Paige Ellis

Reporter

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For the first time since 1970, Canada has been shut out of the NHL playoffs. For fans, it’s a disappointing end to a lackluster regular season.

For Rogers Communications Inc. (RCIb.TO), which owns the NHL broadcast rights in this country, the absence of Canadian teams from the post-season could spell pain.

In 2013, the telecom giant paid $5.2 billion for a 12-year contract with the NHL.

But that big bet hasn’t lived up to expectations.

This season, the average audience for Hockey Night in Canada across both the early and late games was 1.2 million viewers. That’s 15 per cent below year-ago levels, and a 19-per-cent drop compared to the 2013-2014 season, the last time CBC held broadcast rights.

Now, with no Canadian teams to cheer for in the post-season, polls suggest viewership could tumble further.

More than half of regular playoff watchers in Canada say they will consume less playoff hockey or none at all, according to a recent study by Angus Reid.

“The biggest impact of no Canadian teams in the playoffs will be on [Rogers'] advertising side,” Troy Crandall, an analyst at 3Macs, told BNN.

Crandall notes the impact on Rogers' profit will be muted – likely less than one per cent of EBITDA. But he says the absence of Canadian teams in the playoffs will hurt the company’s ability to cross-sell more lucrative products.

“It’s more than just the money they bring in for baseball or the money they bring in for hockey,” Crandall said. “It's how much does it help them sell things, like their cellphones.”

Rogers, for its part, told BNN sports are a “cyclical business.”

“This year is an anomaly, with not only no Canadian teams in the Stanley Cup Playoffs but also with the Canadian teams out of contention early on,” Scott Moore, president of Sportsnet and NHL Properties for Rogers, told BNN.

“We're reacting, not overreacting.”

The NHL playoffs start Wednesday evening.