In forcing a Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final on Friday night, the Edmonton Oilers not only put themselves in a position to make NHL history, but they also did Disney a solid on the ad sales front.
After falling into a 3-0 hole against the Florida Panthers, a run that coincided with three straight scoreless appearances by Connor McDavid, Edmonton looked primed for a demoralizing sweep. But once McDavid’s stick came alive—in Games 4 and 5 the center served up a combined three goals and five assists—the Oilers threatened to flip the script on the Panthers in a most unlikely fashion.
While McDavid was held scoreless in Edmonton’s 5-1 home win, a slumping Leon Draisaitl finally made his presence known in Game 6 with a beauty of an assist to Warren Foegele. In helping to light the lamp early in the first period, Draisaitl did his bit to book one last 2,568-mile flight to South Florida.
If the Panthers once seemed poised to prolong Canada’s 31-year Cup drought, the Oilers’ three-game rally put them in a position to achieve something that’s happened exactly once before. The first, and only, time a team has hoisted Lord Stanley’s beer stein 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 win on their home ice.
Here’s how long ago that was: Toronto’s goalie was a portly gent by the name of Turk Broda, who was once photographed sitting cross-legged on the ice with a plate of pancakes in his lap. The snapshot was staged the day after the Leafs’ general manager had ordered Broda to drop 10 pounds or ride the pine. While Broda’s discipline was always a bit shaky—he used to sneak a smoke or two between periods—Toronto’s unlikely come-from-behind effort in 1942 was only the first of his five Cup triumphs.
However things shake out on Monday night, Edmonton’s resilience has made ABC’s ad sales execs breathe a lot easier. Just 10 days ago, it looked for all the world like the NBA and NHL championships would end in sweeps, a twin misfortune that hadn’t occurred since 1995. While the Boston Celtics closed out the Dallas Mavericks in five, thereby cheating ABC out of more than $145 million in potential sales revenue, the Oilers’ tenacity will make for a less harrowing financial quarter for Disney.
Per media buyer estimates, the three bonus games should make ABC about $12.6 million richer than would have been the case if the series had been decided in straight sets. And because make-goods don’t appear to be a factor—ratings are up 36% versus last year’s five-game Final on TNT Sports—Disney will pocket some $24.1 million in ad sales revenue.
We won’t know which team the Hockey Gods will favor until the final horn sounds, but however things shake out, Edmonton’s heroics have been a game-changer for the NHL’s primary TV partner.
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