Launch of New NHL.com Puts the Complete National Hockey League Experience on Every Fan’s Desktop

Featuring a New Co-Branded Fantasy Hockey Game with Yahoo! Sports, New NHL.com Is Completely Re-Programmed To Provide Fans A Personalized All-Access Pass; A New, Interactive Interface For Experiencing Live NHL Games To Launch in October

The National Hockey League (NHL) today unveiled the new NHL.com, a completely re-designed and re-programmed media portal that gives fans everywhere a personalized, all-access pass to their favorite NHL team and players. The new NHL.com fully leverages the League’s assets in digital content and video to deliver multiple layers of programming that deeply immerse fans in the NHL experience.

“NHL.com is a key element in the League’s continued growth, and these advancements highlight the emphasis we’re putting on digital content and platforms, while also serving our fan base in new ways,” said NHL Chief Operating Officer John Collins. “The new NHL.com brings our fans to places inside the game that they have never been before.”

The centerpiece of the new NHL.com is NHL GameCenter™, the premier destination and a “second screen” that enables fans to experience live NHL games. Every night, for every NHL game, NHL GameCenter brings fans into the action with select video highlights, real-time stats, play-by-play tracking, in-game photos, audio feeds, social networking and much more.

From NHL GameCenter, fans are just a click away from watching NHL action live online with NHL GameCenter Live™, the ultimate in live, streaming sports video. Combining the immersive experience of NHL GameCenter with TV-quality streaming video, NHL GameCenter Live will be available in October and enable fans to catch all of the excitement from live games around the NHL (blackout restrictions apply).

As part of the NHL.com unveiling, the NHL also announced today that it is the first sports league to collaborate with Yahoo! Sports — the leading online sports destination and fantasy game provider — to develop a co-branded fantasy sports game. It is the first time a major fantasy sports provider has integrated licensed player footage into its game, and the content will be offered exclusively on Yahoo! Sports. NHL fans can access the footage to track their players’ performances, scout trades, and research players for their rosters. The official fantasy hockey game also will include all the valuable features for which Yahoo! Sports is known, such as integration of NHL stats and player data, as well as reliability. The game is available — and free of charge — at http://hockey.fantasysports.yahoo.com. NHL video will be integrated this season.

“Working with the NHL to create the first official fantasy hockey game available on Yahoo! Sports continues our commitment to delivering the #1 fantasy games experience on the Internet,” said Jimmy Pitaro, vice president of sports and entertainment, Yahoo!. “It’s a dream match up that brings together the fastest-growing sports site on the Internet with the fastest game on earth, and offers fantasy hockey fans the single best experience online.”

NEW FEATURES HIGHLIGHT RELAUNCH

In addition to NHL GameCenter Live and the new co-branded Yahoo! Sports fantasy game, significant new site features include:

Integration of Single Sign-On (SSO). SSO lets fans sign on once to NHL.com and have a relevant, personalized experience in every content area at NHL.com ─ editorial, multimedia, images, product and service offerings, etc.

“What’s next” programming. An approach to Web site programming that goes beyond simple content population to offer fans layer upon layer of relevant content about their favorite team and players.

A bigger editorial voice. In addition to more exclusive editorial, content will now be bundled with other relevant media such as pictures, video and statistics.

Amazing Photos. With rich, dynamic imagery from across the League, photos will now have a dedicated location, allowing fans to “flip and browse,” as well as instantly purchase photos of their favorite moments.

Richer Content. The new NHL.com is the most immersive hockey experience on the Web today. It has special features such as schedule pages that tell fans where to find the broadcast of local games; ticket pages that offer pop-up maps of the arenas; and player pages that include photo galleries and video highlights of every active player in the NHL.

“The new NHL.com is a revolution in NHL programming, not simply the evolution of a Web site,” said NHL Senior Vice President/Executive in Charge of Programming, New Media Andre Mika. “The re-programming of NHL.com now puts the League in the same class as the top media properties on the Web, and we have an aggressive roadmap for further development and growth.”

About the NHL

The National Hockey League, founded in 1917, is the second-oldest of the four major professional team sports leagues in North America. Today, the NHL consists of 30 Member Clubs, each reflecting the League’s international makeup, with players from more than 20 countries represented on team rosters. According to a Simmons Market Research study, NHL fans are younger, more educated, more affluent, and access content through digital means more than any other sport. The NHL entertains more than 100 million fans each season in-arena and through its partners in national television (VERSUS, NBC, TSN, CBC, RDS, RIS, NASN and NHL Network) and radio (Westwood One and XM Radio). Through the NHL Foundation, the League’s charitable arm, the NHL raises money and awareness for Hockey Fights Cancer, NHL Youth Development, and supports the charitable efforts of all NHL players. For more information on the NHL, log on to NHL.com.

NHL and the NHL Shield are registered trademarks and NHL GameCenter, NHL GameCenter Live and NHL Network are trademarks of the National Hockey League. All Rights Reserved.

Contacts

NHL
Michael DiLorenzo, 212-789-2657
MDiLorenzo {at} NHL(.)com