The Canuck police drama Flashpoint has made the most of a seemingly undesirable timeslot, emerging as Friday night’s most-watched primetime show in the U.S. following its 10 p.m. debut on CBS. The episode lifted the network to first place overall for the night.

The pilot, simulcast on CTV, drew more than eight million viewers in the U.S. It also ranked first in the key 25-54 and 18-49 demographics, according to Nielsen Media Research. Both CTV and CBS, apparently feeling bullish on their new series, rebroadcast the show Sunday night at 10 p.m. CTV said it would have its own numbers later on Monday.

Flashpoint follows a group of cops in Toronto’s Strategic Response Unit that is called into action in precarious situations such as hostage-takings, which was the premise for the first episode. It stars Hugh Dillon (Durham County), Enrico Colantoni (Veronica Mars) and Amy Jo Johnson (Felicity). Executive producers are Anne-Marie La Traverse of Pink Sky Entertainment and Bill Mustos of Avamar Entertainment, who spearheaded the rare deal arrived at with CBS.

The 13-part Flashpoint is the first Canadian drama series since Due South to air in network primetime in both Canada and the U.S.