Speaking of scoring better than normal,
Toronto FC did just that Saturday.
Maybe it was having hockey as a lead-in, or maybe it was the thirst for a winning team here but Toronto FC pulled in its biggest audience of the season Saturday. Its 1-1 draw with Columbus attracted an average audience of 261,000 on CBC. Overall this year, TFC is averaging 178,000 viewers on the public network, a vast improvement over 2008.
Here are the top-rated sports events of the past weekend, according to BBM Nielsen Media Research overnight ratings.
1. Hockey, Blackhawks at Canucks, Saturday, CBC: 1,879,000
2. Hockey, Hurricanes at Bruins, Sunday, TSN: 805,000
3. Hockey, Ducks at Red Wings, Friday, CBC: 746,000
4. Hockey, Penguins at Capitals, Saturday, CBC: 632,000*
5. Hockey Night In Canada pre-game show, Saturday, CBC: 574,000
6. Hockey, Ducks at Red Wings, Sunday, TSN: 567,000*
7. Hockey, Hurricanes at Bruins, Friday, TSN: 514,000
8. Baseball, Orioles at Blue Jays, Sunday, Sportsnet: 340,000
9. Soccer, Columbus at Toronto FC, Saturday, CBC: 261,000
10. Baseball, Orioles at Blue Jays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 255,000
* NBC's Canadian audiences not calculated