As Stars Fall, League's Ratings Could As Well

By Ryan Froats

What do LeBron James, Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby all have in common?

Well, besides the fact that they're all superstars in their respective leagues, they'll also all be watching the rest of the playoffs from their living room couches.

So now what happens to the NBA and NHL? It is basically a known fact that these two leagues don't typically produce the same publicity and hype as the NFL and MLB, yet with their league's big shots not competing, people's attentions might rapidly be fading.

The other day after the LeBron's, no wait sorry, the Cavaliers lost to the ageless Celtics, I flipped on the television to watch some of the reactions on ESPN. I turned on the television at 9:00 AM, and watched the first live episode of SportsCenter. Thirty-eight minutes later, the anchors and analysts had finally finished going over how LeBron lost, where he might end up, and what every sports writer from the three front-runners (Chicago, New York, Miami) felt about it, they switched topics. Thirty-eight minutes. There were eight baseball games to be touched upon in the remaining twenty-two minutes of the show, however, only half of them were actually shown because they had to re-touch upon the LeBron issue later.

It can't be denied, LeBron is the most talented player in the NBA right now, and as someone who can consider themselves 'sort-of' a New York Knicks fan, I think him coming here would make me a very happy man. But, we were 48 days away from free agency the day the Cavs lost, and the topic all over the sports world made it seem like the playoffs were done, just because LeBron had let Cleveland down. The NBA has continued to move, and the die-hard fans will continue to watch, which is good for the NBA. Yet, you have to wonder if those fans who just used to flip through to watch LeBron run the floor swatting people's shots away and dunking over his latest victim, will continue to tune in. Oh yeah, and as I sit here writing this blog, I know there are 44 days, 7 hours and about 43 minutes remaining until LeBron is officially a free agent. And that's not because I can count, it's because there is a continuously updated countdown to free agency on ESPNNY.com. If you didn't think it was a big deal before, think again.

Moving onto hockey, which is without a doubt the least watched of the big four professional leagues, (Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals was on VERSUS), they've recently suffered not one, but two similar setbacks. The lowly Montreal Canadiens must be in contact with Rex Ryan, because they are literally stunning all hockey fans, just as the New York Jets did this past January. The Habs have upset not only the number one seed Washington Capitals, but also the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins. They've relied upon solid defense and spectacular goaltending from an unlikely source in Jaroslav Halak. However, they've not only pulled upsets that have sent more talented teams packing, they've also sent home BOTH faces of the NHL, in Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby.

While too many teams make the amazingly extended playoffs in both the NBA and NHL, these leagues depend on the faces of their leagues to play as long as possible, so that they can put on display their overwhelming talents and boost ratings. But, the NHL now has the seventh-seeded Philadelphia Flyers (riding the back of their back-up goalie) against the eighth-seeded Montreal Canadiens in their Eastern Conference Finals. Kudos to these teams for pulling upsets throughout the entire playoffs, but I think it's fair to assume that the NHL is not as happy as these team's fan-bases. In the Western Conference finals remains the first-seeded San Jose Sharks and the second-seeded Chicago Blackhawks, something that was expected when the season began in October. That game was seen on NBC yesterday, and it was a fabulous game. Perhaps if a team like the Washington Capitals or Pittsburgh Penguins didn't stumble and played to their potential, the world would get to watch both conference finals games. Yet, that's an answer we'll probably have to wait to find out for about another 365 days, because both teams failed to do that.

All in all, I think that these three superstars will continue to impress the world with their skills throughout their young and already-bright careers, it can be safe to say that the higher-ups of the NBA and NHL are a bit disappointed that these young studs weren't able to play to their potential, and help carry these leagues to higher ratings until early June.