At the Rink: During First Two Months on the Road, San Jose Sharks Develop Engaging Content in Different Ways Back at home, staffers have handled multiple positions By Kristian Hernandez, Associate Editor
Friday, April 2, 2021 - 9:00 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The National Hockey League was the last of the four major American sports to host a non-bubble regular season. As fans gradually make their return to the seats, how is that affecting in-venue productions and digital content? Similar to At the Ballpark, On the Gridiron, and On the Hardwood, At the Rink will look at the operations of NHL organizations to see how their coping with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and adapting back to a sense of normalcy.
Over the past year, professional teams have gotten used to playing games in a bubble environment. When the NHL moved back to its traditional home-venue format, COVID-19 restrictions in Santa Clara County forced the San Jose Sharks to host training camp in Arizona and play their first 12 games on the road. During this time, the franchise got creative to produce content for the fans.
The city of San Jose and Santa Clara County wouldn't allow any contact sports, says Dustin Lamendola, director, creative and entertainment, San Jose Sharks. It's been great to be back in our building and getting to work with everybody again.
MORE AT THE RINK INTERVIEWS:
Toronto Maple Leafs Follow Production Blueprint From 2020 NHL Bubble at Scotiabank Arena
Nearly 20 Years in Manitoba, Winnipeg Jets' Kyle Balharry Reflects on Productions at Bell MTS Place
Detroit Red Wings Cover Motor City Storylines With Three Digital Shows, Hockeytown Home Ice
Carolina Hurricanes Sidestep Water Leak To Welcome Fans Back to PNC Arena
Vegas Golden Knights Offer Fortress At Home, Debut Studio for 2020-21 NHL Season
Nashville Predators Harness the Passion of Smashville' at Bridgestone Arena
An Extended Road Trip: Production Team Sets Up Remote Media Day Lamendola works at his position near the ice at SAP Center.
At the mercy of the city and the county, the Sharks were NHL nomads without a permanent home for quite some time. The intricacies of this unique NHL season are abundant for all 31 participating clubs, but with the team not making last summer's bubble in Canada, Lamendola and company were given a head start on planning for what was to come.
We were on the sidelines for quite some time, he says. We were able to watch other colleagues around the league do a great job in Edmonton and Toronto throughout the playoffs.
This observation period allowed for ideas to brew, and when the time came to head out on the road at the cusp of the new year, the team hit the ground running to create a modified Media Day after their official one was cancelled. An annual generator of 85% of the team's yearly material, it was imperative to recreate this tentpole event in a different setting. Alongside Producer Brendan Ergas, the staff got to work on implementing a virtual workflow that would allow Lamendola, based in San Jose, to work with the players and crew on the road.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by San Jose Sharks (@sanjosesharks)
--
We usually have on-ice shoots with the players, but we had the opportunity to sit the players down individually, he adds. I conducted the interviews through Zoom while Brendan was in the room, so that was a unique experience. Our players knew it was a different challenge for us, so they rolled with it pretty well and had fun with it.
Cheers to 30 Years: Zoom Calls Generate Content With Alumni for 30th Anniversary Known for their new and improved ideas every season, the Sharks didn't want to settle for the status quo. In an effort to push the production bar, the crew leveraged vignettes captured during their virtual Media Day but also decided to take a quick trip to the past. Since 2021 is the club's 30th anniversary in the National Hockey League, the team is. For example, the team is tapping into Zoom once again for a handful of interviews with former players called SAP Alumni Rewind:
Our 30th season has really given us some opportunities because we don't have to just look at our [current] players and the games that are happening in front of us, says Lamendola. It's a good thing to have during this COVID-19 year.
The concept was born five years ago when the Sharks were celebrating their silver anniversary as a professional NHL franchise. Since his time with the organization began in 2013, Lamendola has a firm understanding of how this year-long celebration went back in 2016.
The philosophy for our 25th anniversary was getting former players into the building because we thought seeing these guys after years of being gone was really powerful, he continues. Since we couldn't do that, it opened the door to speaking with people who live in Europe or Canada. We've actually touched base with a lot of athletes that we maybe wouldn't have been able to talk to.
The team's 30th anniversary also coincides with the release of their Reverse Retro jersey, which resembles the sweater worn during the 1998 season:
LET'S GOOOO pic.twitter.com/PW3CIxCRTR
- San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) March 20, 2021
Speaking of history, center Patrick Marleau is only 10 games away from eclipsing icon Gordie Howe for most games played in a career, which is sure to create additional buzz around the team in the coming weeks.
Back in the Bay: Staffers Facilitate Multiple Roles at SAP Center Lamendola is responsible for opening up the door to the team locker room.
The Sharks were able to return home last month on February 13 for a game against the Vegas Golden Knights - two days shy of 11 exact months since their last home game in SAP Center. Since being back, the crew has had to assume a varie
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
05/05/2024
A special evening performance by multiplatinum singer Becky G will provide a memorable conclusion to TeievisaUnivision's Casa Cultura upfront event on May 1...
05/05/2024
Giant media buyer Publicis is telling network sales executives that it does not think Nielsen's new panel-plus-big-data currency is ready for this upfront....
05/05/2024
WASHINGTON Glenn Kirschner, legal analyst at NBC News, blasted the media for referring to the New York trial of former President Donald Trump as a hush-money ...
05/05/2024
Catchy Comedy's weekend marathon sees The Beverly Hillbillies on the weekend of May 4-5. The event kicks off Saturday, May 4 at 11 a.m. ET, and runs through...
05/05/2024
NBC Sports has the 150th Kentucky Derby Saturday, May 4. The coverage begins at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock and the feature race at Churchill Downs in Louis...
04/05/2024
NEW YORK As the Asian Pacific American Heritage Month kicks off in May, Nielsen has released an extensive new report diving into their media habits with data sh...
04/05/2024
PHILADELPHIA As National Military Appreciation Month gets underway, Comcast has announced several new initiatives to help veterans, service members, and their f...
04/05/2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. Federal Communications Commission chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has announced a tentative agenda for the May Open Commission Meeting scheduled...
04/05/2024
The Broadband Forum has announced major enhancements to key 5G convergence standards that the group said will help advance next-generation applications, improve...
04/05/2024
Spotify Wrapped Campaign Spot Graded With DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton May 3, 2024
0 Comments
Blackmagic Design today announced that Colorist M...
04/05/2024
Three Boston Conservatory at Berklee Alums Nominated for Tony Awards An additional eight alums and two current students performed in nominated productions.
...
03/05/2024
An innovative learning tool to help media and civil society better understand ho...
03/05/2024
PARK CITY, UTAH - JANUARY 21: (L-R) Actors K stutis Cic nas and Greta Grinevi i t , Director Marija Kavtaradze and Producer Marija Razgute attend the 2023 Sunda...
03/05/2024
If you aren't familiar with Danny Ocean's music, it's only a matter ...
03/05/2024
Spotify has an unwavering commitment to supporting emerging artists across all genres, to helping them launch and thrive in their careers, and to connecting the...
03/05/2024
Como uno de los sonidos de mayor expansi n en el mundo, la M sica Mexicana va m ...
03/05/2024
As one of the fastest-growing sounds worldwide, M sica Mexicana is more than jus...
03/05/2024
NEW YORK FuboTV reported that it lost 110,000 subs in Q1 2024 but it exceeded its guidance for the quarter with double digit year-over-year increases across key...
03/05/2024
Only 3 Weeks Left To Enter The Creative Industries Most Award
Brie Clayton May 3, 2024
0 Comments
Creativepool is giving a last call to the creative i...
03/05/2024
WePlay Studios Transforms the Future of Live Event Storytelling with AJA Gear
Brie Clayton May 3, 2024
0 Comments
By 2032, the esports market is expec...
03/05/2024
WASHINGTON Shannon Bream, Fox News Sunday anchor and chief legal correspondent, sat for a keynote chat at The Business of TV News, with Tom Umstead, senior co...
03/05/2024
WASHINGTON Asked how important is local news, Martha Raddatz, who has covered foreign conflicts for decades and moderated presidential debates for ABC News, s...
03/05/2024
Sony Pictures and Apollo Global Management have made a $26 billion cash offer fo...
03/05/2024
CBS announced its 2024-2025 primetime schedule, which features the new dramas NCIS: Origins, Matlock and Watson, and new comedies Poppa's House and Georgie ...
03/05/2024
Sports-focused streaming service Fubo said it reduced its red ink in the first quarter, despite losing 110,000 subscribers since the end of the year....
03/05/2024
Walmart is reportedly about to release a new 4K streaming box/smart speaker hybrid device for Google TV that could retail for as low as $50, according to a repo...
03/05/2024
Enhancements to its Delivery Workspace solution provide increased content delivery robustness and security
By Matthew Corrigan
Published: May 3, 2024
Enha...
03/05/2024
According to reports, if the bid is successful, Sony would be the significant majority shareholder of the new private company
By Jenny Priestley
Published: M...
03/05/2024
Located in Manchesters Spinningfields district, the course aims to equip students with the skills, knowledge and industry insight for a career in the creative s...
03/05/2024
Lightbridge has created a new Cine Reflect Lighting System kit, dedicated to enabling artistic lighting with consideration of today's productivity practical...
03/05/2024
Broadcast media systems integrator BeckTV and Lawo worked together on a large-scale AES67 build of radio control rooms at KPBS, San Diego's NPR and PBS memb...
03/05/2024
Raleigh, NC, April 12, 2024 SmallHD announces PageOS 6, a powerful software update free for owners of SmallHD monitors, featuring increased functionality, exp...
03/05/2024
SmallHD announces the Quantum 32 a new 31.5 OLED monitor designed to provide reference HDR/SDR images for post-production final color grading, as well as cri...
03/05/2024
By 2032, the esports market is expected to grow to $9.29 billion, bolstered by a global player count and fan following that both continue to climb. The 2023 Lea...
03/05/2024
Amagi, the global leader in cloud-based SaaS technology for broadcast and connected TV (CTV), today announced that the 11th edition of the Amagi Global FAST Rep...
03/05/2024
Riedel Communications today announced that Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) is relying on a media and intercom network based on Riedel technology for the renewal of...
03/05/2024
Broadpeak , a leading provider of content delivery network (CDN) and video streaming solutions for content providers and pay-TV operators worldwide, announced t...
03/05/2024
Media technology innovator Limecraft will exhibit the latest updates to its online platform on stand G79 at the 15-16 May 2024 Media Production & Technology Sho...
03/05/2024
Audio interface specialist Prism Sound is partnering with console manufacturer Solid State Logic, professional monitor manufacturer PMC and acoustic panel and d...
03/05/2024
Intinor, Sweden's leading developer of products and solutions for high-quality video over the internet, is set to join forces with its UK partner Zest Techn...
03/05/2024
NAKIVO Inc., a fast-growing software company dedicated to protecting physical, virtual, cloud, and SaaS environments, announced its Q1 2024 financial results to...
03/05/2024
Hiltron Communications announces an addition to its range of satellite communication products and systems: a field-upgradable motorisation kit specifically desi...
03/05/2024
Visit LiveU at Stand D30
With this year an exceptional one for major sporting events alongside multiple, key elections, the power and flexibility of LiveU'...
03/05/2024
Agile Content, the leader in the development of technology and solutions for the provision of television services over the Internet, announces Koldo Unanue as i...
03/05/2024
Eight co-signers representing streaming services, pay TV operators and public interest groups have sent a letter to Congressional leaders urging their Committee...
03/05/2024
BOSTON Brightcove has announced that it has implemented Amazon Q Business, a new generative AI assistant on Amazon Web Services (AWS)....
03/05/2024
NEW YORK CBS has declared that it will finish the 2023-24 season as Americas Most-Watched Network in primetime for the 16th consecutive season....
At the Rink: During First Two Months on the Road, San Jose Sharks Develop Engaging Content in Different Ways Back at home, staffers have handled multiple positions By Kristian Hernandez, Associate Editor 
