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Introducing Snap Shots from Snap.com!

Hello NHL Business Blog Readers!

In my never ending quest to ensure that you have the best possible experience on my site, I decided to install a nice little tool called Snap Shots. It enhances links with visual previews of the destination sites, interactive excerpts of Wikipedia articles, display inline videos, RSS, MP3s, photos, stock charts and more.

Sometimes Snap Shots bring you the information you need, without your having to leave the site, while other times it lets you "look ahead," before deciding if you want to follow a link or not.

Should you decide this is not for you, just click the Options icon in the upper right corner of the Snap Shot and opt-out.

As always, if you have any questions, comments, concerns or anything else you would like to share with me, fire up an email and contact me at: nhlblogger@gmail.com!

Monday, May 19, 2008

NHL PLAYERS THINK ABOUT NEXT LABOUR MOVE

From Reuters:

By Ben Klayman

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - National Hockey League players have the option to reopen the current labor deal with owners a year early, but likely will not make a final decision until the middle of next season, the players' union chief said on Friday.

Three years since NHL teams imposed a salary cap after a bitter labor dispute wiped out the entire 2004-2005 season, the National Hockey League Players Association is weighing the merits and challenges of reopening the deal at the end of next season, NHLPA Executive Director Paul Kelly told Reuters.

"We're just beginning to have that dialogue with the players," he said at the Sports Lawyers Association's annual conference in San Francisco. "I don't think anyone has a tremendous appetite for serious labor negotiations unless there's a good, solid business reason for it."
While acknowledging the union would love to kill the salary cap, he warned that reopening the deal would also give owners a crack at renegotiating parts of the contract they do not like.
"The players need to understand ... be careful what you wish for; that you could be finding yourself embroiled in a much longer and more difficult discussion," he said.

The union also has the option of extending the deal a year through the 2011-2012 season, Kelly said. The owners do not have similar options.

Kelly said the union will hold player meetings in Colorado Springs, Colorado, next month and in Rome in July to begin talks on contract issues. Those talks will continue during fall tours with each team and by the middle of next season the union will have established its views to make a final decision.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Versus Matches NBC for Record Viewership

The NHL on Versus continued its record breaking romp thorough the post-season as it set an all-time record for viewership for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers. The game drew 2.3 million viewers, and got a 1.8 rating. It was the most watched event in terms of viewers in Versus/OLN history and second to the final stage of the 2005 Tour de France in terms of ratings.

The 2.3 million viewers is equal to Game 5 between the Penguins and Rangers which was broadcast on NBC the previous Sunday. That was the most watched non-Stanley Cup Final playoff game in five years.

Versus was again the #1 cable network in terms of total viewers, the 18-34 and 18-49 male demographics during the telecast. It also beat the competing NBA telecast on TNT (Hornets-Spurs) in these metrics. Versus is now averaging a 1.2 for the Conference Finals, which up 50% from the 0.8 it averaged last season.

The fact that Versus continues to set record ratings may be surprising to some but seems fairly predictable when you look at the facts. You have a matchup of the 4th largest US media market with the most exciting, young team in the league, which by the way, is also located in a hockey crazy city. On top of that, unlike in many markets in the US, Versus has excellent penetration in the two cities, with Versus and parent company Comcast being based in Philadelphia. This allowed Versus to draw a 22.3 in Pittsburgh and a 9.4 in Philadelphia, and be the top show on either broadcast or cable in Pittsburgh and #2 in Philadelphia among both broadcast and cable. It is also a reason that Detroit-Dallas didn't draw the same ratings despite having a few hundred thousand more TV households in their markets.

It will be interesting to see if Versus will draw significantly higher for their Stanley Cup Finals games, since I don't believe they have the same type of penetration in Detroit or Dallas as they do in Pennsylvania. I think they will, but I will be curious as to how much.

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Worst Pre-Game Intro Ever

I came across this video on Youtube of an Ottawa Senators game in the 1st round this year. This has got to be the worst pre-game introduction ever, not just in the NHL, but all of professional sports. What do you think?

Friday, May 9, 2008

NHL on NBC Gets Best Network Ratings Since 2003

The NHL on NBC finally got its ratings! Game 5 between the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers was the highest rated NHL broadcast excluding the Winter Classic and Stanley Cup Finals, on any network since May 10, 2003. The telecast drew 2.3 million viewers! On May 10, 2003 the Anaheim Mighty Ducks faced off against the Minnesota Wild in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on ABC, and ended up drawing 2.4 million viewers.

It must've been a real disappointment to the suits at the league office that the series didn't go 7 games. Though I'm not sure that Game 7 would have been on NBC, the ratings would still have been excellent.

I'm a little surprised that a game involving Anaheim and Minnesota would out-rate a New York-Pittsburgh matchup, but it was the Conference Finals and this was only the second round. It also seems as though a lot of fans were waiting till the series progressed and there was the threat of elimination to tune in. Anyways, the news is good for the league, and with three big market hockey teams plus the most exciting marketable team in the league in the Conference Finals, the NHL should re-establish itself as a major league in terms of TV ratings (in the eyes of some mainstream US media) this year.

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Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Project Development Plan Approved for Pittsburgh Arena

The City Planning Commission in Pittsburgh approved the project development plan for the new arena slated to open in Pittsburgh in 2010. Penguins CEO Ken Sawyer was elated telling reporters that “we’re very happy,” after the commission voted unanimously to approve the plan. “There are several stages to building the arena and this, certainly, is a very important one.”

During the presentation, architect Wayne London revealed many renderings of the new arena for the first time.

The Penguins and HOK, (the company designing the arena) still have many hurdles, as they "must meet several conditions set forth by the commission and will work with the City Planning staff to accomplish those."

The project development plan, from what I know, is basically the process of figuring out how you are going to meet your goals and objectives for the project. Basically, how you're going to get the project done, on time and on budget. It's good that they have decided how they are going to approach building this arena, now they will have about 2 1/2 years to make it happen. The renderings look promising, though I don't think the Pittsburgh arena is as nice as the Newark one, which I believe, was also designed by HOK.

The renderings can be seen here: http://penguins.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=MediaGalleryPlayer&galleryId=6283

Monday, May 5, 2008

Don Cherry to Join ESPN

Word out of Toronto is that colorful Hockey Night in Canada commentator Don Cherry will join ESPN for the NHL Conference Finals and maybe even the Stanley Cup. NBC brought Cherry in previously during the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals to enlighten the US audience and drive up ratings.

This is a good move by ESPN, but somewhat surprising. I didn't really think they cared about covering hockey this much, especially since they have rights to competing NBA Playoff series'. Don Cherry will do a good job making the broadcasts fun and interesting though he may be a little controversial. That, however, is good in American TV. The NBA, NFL and MLB have thrived with a ton of controversy surrounding their game and in particular, many of their athletes. It gets the game in the papers, internet and other forms of media, generating attention, awareness and interest. Despite "Spygate," the Tim Donaghy scandal and the steroid era, financially and interest-wise, these leagues have never been healthier.

Sports is no longer just about sports these days it's about sports AND entertainment. Don Cherry will deliver that.

Here's a clip of Cherry's stint at NBC last season, enjoy!:

Saturday, May 3, 2008

NHL on Versus Sets Records

They managed to draw 1.2 million people

The NHL on Versus set a record with a 1.0 TV rating during Game 4 between the NY Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins. That apparently is their best rating ever. They also managed to draw 1.2 million people which is also a record, along with having the highest viewership among males 18-39 and 18-49 of all cable programs broadcast during that timeslot. They even managed to beat the competing Detroit Pistons - Philadelphia 76ers matchup on TNT in those demographics.

The game drew a 2.1 household rating in the NY market....

The game drew a 2.1 household rating in the NY market and a 15.3 household rating in the Pittsburgh market. That is also a record for NHL on Versus ratings in both markets. On top of all that, the telecast was the highest rated show on cable in New York and the most watched show on TV in the Pittsburgh.

This was a unique broadcast, as Versus had exclusivity.

This was a unique broadcast, as Versus had exclusivity. That means that no other American network (national or regional) could broadcast the game.Versus has exclusivity for their Tuesday regular season matchups (before the Super Bowl, and Monday matchups afterwards), two games per series during the Conference Semi-Finals, the Conference Finals and the first two games of the Stanley Cup Finals. This goes to show you that Versus can draw respectable ratings given the appropriate matchups and exclusivity.

When I first saw this rating, I was stunned and in shock. Not because I didn't think the NHL could draw these numbers, but because of the horrid 1.2 rating they drew on NBC with Game 2 of the series. NBC has exclusivity for every game they broadcast, in the regular season and playoffs. I didn't think there was a hope in hell of them drawing anything close to this number. I expected that they would be in the 0.6-0.7 range. Was the Versus telecast that much better that people started to tune in? Or was it just the possibility of seeing an elimination that got the fans to come out? It just goes to show you, you never know what's going to happen.....Or maybe sports fans are just weird.


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Friday, May 2, 2008

Fabian Brunnstrom Tours NHL Cities

The best player in the world not playing in the NHL, Fabian Brunnstrom, is touring NHL cities in hopes of picking a team to sign with. According to reports, it seems as if he has narrowed his choices to Dallas, Detroit and Montreal. There were a number of teams interested in his services including the Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Anaheim Ducks and reportedly another 12 other NHL teams.

The situation has essentially turned into a recruitment process (much like how high school athletes are recruited by colleges) because Brunnstrom can only sign a maximum entry level contract since he has never been drafted into the NHL and is only 23. All he has to do, is pick the team and system which will be the best fit.

If you're asking me, he's wrong to pick those teams. They're all very deep, with an abundance of young talented players. They may be winners, but he may have a hard time cracking the lineup unless he can consistently be a force every night. I haven't heard that much about him, so he may be that type of player. Considering how many teams are interested in him, it may work out. I also wonder whether he and his agent JP Barry will ask the teams to commit to playing him a certain amount of time. I wouldn't make any promises if I was a GM, but when bidding gets this competitive, a player can get things out of management that they normally wouldn't.


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