Hockey corporate sponsorship…Now on goalies!

Welcome back boys and girls to the NHL’s never-ending pursuit to be considered a major sport in the United States (again). To recap so far…

• The NHL played a game outside!
  
• The NHL re-upped with Versus!

So, what is the NHL’s new scheme to bring in revenue? Well, technically, this isn’t an NHL idea, but the idea of NHL players. Welcome to The Goaltender’s Club. Who is in this “Goaltender’s Club” and what do they do? Glad you asked,

Now a group of influential NHL players that includes New Jersey’s Martin Brodeur, Dallas’s Marty Turco, Detroit’s Dominik Hasek and Edmonton’s Dwayne Roloson want the league’s uniforms altered again. In what would be a radical overhaul that might incite hockey traditionalists but surely gratify some of the league’s cash-strapped owners, several NHL goalies have asked the league and its players union to consider starting a so-called Goaltender’s Club. Revenue-generating initiatives for the club could include placing a corporate logo on the jerseys of the league’s 60-odd goalies.

Are all of you hockey traditionalists ready to see all of your favorite hockey goalies looking like NASCAR drivers? A better question…”Does hockey care enough about the traditionalists to sacrifice their chance to make easy money?” With the way the NHL has been struggling revenue wise, I think you already know the answer to that question. Don’t believe me? lets review,

The league’s overall revenue this season is estimated to be as much as $2.56 billion (U.S.), 10 per cent more than last year’s $2.31 billion and 22 per cent more than the $2.1 billion generated in 2005-06, the first season played under the current labor contract….

Consider that while just six of the NHL’s 30 teams are based in Canada, they account for close to one-third of the league’s overall revenue. And since September 2005 alone, the Canadian dollar has surged some 19 per cent in value, from 83.9 cents U.S. to parity. The loonie’s climb may be responsible for as much as half of the league’s revenue gains since the lockout, says one source familiar with NHL finances.

…it’s rarely been more expensive to attend an NHL game. The average NHL ticket this season costs $48.72, up 7.7 per cent from last year, while the average luxury-box ticket costs $112.10, a 17-per-cent increase, according to Team Marketing Report, a company that tracks ticket prices in pro sports.

Now, I’ve already documented the NHL’s revenue increases, which seem to be based on increases in ticket prices (See: Ovechkin makes NHL history…without an agent), but this article brings up another important point; the Canadian dollar. As the article mentions, along with the ticket price increases, the Canadian dollar is doing extremely well right now; who knows if the NHL is really even making money? The Goaltender’s Club almost sounds like a necessary evil for hockey traditionalists, doesn’t it? I mean, who knows when the Canadian dollar is going to crash, or when consumers are going to refuse to pay for another ticket increase. That stuff could go away anytime, but a Bank of America logo on Dominik Hasek’s jersey? That’s forever.

TheStar.com: Is this the NHL’s new look?

Sports Business Digest: Ovechkin makes NHL history…without an agent

Category: Hockey