky – he would often sneak a cigarette or two between periods – Toronto’s unlikely comeback in 1942 was only the first of their five Cup triumphs.
However things turned out Monday night, Edmonton’s resilience made ABC’s ad sales executives breathe a lot easier. Just 10 days ago, it looked for all the world like what the NBA and NHL championships would be like end in sweepsa double misfortune that hasn’t occurred since 1995. Although the Boston Celtics shut down the Dallas Mavericks in five, thereby cheating ABC out of more than $145 million in potential sales revenue, the Oilers’ tenacity will make the financial quarter less harrowing. for Disney.
According to media buyers’ estimates, the three bonus games were expected to make ABC about $12.6 million richer than it would have been if the series had been decided in two sets. And since offsets don’t appear to be a factor — ratings are up 36% over last year’s five-game finale on TNT Sports — Disney will pocket about $24.1 million in ad sales revenue.
We won’t know which team the Hockey Gods will favor until the final horn sounds, but either way, Edmonton’s heroics changed the game for the NHL’s main TV partner.
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