Learning Where Others Succeed

I often struggle with the amateur nature of university hockey in this country. While we look to our neighbours to the south and see NCAA programs that dwark even our best programs in Canada where hockey is supposed to be our national sport, I continually shake my head at the lack of support and lack of dollars invested in our university programs. Perhaps the reason for that is because no one watches the game in Canada unless one has a vested interest in a specific team. Being as niche as it is, wouldn't that make it more like minor-pro hockey than amateur hockey?

It's not lost on me that Wayne Fleming Arena looks less like the home of the Fluffy Cows and more like a professional rink with all the advertising on the walls, the ice, and the boards since the WHL's Winnipeg Ice moved into arena at the University of Manitoba. The Ice are an amateur team by definition, but they run their organization like a professional hockey franchise where corporate sponsorship, fan engagement, and driving revenue streams is baked into everything they do. They're businesses, not charities.

The obvious question that needs to be asked is why don't Canadian universities run their hockey programs like businesses rather than running them like charities?

Some will point to the fact that most university athletics departments are run as not-for-profit ventures, but that doesn't mean that not-for-profit organizations can't generate revenue to re-invest into the program and facilities. If the revenue is spent on improving the programs and facilties, everyone benefits - players, coaches, administrators, and fans. If that's the ticket to making a difference, how can university programs drive revenue to make those investments in itself?

The first thing that I see that can be changed is the atmosphere. Hockey teams no longer just sell the game on the ice, but the experience at the game. Whether it be a live band playing during stoppages like they have in Nashville, promotional giveaways for fans like all NHL and minor-pro teams do, or eccentric pregame festivities like we see in Vegas, the gameday experience matters. Some of the best examples of in-game experiences include the student sections at NCAA games where they bring all sorts of noise-making gear, and all of these examples create atmosphere. Atmosphere lends itself to the experience people have at games, so let's start by building that atmosphere by finding ways to encourage people to come to the rink.

One of the cooler things that a minor-pro team has done is theming each of their home games. The SPHL's Pensacola Ice Flyers decided that every home game would have a different theme or giveaway featured - October 29 was "Capes and Crowns" night where fans were encouraged to dress up in Halloween costumes, December 2's game saw them hold their annual "Teddy Bear Toss" game, and March 11 is "Rebrand Night" where the Ice Flyers will rebrand themselves for one night only. Proceeds from jersey auctions go towards helping local charities, and those charities bring out friends and family to games on nights where they're the honoured group. That seems like an easy win for university hockey teams, right?

What matters, though, is that Pensacola is "on pace to approach their highest home attendance in franchise history" while one game in November was "the largest November crowd in franchise history". The theme nights have helped, but the in-game presentation has also been improved greatly after Pensacola hired marketing director Brenden Arney, senior digital content creator Adam Waldron, and digital content creator Alyssa Cherney to collaborate and produce nightly game productions from what you see on the scoreboards to what's happening on the concourse to the experiences fans have while sitting in their seats.

"They are a bunch of wizards in what they can do," Ice Flyers owner Greg Harris told Bill Vilona of the Pensacola Press Journal. "They all have extremely high expectations and standards as well. Sometimes I look at something, and think wow my team put this together. It is like a proud boss moment. We have a great team here.

"Our videos and graphics are on point right now. Brenden has a master's degree in digital arts. He has changed my thought process on marketing. The research he does and what he has learned and some of the strategies has brought a new perspective on what we are doing."

Isn't that a novel concept - hiring people whose expertise is marketing? It's weird how that works.

"I have friends from Canada who have come down to visit me and they live in very traditional hockey markets and the game is set a certain way. They say they never had so much fun at a game before," Harris told Vilona. "That’s the feedback we love to hear.

"Hey, are we going to win every night? No, but we want to make the sure the value and quality of what (ticket buyers) receive walking through the door is extremely high when it comes to in-game entertainment and fun."

Think about that last statement: the SPHL's Pensacola Ice Flyers, playing in an league that's equivalent to Single-A baseball, is selling the game experience, not the game of hockey, and seeing an increase in attendance despite most hockey fans being unable to name one player on the Ice Flyers' roster. The Ice Flyers aren't working with a billionaire owner who can simply spend his way out of mistakes, either. Rather, they have an owner who is passionate about seeing a return on his modest investment, and has invested in his business by hiring highly-qualified people to drive ticket sales and push people through the turnstiles.

Allow me to frame this another way: a minor-pro hockey owner with a budget similar to most Canadian university hockey teams is seeing his overall attendance increase because he's selling the experience at the game rather than the matchup or players on the ice. I don't know why athletics department administrators can't see the obvious when it comes to marketing university sports of any kind, but perhaps we'll see a Canadian university athletics department hire someone whose expertise in marketing fills more than a thimble-sized container.

If Canadian university sports wants to be like the NCAA and compete with NCAA hockey programs when it comes to recruiting and retaining players, they might want to start by trying to attract and retain fans. Selling more tickets and merchandise will allow the programs to re-invest that money in themselves, and that, in turn, will attract more good players who may want to play in Canada rather than taking their talents south of the border. Some will still go, but there's a chance more will remain in Canada and play here.

Of course, I could be way off in my hopes for Canadian university hockey. Perhaps it wants to remain in obscurity where playing in front of tens of fans is the experience it aims to give its student-athletes. That seems like a standard that one could exceed with minimal effort if there was a desire to run athletics departments like a business, but why rock the boat? It's easier to do nothing and sit complacently than busting one's ass and making a difference for students, a program, and a university.

If only administrators gave the same effort that students do on the ice, we could see a massive shift in Canadian university hockey.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!