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Leagues and Governing Bodies

NHL postseason gets in tune with music acts

To lead off the “Hockey Night in Canada” broadcast that opened this year’s NHL postseason, a nearly 2 1/2-minute clip of Five for Fighting’s “All For One” was played alongside past and present playoff highlights.

Five for Fighting singer John Ondrasik (above), who performed at a Stadium Series game last year, is part of the playoff lineup with Ryan Tedder (below) and OneRepublic.
Photo by: GETTY IMAGES
After the spot aired, lead singer John Ondrasik sent a note to the NHL’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer, Brian Jennings, and the team that works alongside him to license music for the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Ondrasik had performed last year at Dodger Stadium for a Coors Light NHL Stadium Series game. But this was something different: a postseason play. Ondrasik wanted to thank the league for making the moment happen.

Photo by: NBCSPORTS.COM
Such is the result of the NHL’s work the past five years to build relationships with music labels for postseason play lists.

“The fun part about it is that we’ve gone from us reaching out to see if the artists or labels might be interested to now where we are the ones getting emails to see if we have interest in a particular artist or song,” Jennings said. “When you look back at the artists we’ve worked with, they’ve seen the lift and the excitement around having their music included with great highlights. They’ve seen measurable results there.”

This year’s list features songs that Jennings said allow the league to showcase the wide range of emotions that arise from both players and fans during the playoffs.

“Sometimes it can just be a line in the chorus, or a specific repeated phrase. What we’re looking for is something that when you listen to the music, you can almost envision hockey footage,” he said.

Jennings credited Nirva Milord, director of communications and entertainment publicity at the NHL, for her work on furthering the league’s bonds with the music labels. Milord is the point person for all correspondence between the league and the entertainment management and aids Jennings in the ultimate selection of the year’s songs. The deals that are done give the NHL the rights to use the music throughout the playoffs, including on the league’s digital platforms and via its broadcast rights partners.

Regional sports networks that hold the broadcast rights for playoff teams also have access to the songs.

One element new to the mix this year was a music video that was shot specifically for the playoffs. The league teamed with OneRepublic lead singer Ryan Tedder in Colorado at the Pepsi Center to shoot the video, even flying in the Stanley Cup. The video, produced by NBC Sports, debuted prior to the live coverage that kicked off the opening night of the playoffs on NBC Sports Network and NHL Network, and that song will continue to serve as the anthem of the playoffs.

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