Fast National ratings for Wednesday, June 4, 2014.
The Stanley Cup opener, an OT thriller between the Kings and Rangers, gave NBC strong enough demo numbers to lead Wednesday among young viewers, but the hockey showdown had much less juice overall where NBC finished fourth for the night. In total viewers, it was CBS on top, with a repeat of “Criminal Minds” standing as Wednesday's most watched show.
Game 1 of the Stanley Cup was down 29 percent from last year's Game 1 between Boston and Chicago, but that's at least partially a function of time zones given that much of this year's opener aired out of primetime in the Los Angeles market.
Among other notables, FOX saw only a small decline for the second week of “So You Think You Can Dance,” The CW's “The 100” was steady in the demo (down overall) and ABC's “Motive” got a pretty big week-to-week bump for some reason.
On to the numbers…
Among adults 18-49, NBC averaged a 1.7 rating for Wednesday night, edging out FOX's 1.5 rating in the key demographic. ABC was third with a 1.2 key demo rating, followed by CBS' 1.0 key demo rating and the 0.5 key demo rating for The CW.
Overall, though, CBS averaged an estimated 5.595 million viewers and a 3.7 rating/6 share for Wednesday primetime. A big clump followed. FOX was second with 4.985 million viewers and a 3.2/5, followed closely by ABC's 3.1/5 and 4.85 million viewers, but not that far ahead of the 2.9/5 and 4.53 million viewers for NBC. The CW averaged 1.51 million viewers and a 0.9/2 for the night.
8 p.m. – CBS started the night in first with 4.85 million viewers for a repeat of “Undercover Boss,” which finished fourth with a 1.0 rating among adults 18-49. FOX's “So You Think You Can Dance” was second with 4.77 million viewers and a 1.4 key demo rating, ahead of the 4.71 million viewers and 1.1 key demo rating for ABC's repeats of “The Middle” and “The Goldbergs.” NBC's Rangers-Kings game averaged 4.51 million viewers for fourth and a 1.6 key demo rating to win the hour. On The CW, an “Arrow” repeat averaged 1.42 million viewers and a 0.5 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – A “Criminal Minds” repeat won the 9 p.m. hour for CBS with 6.04 million viewers and, again, kept CBS in fourth with a 1.1 rating among adults 18-49. FOX's “So You Think You Can Dance” stayed second with 5.2 million viewers and also stayed second with a 1.6 key demo rating. ABC's repeats of “Modern Family” and “The Goldbergs” averaged 4.72 million viewers and a 1.4 key demo rating, both good for third. NBC's hockey game rose to an hour-winning 1.7 key demo rating and stayed fourth with 4.61 million viewers. The CW's “The 100” averaged 1.6 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating.
10 p.m. – CBS closed its overall primetime sweep with 5.89 million viewers for a “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” which tied for second with a 1.0 rating among adults 18-49. ABC's “Motive” was second with 5.12 million viewers and the same 1.0 key demo rating. And NBC's hockey stayed low overall with 4.47 million viewers, but won another hour with a 1.7 key demo rating.
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change, particularly in the case of live events.