After Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes went to overtime, ABC is again reporting a very strong viewership number.
ABC announced that Game 2 averaged 4.68 million viewers, down slightly from 4.79 million in Game 1, but still up 88% from Game 2 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final on TNT/truTV and up 33% from Game 2 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final on ABC.
Viewership peaked at 5.8 million viewers in the 10:45 p.m. quarter-hour.
Comparisons to prior years may be skewed by Nielsen’s shift to the new Big Data + Panel standard in September 2025, which has generally boosted sports viewership by 15%. Needless to say, increases of 88% and 33% are unlikely to be fully explained by this shift.
Golden Knights-Hurricanes Game 2 is the most-watched Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final since Chicago Blackhawks-Tampa Bay Lightning in 2015, which averaged 6.55 million viewers on NBC thanks, in part, to airing immediately following American Pharoah’s Triple Crown-clinching win in the Belmont Stakes. Note that every Game 2 between 2016 and 2021 aired on cable via NBCSN.
Through two games, the series is averaging 4.73 million viewers, up 93% from last year and the highest two-game average since 2015.
The viewership through two games suggests that Game 3 could hit an even more impressive viewership mark for the NHL. Game 3 of the Tampa Bay Lightning-Colorado Avalanche series in 2022 averaged 4.10 million viewers, the most-watched Game 3 since 2002. With viewership for Games 1 and 2 in 2026 well above that mark, Game 3 could become the most-watched Stanley Cup Final Game 3 in 24 years.
Regardless of whether Game 3 breaks a record, the NHL and ABC will be very happy with the strong viewership numbers they have generated throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
About Manny Soloway
Manny Soloway is a Iowa based writer focusing on TV ratings. He is also the founder of the TV Media Blog substack.