Can the NHL benefit from the NFL and NBA lockouts?

was due to the end of their agreement with ESPN and had to go to Versus. Honestly, as much as I like Lightning hockey, I rarely pay attention to other teams in the league outside of the playoffs. That is due in part to the lack of games and highlight coverage on ESPN and the fact that Versus always finds a way to annoy me. The only way I see the NHL really capitalizing on other lockouts is if a similar situation happens with the NBA (No way it happens to the NFL). I don’t know the details of any contracts, but either way I doubt that happens because the NBA, thanks to college basketball, has a stronger backbone than the NHL.

The NHL may gain a few more fans and a bit of increased coverage, but that will be about it.

Steve Lepore of PucktheMedia.com has an article on a possible new deal for college hockey on Versus, if anyone is interested. “College Hockey Super-Conference to Head For VERSUS?”

If the NFL doesn’t play in October, there might be a few more tickets sold/TV games watched in the southern hockey markets, but these would be to people who already know about hockey rather than to completely new fans. It takes great marketing, including word of mouth from hockey fans, to bring new fans into the fold. It’s a good opportunity for marketing from the NHL, true, but it also takes marketing from the local franchises and local fans to make it happen, And that’s unlikely to be a concerted or consistent effort.

My advice for spreading the hockey gospel is to take your friends to a game, explain the things they ask about, and just have a good time. That’s what brings them back.

there’s hockey outside of manhattan?

The NBA and NFL lockout will definitely help hockey ratings and introduce more fans to the game. Not too many people know how gritty hockey is and I think a lot of fans (with nothing else to watch) will fall in love with hockey and continue to watch even when the NBA and NFL lockout is over.

ESPN was more likely to have Boxing and other sports then hockey games. Versus does a better job in my opinion.

but not all that much.

I hate even the thought of another NHL “work stoppage” Which makes it hard to do the ol’ Nelson point and laugh.. “hahaa” …Even though I think for the most part, the whole lockout thing is ridiculous. Like politics, rich people arguing about money is hard to resinate with the working class, whose only escape is indulging their favorite sport/team.

As far as if it will help the NHL at all… I have a hard time believing that just because their is a lockout for your sport, that the average fan will start following another sport. Not to say it doesn’t happen… but when it does, it more probable that it was due to a spark that was already present in some form or another(from a friend or special event). What is more likely.. that they’ll stick within the comfort zone and just keep updated on “lockout news and updates”

Another huge factor is where the person lives, more likely to start following another sport, if their local team is successful in that sport. For example, the only Florida team I’m a fan of really, is the Bolts. All my other teams are Michigan related.. so if god forbid there was no hockey, it’d be hard to just watch football, because I’m a Lion’s fan, haha. At least the Wolverines are starting to look better…

College and pro games just became bland, and I only carved out time for games when Southern Illinois played. Even then it was usually just a radio feed so I could do other stuff while listening to the game. After last year, it really died off for me. When you start watching the games more for the beer commercials than the game, you know your love for the sport is gone.

Basketball hasn’t been a going concern for me since 2nd grade when I played one year in a YMCA league.

Baseball and hockey are pretty much the only two sports which I’ll take time to fully devote my attention to the games, whether juniors/ prospect leagues or minor and major leagues. Baseball has enough proponents, so I make sure to take people to hockey games instead. The result? My youngest cousin who never liked team sports before suddenly likes team sports and now both my parents are wondering when they can get season tickets for the local juniors team. (That they’re also both now feeling guilty that they never let me play youth league hockey is also a huge bonus.) Spreading the word about hockey helps the NHL a little and juniors a lot.

As far as work stoppages go, though, there’s also a significant number of people who will look at the football and basketball leagues and use the uncertainty there as a reason for not getting involved with other sports. They won’t want to invest their time into something that might follow other industries into a similar stoppage. So it’s a big risk.

Should the NHL go after these sports fans who don’t have a professional game to watch? Yes. The risk is worth the reward for them. Will they have to work extremely hard to not cause any strikes or lockouts once the collective bargaining agreement ends? Yes. Handling the CBA issue with skill and a swift resolution that benefits owners and players alike will be the biggest test of the NHL’s management in keeping new fans. It will build trust among the fans that yes, a bunch of millionaires and billionaires can sit down and argue over money calmly and rationally and come to some kind of agreement that generates both goodwill and revenue. That will help to ensure that people who are hooked stay hooked.

Now, if the NBA and NFL work out their problems by the end of July, then we’re back to step one when attracting new fans.

However, I believe both the owners and the players realize the damage another lockout would create. At least that’s my hope.

This really is—assuming the NFL and NBA lockouts are lengthy—a golden opportunity for Versus, the league, and the NHLPA to gain momentum in the U.S. market.