With most of the big name teams out, the NHL conference finals have gotten off to a slower start.

Game 2 of the Sharks/Blues NHL Western Conference final had 1.1 million viewers on NBCSN Tuesday night, down 34% from Blackhawks/Ducks last year (1.7M), down 23% from Kings/Blackhawks in 2014 (1.4M), and the least-watched game in the round since Coyotes/Kings Game 3 four years ago (835K).

The Sharks’ series-tying rout trailed Game 1 of the series on Sunday night (1.6M), which itself was down 21% from Blackhawks/Ducks last year (2.1M) and 25% from Kings/Blackhawks in 2014 (2.2M), both of which aired on the NBC broadcast network. Despite the decline, it was still the third-most watched conference final opener on NBCSN (14 telecasts).

In the East, Monday’s Lightning/Penguins Game 2 had 1.7 million viewers — down 8% from Lightning/Rangers last year (1.9M) but up 15% from Rangers/Canadiens in ’14 (1.5). The 8% decline matched Game 1 of the series last Friday night, which as previously reported was the most-watched conference final opener ever on NBCSN.

(Numbers via ShowBuzz Daily [1], [2], [3])