
NHL Productions In-House Studio Ops Continue To Grow With Data-Driven Stanley Cup Central Live-Streaming Show New second-screen YouTube experience offers conversational style, stats driven by the NHL EDGE By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor
Thursday, May 25, 2023 - 3:12 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
Seven years ago, when Steve Mayer arrived at NHL Productions, his team comprised five people. Today, the league's chief content officer/EVP has a staff of more than 50 and an in-house studio that cranks out live and quick-turnaround programming on an almost daily basis. The culmination of its efforts this season has been the launch of Stanley Cup Central, a second-screen YouTube experience covering one game per night throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs, bringing a conversational style to the coverage, and providing deep stats driven by the NHL EDGE puck- and player-tracking system.
From left: Lauren Jbara, Alexa Landestoy, and Jonny Lazarus host Stanley Cup Central.
With [Stanley Cup Central], we have several different things we're trying to accomplish, says Mayer. We're looking to build our YouTube platform, experiment with the second-screen experience, find new ways to tell stories with the NHL EDGE [data], identify and develop new [on-air] talent, and get fans into an environment where they're interacting and talking to each other in real time. And, maybe most important, we're looking to establish exactly what we are capable of in this studio. We've certainly had studios before but never with the capabilities that this one has in terms of technology.
NHL EDGE Data Serves as Backbone' of Stanley Cup Central During the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs, NHL Productions launched a new state-of-the-art studio in its headquarters at One Manhattan West. The studio and accompanying control room made their live-streaming debut with Third Period Live, a second-screen experience on YouTube. Since then, the studio operation has continued to evolve, with the facility producing programming almost every day since January.
NHL Productions' Steve Mayer: Our goal is to create an environment where fans are having a conversation and we just happen to be eavesdropping.
Since the beginning of the second round at the beginning of May, Stanley Cup Central has emanated live from NHL Productions' studio on a nightly basis. The show features a constant L-bar graphic providing such statistical data as face-off probability, skating speed, and time on-ice. Betting odds and breakdowns of the betting lines are also displayed prominently.
The backbone of this show is the data component powered by NHL EDGE puck and player tracking, says Matt Celli, VP/coordinating director, NHL Studios. That is what [distinguishes] our show [from] the traditional broadcasts. Hockey is a very fast sport, so it can be challenging to [integrate] deep data in a traditional broadcast. Our goal with [Stanley Cup Central] is to bring that data to the forefront throughout the entire show.
NHL Studios' Matt Celli oversees operations at the One Manhattan West production center.
The same constant L-Bar graphic is used in videoboard shows at NHL arenas across the continent, but this marks the first time it is being used in a live broadcast.
We want make that data and information part of the narrative, says Mayer. We can now tell stories with NHL EDGE [data] that allow you to understand the game better. Our broadcast partners use that data on occasion, but we want to take it to the next level. The key is being able to not only understand and make sense of the data but also uniquely tell the story of that data. You could put deep data up there all day long, and it could just be meaningless eye candy, but, if you can translate that data into something people understand, that is where it gets really interesting.
In addition to the L-Bar, Stanley Cup Central incorporates NHL Blockie visualizations and interactive game elements developed with NHL EDGE data and Beyond Sports technology. This technology was first used by the NHL during ESPN's live, animated Big City Greens Classic broadcast in March.
We are looking to lean heavily into those Blockie data visualizations, says Celli. We have a lot of the same technology that ESPN employed [for the BCG Classic], where we're able to cut all 40 virtual cameras in the system. We've found it works best in replay packages. [For example], during a key play, we'll do a couple of traditional replays off an EVS [server] like people would see [in the TV broadcast], and then we will choose Blockie angle and roll that in to finish it off. The chat seems to love it, which is great, and it gives us a lot of flexibility since we don't have [access to isolated camera shots].
Stanley Cup Central Provides Sports Bar' Feel - Both in the Studio and Remotely Each night, a rotating cast of hosts - Lauren Jbara, Alexa Landestoy, Jonny Lazarus, NHL Fantasy reporter Anna Dua - lend their insights and banter throughout the game, as well as during pre/postgame coverage. Longtime NHL Insider Pierre McGuire also joins each night to offer analysis and commentary. In addition to game analysis, hosts discuss the latest news and happenings around the league and chat with fans live in the YouTube comments section.
NHL Productions deploys BitFire to bring in remote feeds for productions like Stanley Cup Central.
We want [viewers] to feel like they're hanging out at a sports bar watching the game with their friends, says Mayer. We want them to be engaged while the game is going on but also talking amongst themselves. Our goal is to create an environment where fans are having a conversation and we just happen to be eavesdropping.
In addition to the in-studio elements, a variety of special guests - influencers, media personaliti
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
18/09/2025
DirecTV continues to expand its women's sports offerings by adding Sports Fanatics' and Whoopi Goldberg's Free Ad-Supported Television (FAST) All Wo...
18/09/2025
WASHINGTON NextGen TV viewers are beginning to see what high dynamic range (HDR) brings to their football enjoyment with the launch of the sport's fall seas...
18/09/2025
WASHINGTON After issuing audit letters seeking Equal Employment Opportunity data from a randomly selected group of TV and radio stations in August, the Federal ...
18/09/2025
NEW YORK Warner Bros. Discovery and Nielsen have signed a new, long-term, multi-year deal that covers measurement for all Warner Bros. Discovery platforms acros...
18/09/2025
NEW YORK As part of its ongoing efforts to develop better measurement solutions, the Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) announced the launch of t...
18/09/2025
IRVING, Texas Following threats from the Federal Communications Commission and the announcement that the nations largest station group, Nexstar Media Group, wou...
18/09/2025
Individual phones could be tracked back to specific residential addresses
Sm...
18/09/2025
GeForce NOW is packing a monstrous punch this week. Dying Light: The Beast, the latest adrenaline fueled chapter in Techland's parkour meets survival horror...
18/09/2025
September 18 2025, 04:20 (PDT) Dolby Atmos arrives in Maruti Suzuki Victoris, e...
17/09/2025
Tech Focus: Audio Training, Part 2 - Manufacturers Offer Extensive Online Learni...
17/09/2025
Tech Focus: Audio Training, Part 1 - A1 Shortage Remains a Major-League Challeng...
17/09/2025
It was the ultimate convergence of pop culture and literary prestige: Last night, Dua Lipa brought her Service95 Book Club podcast to the stage for a special li...
17/09/2025
During August, streaming's share of TV viewing in Mexico showed an increase of 0.4% compared to the previous month, accounting for 25% of TV viewing.
Discl...
17/09/2025
CYPRESS, Calif. FOR-A America has named Jo Aun as senior manager of product engineering, a new role responsible for guiding the planning, development and rollou...
17/09/2025
PlayBox Neo, in partnership with CIS Group, a leading provider of media and broadcast technology solutions, has successfully deployed PlayBox Neo's Dual Cha...
17/09/2025
In a relationship that mirrors societal advances in sustainability, Brightline Lighting and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Headquarters have en...
17/09/2025
Clear-Com is proud to support the world-class productions of Alley Theatre, one of the oldest and largest nonprofit resident theatres in the United States. With...
17/09/2025
Arch Platform Technologies (www.archpt.io), a pioneer in automated, scalable cloud infrastructure for high-performance workflows, today announced a Strategic Co...
17/09/2025
Over 300 selected decision-makers from start-ups, corporates, and VC funds worldwide will gather for the third edition of the event, united by a single goal: to...
17/09/2025
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, is excited to announce that its flagship Vantage platform and its next-generation AI capabilities re...
17/09/2025
Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions that profitably connect the right content to the right audience, proudly announces its three Best of Show...
17/09/2025
In a move to further establish a firm foothold across South East Asia, PlayBox Neo, the well-respected name in broadcast playout and channel branding, has appoi...
17/09/2025
Wisycom, a global leader in advanced wireless audio solutions, announced two major wireless solutions at IBC 2025 (Stand 8.D30). This includes the Portable RF-o...
17/09/2025
Six Berklee Alumni Win Emmy Awards The recipients were recognized for their contributions to acclaimed programs Severance, The Studio, The Penguin, SNL50: The...
17/09/2025
Applications Open for Berklee in Santo Domingo The weeklong contemporary music program will run January 5-10, 2026.
By
Colette Greenstein
September 17, 2025
...
17/09/2025
Ukrainian Students Find Creative Consonance' at Berklee Valencia Through ELIA's UAx Platform, six students from Kyiv joined Berklee Valencia for a week...
17/09/2025
Earlier this year Avid announced Kenna Hilburn as its new senior vice president of product. Recently Hilburn was promoted to Avids new Chief Product Officer, su...
17/09/2025
Transatlantic collaboration combines experience and agility to drive innovation in network design and delivery
Luxembourg, September 16, 2025 - SES, a leading ...
17/09/2025
NEW YORK Madhive has announced that the Fox Television Stations have joined its Live Sports Marketplace....
17/09/2025
SYRACUSE, N.Y. Sony Electronics has announced that it is partnering with the Newhouse School at Syracuse University to provide state-of-the-art equipment, hands...
17/09/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. Roku has announced that the first smart projector using its Roku TV operating system, the Aurzen Roku TV Smart Projector D1R Cube, is now avail...
17/09/2025
Today's creators are equal parts entertainer, producer and gamer, juggling game commentary, scene changes, replay clips, chat moderation and technical troub...
17/09/2025
Wednesday 17 September 2025
UK artists capture icons of stage and screen, inclu...
17/09/2025
Jo Returns to FOR-A as Senior Manager of Product Management and Engineering...
17/09/2025
For the Moon Safari anniversary tour, AIR opened the doors to their backstage. Just a few hours before the Paris concert, DPA met with two key figures of the te...
17/09/2025
Auditions will be held in Dublin, Cork and Galway
The County Parade returns f...
16/09/2025
SVG All-Stars: Leigh Michaud, Manager, Remote Operations, ESPNThe UConn grad rose from ESPN's mailroom to become one of its most valuable ops leadersBy Bran...
16/09/2025
Live From IBC 2025: Friday's Latest From Halls 1-4, Outdoor Exhibits in Amst...
16/09/2025
Live From IBC 2025: Saturday's Latest From Halls 5-7 in Amsterdam By SVG Staff
Friday, September 12, 2025 - 17:00
Print This Story
The SVG Europe and ...
16/09/2025
Live From IBC 2025: Sunday's Latest From Halls 8-10 in Amsterdam By SVG Staff
Saturday, September 13, 2025 - 17:00
Print This Story
The SVG Europe and...
16/09/2025
Live From IBC 2025: Monday's Latest From Halls 11-14 in Amsterdam By SVG Staff
Sunday, September 14, 2025 - 17:00
Print This Story
The SVG Europe and ...
16/09/2025
Amazon Prime Video Picks Up Four Hours of Early-Round Masters Coverage in 2026 By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Tuesday, September 16, 2025 - 10:15...
16/09/2025
VERSANT Inks Deal for League One Volleyball as Women's Sports Rights Slate G...
16/09/2025
ESPN VP, Corporate Communications, Katina Arnold Named SVP, Disney Advertising C...
16/09/2025
IBC 2025 in Review: SVG Europe's Full Collection of Video Interviews From th...
16/09/2025
Hace una d cada, la m sica latina representaba apenas el 8% de las reproducciones globales en Spotify. Hoy, constituye m s de una cuarta parte (27%) de toda la ...
16/09/2025
A decade ago, Latin music made up just 8% of global Spotify streams. Today, it a...
16/09/2025
Spotify is expanding our video lineup with a new partnership with Zoo 55, part of ITV Studios. For the first time, acclaimed content from ITV Studios is landing...