NHL Expansion Draft

Why NHL Players Will Be Paid Last

Source: The Athletic

It’s July 22, 2021. The NHL’s 2021 Seattle Expansion Draft just concluded last night and the sports world, or more specifically, the hockey world was a buzz. New club. New jerseys. NEW PLAYERS. What a time to be a sports fan.

However, there’s an issue…

As Ron Francis, and the Kraken, were announcing Frank Seravalli’s team, the momentum stopped; after each passing name. We’d curiously ask who? Let me get on the good ole google machine and see his stats. Decent. Instagram? Ah... 10 posts. 4 dog pics. 3 hockey pics. 2 on the lake with the boys. And 1 with momma. Cool.

Here’s the truth: hockey players have not done their job beyond the ice. And, their earnings show it. Jamie Oleksiak. Penny’s brother. Who just signed his big-ticket with the Kraken will earn $12 million less than NBA Championship-winning Guard Khris Middleton. Sorry. Left out a slight detail. Jame Oleksiak’s new 4-year deal will earn him $12 million less than Khris Middleton earned… this year. Let that sink in. See what I did there, Kraken, sink in, anyways.

Sure. We’re comparing apples to oranges here but we needed to grab your attention. The power of the modern-day athlete is at an all-time high. With that, clubs and athletes can make a larger difference than ever, we just need to continue proving it to them.

Here’s another quick example before we close things off: the LA Sparks of the WBNA announced a new partnership with the Jordan brand, fantastic! The LA Sparks social value on their Instagram post was just over $1K, not bad. The LA Sparks Te’a Cooper also shared her excitement about the partnership on Instagram… her posts social value? Over $287K!!!

Do you see the point we’re trying to make? The impact an athlete can make is insurmountable. Whether an athlete decides to use their platform to grow their brand, club, and/ or sport, is neither here nor there. But athletes can really move the needle. This brings us back to our original point if hockey players ever plan on catching up with other sports in earning potential; you need to tighten up the ship and have at least one, player post on their franchise’s inaugural launch date. Just one.

Published: July 23rd, 2021 - Issue 1 of The Sport Marketeer