Olczyk gets it right on NHL Finals while NBC hopes for a ratings sweep

Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals pregame show airs nationally at 6:30 p.m. ET on the NBC Sports Network. The game will be broadcast live at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. It looks  like game 6 could break some NHL on NBC ratings record but we will talk about that a bit later. It will be Chicago  in Boston to face the the B's.

The day after the epic triple overtime 4-3 Blackhawks win over the Bruins in game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals I talked to NBC lead NHL analyst Eddie Olczyk. He was sticking to the prediction he gave me earlier in the week and that was Chicago in a hard fought 7 games.

Olczyk:Watching these two teams they are very similar. They both have great system's in place and they are very comfortable playing every aspect of the game at the highest level. They both have talented power play units and conversely they both are near the top of the league in penalty killing. I will tell you that these two teams could play each other  50 times and it would be 25-25 or 26-24 these two teams are that close. I think that the Blackhawk's will win in seven games. Home ice will play a roll here and Chicago will benefit from that last shift change which goes to the team with  home ice. 

So, he really knew what he was talking about as we head into game 6 tonight in Boston and the Blackhawks have a 3-2 lead over the Bruins . There is no doubt that Chicago hopes  to close out. the series tonight in front of a big crowd in Boston.

With the ratings thus far NBC might be on board with seeing a game 7 because the numbers thus far have been eye opening.  

We don't have the numbers yet for game 5 but through 4 games of the Stanley Cup Finals NBC is making history. According to this data provided by the network but confirmed by The Nielsen Company here is what we know:

With three of the first four games needing overtime, the 2013 Stanley Cup Final is averaging 5.356 million viewers per game, making it the most-watched Final through four games on record (data available since 1994), according to The Nielsen Company.
Last night's 11-goal overtime contest (8:10-11:37 p.m. ET) between the Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks in the fourth game of the 2013 Stanley Cup Final averaged 6.459 million viewers, making it the most-watched Stanley Cup Final Game 4 ever (since the introduction of People Meters in 1987).

Here is a preview of game 6 from our friends at NHL.com