Versus beats CSN Chicago ratings

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: Courtesy of Phil Rosenthal at the Chicago Tribune: : : 5/19/10 : Blackhawks TV: Versus beats CSN Chicago ratings : Chicago Blackhawks fans found Versus even more easily than their team found the net in their Game 2 4-2 Western Conference finals victory over the San Jose Sharks late Tuesday, giving the Hawks their highest cable ratings to the postseason. : The 10.93 household rating in the Chicago market (which translates to more than 382,000 area homes) eclipses the Hawks' Comcast SportsNet Chicago's all-time high, a 10.14 household rating (or a hair under 323,000 homes) two weeks earlier for Game 3 of the Western semifinals against Vancouver. : It represents a steady rise for Versus, which has increased its Chicago-area distribution and, like the Blackhawks, built its following since a year ago, when Rocky Wirtz, the team chairman, scoffed, "A lot of people don't even realize that Versus exists." : That clearly no longer seems to be an issue, given Versus' ratings. : : Versus' 10.93 household rating here comes on the heels of its 8.76 household rating in Chicago for Game 4 of the Blackhawks' second-round series against Vancouver, which was up from its exclusive coverage of the Hawks' lopsided Game 1 loss to the Canucks. The channel's local high last year during the Western finals against Detroit was a 7.1 household rating. : The Blackhawks' Western Conference finals opener Sunday at San Jose on NBC earned a preliminary 11.2 household rating (which translates to more than 392,000 homes) in Chicago, where a 26.9 percent share of all households watching television were tuned into the Hawks game on WMAQ-Ch. 5. That number included a dropoff in the broadcast's final 15 minutes, much of which included postgame coverage. : NBC had a 2 p.m. start Sunday, and Versus on Tuesday began around 9 p.m. with bedtime looming. : Between that and a closer game, the NBC telecast peaked with a 17.2 household rating (more than 602,000 homes) and 37.1 percent share in the quarter hour between 4:30 p.m. and 4:45 p.m. as the Hawks took the lead and then held on to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. : Versus' Game 2 coverage peaked between 10:30 p.m. and 10:45 p.m., about an hour before the game ended. Such is the drag of fatigue on viewers that , if Versus' pregame coverage is factored in, its Tuesday average rises to an 11.3 rating. Versus embraces the actual game numbers, from puck drop to final horn. : All remaining postseason telecasts this year will be split between NBC and Versus, the National Hockey League's national TV partners, with Friday night's Game 3 on Versus and Sunday's Game 4 on NBC. Chicago radio broadcasts will be split between Salem Communications' WIND-AM 560 and Chicago Tribune parent Tribune Co.'s WGN-AM 720. : The last five Hawks telecasts on Comcast SportsNet Chicago, which is partly owned by the team and is its primary TV home, accounted for the five most-watched programs in the channel's 5 1/2 year history. Before the recent run, the Hawks' previous CSN record -- a 7.82 rating for last season's come-from-behind Game 6 second-round clincher -- had stood for nearly a year. : Versus is having a banner year nationally with the NHL, so far this postseason.

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