Canucks C Henrik Sedin and his twin brother, LW Daniel, "have flown under the radar compared with many other NHL stars" because of their "disengaged personalities and by playing in a small media market," according to Gerald Narciso of the N.Y. TIMES. Each has won an NHL scoring title in the last two seasons, but "despite their most valuable player status, the Sedins do not generate the same buzz as other NHL stars." League data shows that "neither Daniel’s nor Henrik’s jerseys rank in the top 10 in sales among active players." It is "clear the Sedin twins are hockey players, not brands." The twins "do not use Twitter, they do not chase endorsement deals and they do not generate any tabloid interest." NHL Exec VP/Marketing Brian Jennings acknowledged that it "has been challenging to promote players who choose to stay out of the spotlight." Jennings said, "They’re very private and they’re quiet and there’s no doubt that would certainly limit them from a marketing perspective. We see the on-ice performance and I can tell you from the NHL perspective, they’ve been featured in more than a dozen of our marketing campaigns this year." He added, “We certainly recognize their potential and will be looking to put more marketing muscle behind them" (N.Y. TIMES, 6/10).
SOMETHING'S BRUIN: In Boston, Thomas Grillo notes Bruins G Tim Thomas, D Zdeno Chara, RW Nathan Horton and LW Shawn Thornton stand to land "lucrative endorsement deals" thanks in part to the team's run to the Stanley Cup Final. Smith College economist Andrew Zimbalist said, "This is the most exciting Bruins team in a long time, and stars have emerged making it likely that endorsement deals are very likely." Thomas, Chara, Horton and Thornton "have the best chance of inking regional ad deals that could net them about $1 million each." Boston-based 451 Marketing Founder A.J. Gerritson said that despite being knocked out of the Final during Game Two, Horton "could be the most marketable Bruin." Already, two local brands "have signed up a pair" of Bruins. The City of Boston Credit Union "recently inked a deal to make Thornton the lender's spokesman," while Dunkin' Donuts landed Bruins rookie C Tyler Seguin for its "Caught Cold" campaign (BOSTON HERALD, 6/10).
