Each of the four major North American sporting leagues (NHL, NFL, NBA, and MLB) have their own all-star games in which they showcase their top talent to whoever actually watches. Aside from the MLB All-Star Game (in which the winning conference is granted home-field advantage for the World Series), these games have literally no effect on the season. So, why hold these events at all then? Simple, they are a marketing tool for these leagues. Sadly, they don’t seem to be very effective ones.
This season however, the NHL has taken a major step which could be a major break-through for the league. Desperate to solidify an American fan base, the NHL has introduced a new process for selecting these all-star teams in which 42 of the league’s brightest stars have been selected (six of which by the fans) as the all stars. That part is standard to all leagues. But here’s the kicker; instead of the typical conference-versus-conference format, these 42 all stars have voted two captains to take part in a “fantasy draft” to select teams of the remaining 40 players.
I think this is a brilliant attempt to bring a traditional playground feeling to the game and present some interesting drama situations like who goes first, who goes last, teammate-versus-teammate and even brother-versus-brother! We’ll just have to wait until All-Star Weekend (Jan. 28-30) to see how it all unfolds (See, it even sounds like the reality TV we all love!). The NHL really has nothing to lose here and this new format seems to be generating some well-needed buzz. And with labour stoppages looming in both the NFL and the NBA, the time is now for the NHL to start grabbing some of that market-share. This innovation is a great first step. The players seem excited and so am I.
