Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

NHL Pause Binge Dives Into The Archives to Give Hockey Fans a Welcome Escape in the Age of Coronavirus

31/03/2020

NHL Pause Binge Dives Into The Archives to Give Hockey Fans a Welcome Escape in the Age of Coronavirus Cloud-based workflows help producers and editors work with large video files from their homes By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital

Tuesday, March 31, 2020 - 2:55 pm

Print This Story | Subscribe

Story Highlights

With North Americans deep into their third week of quarantine as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic, many are looking for a welcome distraction from the stresses of the current times.

To help bring a sense of normalcy to their fans, the NHL has launched NHL Pause Binge, a campaign across NHL.com, the league's YouTube channel, and its various social channels that curates a robust collection of some of the NHL's greater pieces of video content from its rich history.

Content, right now, is what people are yearning for and desiring and we really put a lot of effort into giving people a bit more of their fill of hockey, says Steve Mayer, chief content officer for the NHL. This has been quite an interesting time and we think we are putting out some pretty cool things and we'll continue to do so all the way through the pause. We're trying to provide people at home who are going through some really difficult times with joy and entertainment. We know they love the NHL and we're trying to give them something they will enjoy.

The chief goal of NHL Pause Binge is to put all of this treasured content under one roof and make it exceptionally easy for users to find and watch. The campaign spotlights a range of content, including features from NHL Original Productions (which includes the acclaimed series Road to the NHL Winter Classic, Behind the Glass, and NHL All Access ) as well as full-length classic games dating all the way back to the 1950s.

NHL.com and NHL's social team are also taking deep dives into the archive, releasing content plans designed to give fans happy memories to watch, but also activities and contests that they can actively participate in. For example, Greatest Moments of the NHL Season So Far features a tournament style bracket of the year's best moments for fans to watch and vote on.

The @Avalanche advance to the next round.

The Battle of Alberta resumes today! Who ya got, @cmcdavid97 s six-point night or @TKACHUKycheese_ s between-the-legs goal?

VOTE

NHL (@NHL) March 31, 2020

According to Mayer, its been an important piece of the effort to remain sensitive to the current state of the world's struggles. In the immediate aftermath following the postponement of the season, the NHL content team wasn't overly aggressive in its video push, instead leaning more on retweeting and interacting with players and personalities who were reacting to the new environment. It wasn't until about March 23 where Mayer and his team really started to turn on the content spigot.

In the sports world, everything happened so immediately, says Mayer. That one night changed the sports world forever. So, we immediately set the group on the idea trail. One of the biggest messages from me was that we want to stay respectful. A lot of people are going through a lot right now, including our players and everyone on the team level, and we need to respect that. Let's just naturally let the first ten days pass.

In that time, in order to feed the NHL Pause Binge campaign, the operations team behind the NHL's content machine needed to lean heavily into what, fortunately, are some already existing cloud-based workflows. Fueled partially by the league office's move to its new headquarters at One Manhattan West in the growing Hudson Yards, the NHL has been undergoing a digital transformation. The league has been migrating many of its core IT services to the cloud and was already seeing (even prior to the coronavirus) a significant uptick in the internal adoption of services like file-sharing, editing collaboration tools, video conferencing, and task management software.

Naturally, all NHL staff are currently working remotely from their homes but, according to an NHL spokeperson, most of the systems that service the editorial groups were already securely accessible from outside the office. The real challenge was ensuring that all producers and editors were outfitted with the equipment and most importantly the Internet connectivity to handle this new archival-based workload.

When we recognized this was as serious as it is, one of the first things we said as a group was how do we remotely stay in business, says Mayer. I think we were super smart in trying to be ahead of that. We made it so that our producers and editors could access our internal servers to be able to not only take down games and highlights and be essentially be able to edit as if they were in our office. Our IT and studio operations department were just incredible in allowing [our team] access. The team has been unbelievable in terms of thinking ahead and getting our entire group ready to go. We're working around the clock. Honestly, we need to settle down with the new ideas because we are getting maxed out.

NHL IT assisted in upgrading the Internet download and upload speeds within the homes of its remote workforce. In addition, the league is leveraging its asset management system (Reach Engine by Levels Beyond), video file transfer system (Signiant Media Shuttle) and content file-sharing workflows (Box).
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2020/03/31/nhl-pause-binge-dives-into-the-...
See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines

19/11/2025

Sphere Sound Kicks Up Its Heels at Radio City Music Hall

Sphere Sound Kicks Up Its Heels at Radio City Music HallUltra-immersive system from the singular Las Vegas venue is also ready for sportsBy Dan Daley, Audio Edi...

19/11/2025

The Future of Stadium and Arena Video Control Rooms: Tech Leaders Talk 4K, IP, and More

The Future of Stadium and Arena Video Control Rooms: Tech Leaders Talk 4K, IP, a...

19/11/2025

One Year at Intuit Dome: Walking Through the Stunning Arena's Advanced Video Production Layout with the LA Clippers

One Year at Intuit Dome: Walking Through the Stunning Arena's Advanced Video...

19/11/2025

SVG Sit-Down: IMG's Francois Westcombe Goes Inside IMG's Annual Digital Trends Report

SVG Sit-Down: IMG's Francois Westcombe Goes Inside IMG's Annual Digital ...

19/11/2025

Inside Brighton & Hove Albion's Fan-First Media Machine

Inside Brighton & Hove Albion's fan-first media machine By George Bevir Tuesday, November 18, 2025 - 10:10 Print This Story Brighton & Hove Albion'...

19/11/2025

Rock Chalk Rebuild, Part 1: Kansas Athletics Brings New Production Power to Rebuilt David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium

Rock Chalk Rebuild, Part 1: Kansas Athletics Brings New Production Power to Rebu...

19/11/2025

Rock Chalk Rebuild, Part 2: A Pro's Guide to Kansas Athletics' New Video-Production Infrastructure

Rock Chalk Rebuild, Part 2: A Pro's Guide to Kansas Athletics' New Video...

19/11/2025

MLB Media Rights Shakeup: NBC Inks Three-Year Deal for Sunday Night Baseball, Peacock Exclusive Game, and More

MLB Media Rights Shakeup: NBC Inks Three-Year Deal for Sunday Night Baseball, Pe...

19/11/2025

Sabar Bonda (Cactus Pears) Takes a Tender View on Queer Relationships

Rohan Parashuram Kanawade attends the premiere of Sabar Bonda (Cactus Pears) at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival at Egyptian Theatre on January 26, 2025, in Pa...

19/11/2025

Sundance Institute-Supported Seeds, Apocalypse in the Tropics, Selena y Los Dinos, and More Earn IDA Documentary Awards Nominations

Awards season is heating up, and the International Documentary Association just ...

19/11/2025

L3Harris Breaks Ground on Arkansas Advanced Propulsion Facilities

Aerojet Rocketdyne President Ken Bedingfield and Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders were joined by state and local officials to celebrate the groundbreaking o...

19/11/2025

L3Harris and PentenAmio Team to Advance Sovereign Cryptographic Capability and Innovation in the UK, Australia and Canada

L3Harris and PentenAmio formalise their teaming agreement at MilCIS 2025, streng...

19/11/2025

Multi-year partnership for Calrec and Phoenix Broadcast Solutions

Calrec gives Phoenix Broadcast Solutions its full support in strategic multi-year enterprise partnership New Singapore OB company invests in Calrec technology f...

19/11/2025

The Gauge: Poland | October 2025

October brings a larger audience in front of TV screens. The cooler autumn weather and the continuation of new programming schedules brought increases in both t...

19/11/2025

Nexstar Urges FCC to Waive Ownership Rules, Quickly Approve Tegna Acquisition

IRVING, Texas Nexstar Media Group and Tegna filed applications on Nov. 18 with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) seeking its consent to transfer broad...

19/11/2025

Vitec Buys Datapath, Expanding Product Portfolio, Engineering, Support

Vitec has acquired Datapath, a developer of real-time video processing for large-scale video walls, AVoIP content distribution and KVM control in mission-critic...

19/11/2025

Telestream Unveils ARGUS V2.3 With Live Look Stream Validation

NEVADA CITY, Calif. Telestream has introduced ARGUS Version 2.3, which introduces Live Look, a feature that lets operators inspect live and on-demand streams vi...

19/11/2025

Charter Taps AWS for Generative AI Solutions

STAMFORD, Conn. and NEW YORK Charter Communications, Inc. has announced a major deal with Amazon Web Services (AWS) that establishes AWS as one of Charters stra...

19/11/2025

Atomos Adds New Camera Control Features to Ninja TX

TOKYO Atomos has announced a major firmware update that brings integrated camera control to the Ninja TX GO and Ninja TX its new CFexpress-based monitor-recor...

19/11/2025

Berklee's Signature Series Reimagines the Musical and Visual Artistry of Coldplay

Berklee's Signature Series Reimagines the Musical and Visual Artistry of Col...

19/11/2025

PlayBox Neo Wraps NAB Show New York 2025 with Big Energy...

PlayBox Neo departed the NAB Show New York 2025 on a high note. The company's all-new PlayBox Neo Suite made a splash on the show floor, drawing strong inte...

19/11/2025

AAVBR Boosts Event Production Efficiency With Pliant Tech...

AAVBR (American Audio Visual Baton Rouge), a leading full-service event production company serving Louisiana and the Gulf Coast region, has enhanced its product...

19/11/2025

Calrec gives Phoenix Broadcast Solutions its full support...

In its mission to deliver live event services combining advanced engineering with a creative approach to captivating live sports and entertainment experiences, ...

19/11/2025

Popularity of Online Short-Form Content Moving Beyond Social Media

NEW YORK Short-form vertical video has exploded across platforms like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, but a new survey commissioned by Media.net, a provider of c...

19/11/2025

YES Network, CAMB.AI Strike AI Translation Partnership

NEW YORK YES Network, the regional sports network home of the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Nets, and CAMB.AI have struck a partnership they said will leverage ...

19/11/2025

FCC Releases New Filing Deadlines

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has issued detailed guidance on filings that were disrupted by the government shutdown. While many of those fil...

19/11/2025

NFL's Popularity Advances TV Seasonal Viewership Growth

NEW YORK The popularity of NFL games is largely responsible for continued seasonal momentum in TV viewership into October (measured Sept. 29-Oct. 26), according...

19/11/2025

MyFree DirecTV Adds Seven New Channels

DirecTV has announced that its MyFree DirecTV streaming service has added seven new channels. Those include four sports services, NBA FAST, Red Bull TV, DAZN Ri...

19/11/2025

MRMC's Flair Bridge Simplifies Robot Control Across Any Platform

SURREY, U.K. Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC) has launched Flair Bridge, a compact device that transforms how operators control the company's motion-contr...

19/11/2025

FCC Sets Deadlines for 2022 Quadrennial Review

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission, which is continuing to rapidly ramp up its operations after the end of the federal government shutdown, has se...

19/11/2025

Nexstar Urges FCC to Waive Ownership Rules, Quickly Approve of Tegna Acquisition

IRVING, Texas Nexstar Media Group and Tegna filed applications on Nov. 18 with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) seeking its consent to transfer broad...

19/11/2025

Rohde & Schwarz collaborates with Broadcom to enable testing and validation of next-gen Wi-Fi 8 chipsets

Rohde & Schwarz collaborates with Broadcom to enable testing and validation of n...

19/11/2025

Innato, starring Imanol Arias and Elena Anaya, arrives on Netflix in Spain on December 12

Back to All News Innato, starring Imanol Arias and Elena Anaya, arrives on Netf...

19/11/2025

Guillermo del Toro Sits Down With 'Troll 2' Director Roar Uthaug to Discuss Creatures and Folklore

Back to All News Guillermo del Toro Sits Down With Troll 2 Director Roar Uthaug...

19/11/2025

A Look Behind Luxembourg's Most Ambitious Broadcast

Some projects feel monumental from the moment the first phone call comes in. When BCE, the host broadcaster appointed to coordinate the national coverage, asked...

19/11/2025

Bay Area Host Committee And Dolby Partner To Deliver Immersive Fan Experiences

November 19 2025, 08:00 (PST) BAY AREA HOST COMMITTEE AND DOLBY PARTNER TO DELIVER IMMERSIVE FAN EXPERIENCES During the Week of Football's Biggest Game...

19/11/2025

New RT documentary on the life of former President Michael D. Higgins

Michael D. Higgins: Ireland's Ninth President features RT Archives footage and interviews across seven decades Watch Wednesday 19 November at 9:35pm on RT...

19/11/2025

November 18, 2025

Scripps Research scientists receive $1.1 million to advance AI modeling for HIV vaccine development New AI system helps scientists rapidly pinpoint the most pro...

18/11/2025

AGILE: Securing the Future of Independent Journalism

Independent media across Central America are operating under intensifying financial pressure, yet there is a clear appetite for models that can sustain both ind...

18/11/2025

NBA Debuts New Comms Infrastructure and Systems for Referees

NBA Debuts New Comms Infrastructure and Systems for RefereesTwo-phase rollout is intended to improve game flow, enhance officiating accuracyBy Dan Daley, Audio ...

18/11/2025

Platinum White Paper: How Aggreko Delivers Certainty for Broadcasters on the World Stage

Platinum White Paper: How Aggreko Delivers Certainty For Broadcasters On The Wor...

18/11/2025

Kiswe Extends DTC Products With Kiswe Core Cloud-Based Tool for Distributing Content to Any Platform

Kiswe Extends DTC Products With Kiswe Core Cloud-Based Tool for Distributing Con...

18/11/2025

Spanish Basketball Federation Partners with ScorePlay to Power Digital Transformation

Spanish Basketball Federation partners with ScorePlay to power digital transform...

18/11/2025

HBS Selects BBright Encoders and Decoders to Connect ST 2110 Live Production Workflows to the Cloud via SRT

HBS selects BBright encoders and decoders to connect ST 2110 live production wor...

18/11/2025

Ashes to Ashes: Inside TNT Sports' Hybrid and Maverick' Production Plan for Coverage of Cricket's Oldest Rivalry

Ashes to Ashes: Inside TNT Sports' hybrid and maverick' production plan...

18/11/2025

SVG All-Stars: Mimi Fotopoulos, Director, Talent and Production Operations, Tennis Channel

SVG All-Stars: Mimi Fotopoulos, Director, Talent and Production Operations, Tenn...

18/11/2025

Sports and Entertainment Convergence: Productions Share Tech, Infrastructure

SVG LIVE! Conference Explores the Tech Side of Sports and Entertainment ConvergenceLive sports and music productions increasingly share gear and infrastructureB...