The NHL dropped the puck on its 2021 season last night, and welcomed a new era of technology in hockey. All NHL arenas will be equipped with the league’s puck and player tracking system this season.
The system, developed by SMT, features sensors embedded in game pucks and in the stitching of players’ jerseys; arena cameras will detect movement captured by the sensors. The data will in part be used to fuel in-game statistics for broadcasts and highlight things such as a player’s top speed, shift distance and total distance traveled. The data can be used to help teams monitor in-game workload, and it could eventually be shared with sports betting partners to fuel wagering.
“I do think we’ll continue to integrate the tracking data into the presentation of our games in various ways and I think that integration will continue to ramp up over time,” NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said. “But I wouldn’t expect any monumental shifts in the game based on player and puck tracking this year.”
The puck and player tracking system was installed for last season’s conference finals in Edmonton and at each of the past two All-Star Games.
