The NHL Needs a New Approach

Last night, another team had its name etched onto the side of Lord Stanley's cup. However, for much of America, outside of Detroit and Pittsburgh, this bit of sports news was a relative whimper, relegated behind the upcoming NBA Finals and even stories of Lesbians kissing at a Mariners game in terms of importance in the world of sports.

So how has the NHL fallen off so far off the American sports landscape, even as it remains popular in Canada? Many will point to the strike as the biggest culprit. Canceling an entire season didn't do any wonders in terms of keeping fans or winning new ones. Still, the league, upon settling the strike and resuming play, did a decent job of trying to win back fans by increasing the speed of play and making the game more exciting for audiences.

But while they put a lot of time and effort into reconnecting the game with a younger fan base, something is still missing; marketing. Spend any major amount of time watching television this week and I'll guarantee you see countless advertising spots for the Celtics/Lakers edition of the NBA Finals which gets underway on Thursday night. Now sit down and think hard and try to count on one hand how many ads you viewed pertaining to the Stanley Cup Finals. Didn't have to flex very many fingers did you?

So what does the NHL need to do to make itself more relevant? Its simple, the league cancelled an entire season because owners were losing money due to player salaries, but after having won that battle, they need to in turn invest some of that savings into getting the names out there. The league is filled with marketable young stars that could easily influence a generation of kids to play and follow the game. Other leagues, Major League Baseball comes to mind, have youth initiatives designed to gets American kids interested in playing the game and striving to make it to the big show.

You create interest in the game, kids will find their own heroes to follow and the popularity of the league will soar. However, if the league continues to operate under the guise that "if we play it, fans will come", then they'll do nothing more than play themselves into obscurity.