In Pittsburgh, Teresa Lindeman notes the Penguins “started dabbling with Pinterest around the beginning of this year." Penguins New Media Coordinator Melissa Marchionna said that it is “still not entirely clear where the site is going to go, but the visual focus works well for hockey fans.” She said that one popular board is "Weddings on Ice," and a fan “posted a great image of a wedding cake shaped like the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup.” She added that participating in those kinds of boards “isn't really about selling gear, but about creating relationships with fans.” Any images of Penguins merchandise that the team organization posts on Pinterest “are linked to the NHL shop, but the league splits revenue among the teams, so that doesn't directly generate a lot of money for the Pittsburgh team” (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 11/6).
PADDING THE WALLET: SPORTING NEWS’ Anthony Witrado wrote it is “almost a sure thing” that Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik will “have more money to play with than the nearly $82 million the payroll was set at to start 2012.” Estimates of just how much more money “have ranged from $25 million on the high end to about $16 million on the low end.” Either way, that is “a luxury Zduriencik has not been afforded since his first season, when the payroll was nearly $99 million.” This winter will be the “most important for the franchise in the last four years, and money won’t be a hindrance this time around” (SPORTINGNEWS.com, 11/5).
HOUSE KEEPING: In Jacksonville, Gene Frenette wrote Jaguars Owner Shahid Khan “has to start contemplating major changes” following the team's 1-7 start, and GM Gene Smith’s four-year “rebuilding project looks bleak as can be right now.” The Jaguars have been “outscored 126-34 in four home games.” Frenette: “The Jaguars have NEVER been this bad. Not during the 1995 expansion season, when Tom Coughlin's first team was 4-12 with only three blowout-type losses. Not during a 1-7 start in 2003, when Jack Del Rio's first team was more competitive and went 4-4 in the second half” (JACKSONVILLE.com, 11/4).
PACKAGE DEAL: In Miami, Barry Jackson reported the Dolphins “have sold hundreds of prorated season tickets since the season started and have managed to eclipse last year’s season-ticket sales count (42,584), which was its lowest since 1983.” If you buy a season ticket “to the final five games, you get the Titans game free” (MIAMIHERALD.com, 11/4).
