Social Media Keeping NHL Teams and Fans Connected

The popularity of social media has surged—it spreads news quickly and connects millions of people around the world simultaneously.

Even the NHL has adopted social media. Social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter have been instrumental in keeping fans informed about the NHL draft, the free agency frenzy and the Hunter-Stoll breakup in real time, thereby dramatically transforming news delivery.

Teams utilizing social media have a distinct advantage in getting the message out faster and driving ticket sales without geographical boundaries, but “the main benefit of social media from a pro team’s standpoint is being able to reach your fans directly, without the filter or space/time constraints that comes with traditional media,” said Nate Ewell, director of media relations for the Washington Capitals. Traditional media sometimes marginalizes smaller niche sports, like hockey, and social media offers fans the ability to get news more easily about their favorite teams.

Public relations professional Kelly Stoner adds that, unlike traditional media, social media allows users to create a dialogue by sending and receiving messages, and social media is free research. “By listening to and being part of the conversations that fans are having, sports teams can find out what the fans want by getting the info straight from the fans themselves.”

Using blogs, Facebook, flickr, LinkedIn, and Twitter, the Capitals capitalize on the opportunity to connect with fans by extending the Capitals experience beyond the ice rink. “Facebook has probably been our most effective tool,” said Ewell, because “we have more friend requests than we are permitted to accept.”

But the organization has not overlooked the value of the increasingly popular social networking site, Twitter. The Capitals created @capsmedia to communicate practice times, but the staff is “still learning the best uses of Twitter. As it has evolved and its reach has grown, we’ve found it’s an effective way to communicate a variety of messages,” explained Ewell.

While major league teams find the best use of Twitter, professional athletes have become obsessed with the 140-character two-way communication tool. Sportsin140.com is a directory of sports on Twitter with verified accounts including the NHL’s Alex Ovechkin (@ovi8), Donald Brashear (@donbrashear87), Patrik Elias (@pelias), and Gary Bettman (@Commish_Gary). With these accounts, these media magnets offer teams and the league yet another way to connect fans with their brand.

For teams and athletes alike, social media is an exciting way to give fans the lowdown on their actions, high jinks, and thoughts, but not all fans want the breakfast-status updates. “As a fan, I don’t want to know every detail of every player’s life,” said Stoner (@KellyinDC), who follows the Capitals on Twitter. “I know that the guys eat breakfast and get their oil changed…and go to the movies, just like everyone else. I am looking for anecdotes that reaffirm my appreciation of them as players and connect me with their experience as hockey players.”

Erik Johnson, Patrick Kane, Anze Kopitar and Jonathan Toews joined the social media trend with Weplay.com, a social networking sports site more appropriate for children under 13. Weplay connects everybody involved in youth sports, including professional athletes. “Athletes on Weplay share their childhood photos and videos to help children realize that they were not always stars, they all started playing youth sports just like them. They write blogs, respond to comments and some even answer questions in the Weplay Answers section,” explained Noah Milman, account executive, KCSA .

Social media has emerged as a powerful tool for sports teams and athletes. Sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Weplay.com create robust connections between sports enthusiasts.

Photo (Patrick Kane) courtesy of Weplay.com