Apr 30, 2006

Round-up of NHL pre-game shows

TSN/CP has a good overview of pre-game shows from around the NHL:

Edmonton: "The show begins with time-lapse view of fans filling the arena and continues with a player-by-player salute where each backlit and intense-looking face stares into the camera in front of a shimmering backdrop. Action snippets of each player are blended in as rock music pounds."

Montreal: "The Canadiens beam a video onto the Bell Centre ice before games covering moments from their 24 Stanley cup victories and ending with images of the current players."

Calgary: "Fire shoots out of two boxes suspended high above each end of the ice, and projected team logos whirl around the ice."

Ottawa: "Rev Up The Red is the slogan being used by the Senators, who've revved up their game to advance to the second round. Fans are encouraged to wear red, and most show up donned in replica home sweaters. They've become known as the Sens Army."

Detroit: "Joe Louis Arena goes dark and four drummers, one in each of the faceoff circles, begin pounding away. A crescendo of drumbeats builds for more than four minutes as silhouettes of dancers move on the video screen above centre ice."

San Jose: "There is lighting behind each player's head, casting huge silhouettes, and there is extra lighting during the playoffs to further highlight the massive shark's head through which the players reach the ice."

(via Kuklas Korner)

Aguilera sings the anthem at an NHL game

Christina Aguilera sings the Star Spangled Banner at Pittsburgh game during the regular season.

Flyers use Kate Smith anthem for good luck

The Philadelphia Flyers are sommuning the ghost of Kate Smith to bring them good luck in their series versus Buffalo.

From the National Post:
Kate Smith has been dead for 30 years, but that hasn't stopped the Flyers from digging up their unusual good luck charm whenever the team is in dire need of a win.

It worked on Wednesday. After Philadelphia had lost the opening two games against the Sabres in Buffalo, a recorded version of Smith singing God Bless America was shown on the Wachovia Center's JumboTron, while Lauren Hart (the daughter of the Flyers' late announcer, Gene) accompanied her live. The Flyers won that game 4-2 to improve to 68-17-3 with Smith's vocals leading the way.


Read the full article...

Apr 28, 2006

Fan video of Oilers opening show



Thunderbug's roof stunt in Tampa Bay

Thunderbug, the Tampa Bay Lightning mascot, was part of a marketing stunt this week. He spent eight days on the roof of St. Pete Times Forum, in 100F weather, to promote ticket sales for Tampa's first home playoff game. Read Don Brennan's article in the Ottawa Sun.

Bobbleheads, by team

Here's a web site that's compiling a list of every baseball bobblehead giveaway this season. Source: Adfreak

Apr 26, 2006

Homer & Marge get caught on the kiss cam

A TV Tip for Simpsons fans:

In the 17th season finale of THE SIMPSONS Sunday, May 21 (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT), entitled "Homer and Marge Turn a Couple Play," Mandy Moore and Stacy Keach guest-voice. After a passionate kiss between Marge and Homer airs on the Isotope Jumbotron, struggling second baseman Buck Mitchell turns to the couple for marital advice. The Simpsons are able to get Buck and his sexy singing wife, Fiona (guest voice Moore), on track, and the Isotopes' season turns for the better. Things seem to be coming up aces for the Simpsons until Buck catches Homer giving Fiona a post-show neck massage, which results in both couples separating.


Source: Movieweb.com

Fan video of Sharks opening show



Here's a fan video of the San Jose Sharks opening show for the playoffs. Includes the lowering of the giant shark head Via
Sharkspage

Hot or Not mascots

Sports Illustrated offers their pics for hot and not hot college mascots.

The best of the worst:

Apr 25, 2006

V is for Vermette

Japer's Rink offers up this "Worthless Stat Of The Night":

Vermette goal (assisted by Varada, Volchenkov) 1st time in NHL playoff history 3pts on 1 goal by players with last names starting with "V"

Apr 24, 2006

Wacky minor league promotion ideas

ESPN.com's Page 2 presents some wacky promotion ideas:


  • Umpire Colonoscopy Night

  • Michael Jordan Demolition Night

  • Moises Alou Manicure Night

  • Britney Spears Bring Your Child to the Ballpark Night

  • Just Another Night

Apr 18, 2006

Mets debut new team song

From Newsday.com: The New York Mets have introduced a new team song, called "Our Team. Our Time". The song will match the Mets new season marketing campaign. "Its hip-hop beat makes it a tad more contemporary than 'Meet the Mets', in which fans are encouraged to 'bring your kiddies' and 'bring your wife'.

Read the article...

Apr 17, 2006

Kids hurt in minor-league cash-drop promotion

Courtesy of adfreak: Kids hurt in cash-drop promotion: just another day in minor-league baseball

"Marketing people who work in minor-league baseball enjoy smoking lots of crack, judging by some of the promotions they come up with... the West Michigan Whitecaps dropped $1,000 from a helicopter and had kids on the field scramble for the money. Predictably, one 7-year-old boy ended up in hospital after being trampled. Team officials don’t even sound fazed. Says one coolly: “It’s for fun and games. This is why we have everybody sign a waiver.”

Tips & tricks from the Portland Trailblazers

This month on GameOps.com, a look at the production team behind the Portland Trailblazers game entertainment. These guys do a great job -- and even invented the Game Ops Commander software that many teams use to run their audio playback. Read the full story at: Gameops.com Six from Six: Portland Trailblazers

A couple of highlights:
  • Todd Bosma, Portland's game presentation manager, doubles as the in-game host.
  • The game presentation staff is stationed mid-way up the stands, at centre court.

Inappropriate text messaging on the video scoreboard

From STLtoday.com, a report about some inappropriate text messages that made it past software & human filters, onto the video scoreboard:
One of the new features at Busch Stadium is a system that allows fans to send a text message that will appear on the scoreboard in right-center field for $2.99. That system, however, broke down on the Cardinals on Wednesday night when an obscenity slipped through the screening system and appeared on the board.

"There's an automatic screener and a manual screener," said Dan Farrell, the Cardinals' senior vice president for sales and marketing. "It made it past the automatic screener, but the manual screener caught it and disabled the message, but it still went to the board."


TV Tip: The Zambonis perform on CBC's Hockeyville

The Zambonis sent us this email today:

"The CBC has invited The Zambonis to perform live on a new series called "Hockeyville." We will be taping the show in Kingston, Ontario (the supposed birthplace of hockey) at a great "barn," The Kingston Memorial Centre. We are soooo excited to play for the CBC/Canada--the show features The Zambonis and our friend and co-writer of the song, James Kochalka performing "Hockey Monkey". Also on the show will be actor Peter Keleghan (simply unforgettable in "Death to Smoochy") and Barenaked Ladies drummer/chippy funnyman Tyler Stewart.

We encourage our Canadian fans to come to the taping of the show!!! To reserve free tickets for the April 19th show, visit
www.stlawrencefestivals.com/hockeyville.htm (Happy to report that the April 2nd episode of Hockeyville, featured accomplished Canadian musicians Kim Stockwood and Wendell Ferguson performing a rendition of our very own Zambonis-penned ballad "We Write The Songs That Make The Whole Rink Sing." Sweet!"

Apr 15, 2006

Philadelphia Flyers introduce pink jerseys

These pink Philadelphia Flyers jerseys aren't quite as intimidating as the organge-and-black: Read more... (via Kukla's Korner)

Apr 14, 2006

Great sign at Sens game last night

Spotted in the crowd at the Senators vs. Florida game last night at Scotiabank Place:

A fan with a sign that read, "Zdeno Is Tall".

Apr 9, 2006

Al Strachan on "O Canada" at Maple Leafs games

From Al Strachan's column this morning in the Toronto Sun:

"For years, anthem singers at American hockey games have used the original score in a purely advisory capacity. But in Canada, our national anthem always has been treated with respect and sung the way it was written. This season, however, variations have been creeping in, the ultimate indignity being inflicted at the Air Canada Centre last Saturday when O Canada was sung by a group that hit the original notes only by pure coincidence on the way to yet another perpetration of atonal discord. It's the national anthem, not some pop refrain. The next thing we know, they'll be doing a rap version of O Canada." Read more...

This reminds me of a quote from Richard Crepeau, a professor of hitory at the University of Central Florida:

"In recent years, the national anthem has lost its patriotic air in most sports venues. It has become an occasion for entertainers to display their talents or lack thereof, fans to create new cheers, and the networks to run commercials. Its symbolic significance has been overshadowed by commercial purposes and public indifference, but it can still rattle the cages when someone uses it as an occasion for protest."