All about Leverage

Here’s something you don’t read every day: Kudos to Gary Bettman. Unlike previous years in which the NHL schedule was quietly released in mid-July – one of hockey’s few dead months – the league did things very differently this year, choosing instead to leverage the media spotlight of the Stanley Cup Final to announce the key highlights of next year’s campaign.

Although the complete schedule won’t be released until June 22 (also leveraged, this time with the Entry Draft), Gary Bettman’s timing to unveil all the highlights of next year’s schedule earlier this afternoon, on the eve of the Stanley Cup Final, shows that he can make some good business decisions. Just as hockey broadcasters air games at specific times to attract as many eyeballs as possible, the league is right to disseminate its message about next season to as many people as it can, and what better audience magnet could there be to the game of hockey than the Stanley Cup Final?

Next year’s highlights include a pair of doubleheaders to kick off the season on Thursday, October 7: On CBC, the Maple Leafs will host the Canadiens and the Oilers will entertain Calgary, while on U.S. cable the Flyers will play Pittsburgh and Chicago will take on Colorado. The New Year’s Day outdoor Winter Classic will be played between the Penguins and Capitals on NBC. There is also a strong possibility of a second outdoor game, this time featuring the all-Canadian matchup of Montreal in Calgary on Sunday, February 20. CBC’s Hockey Day in Canada, the annual celebration of our country’s “love and devotion to the game” will take place on Saturday, February 12 with Ottawa at Edmonton in the afternoon, followed by Toronto at Montreal and Calgary at Vancouver as the evening games. For the first time, the NHL will also experiment with the idea south of the border with Hockey Day in America on Sunday, February 20. The playoffs will begin on Wednesday, April 13.

The league reached a lot more people by making these announcements today as opposed to two months from now. This, Gary, is how you grow the game. Now, we just have to talk about that Phoenix thing . . .

THIS WEEKEND'S GAMES:
Tonight
No games scheduled
Saturday
Flyers at Blackhawks - Game 1, 8 p.m. (NBC)/(CBC)/(RDS)
Sunday
No games scheduled