NHL Productions In-House Studio Ops Continue to Grow with Data-Driven Stanley Cup Central' Live-Streaming Show 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 consisted of five people. Today the leagues Chief Content Officer and EVP's staff has grown to more than 50 and boasts an in-house studio that cranks out live and quick turnaround programming on an almost daily basis. The culmination of those efforts this season has been the launch of Stanley Cup Central, a new second-screen YouTube experience covering one game per night throughout the Playoffs that brings a more conversational style and provides deep stats driven by the NHL EDGE puck-and-player tracking system.
Lauren Jbara, Alexa Landestoy, Jonny Lazarus hosting 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 importantly, 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 Chief Creative Officer and EVP Steve Mayer on hand at the NHL Productions studio in Manhattan
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 a host of statistical data, including stats like face-off probability, skating speed, time on-ice, and others. 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 and Coordinating Director, NHL Studios. That is what makes our show unique compared to the traditional broadcasts. Hockey is a very fast sport, so it can be challenging to [integrate] deep data in a traditional broadcast. But 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 the 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 actually 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 traditional replays off of an EVS 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, including Lauren Jbara, Alexa Landestoy, Jonny Lazarus, and NHL Fantasy reporter Anna Dua lend their insights and banter throughout the game, as well as during pre-and post-game 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 leverages BitFire to bring in remote feeds for its productions like Stanley Cup Central
We really [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 - including influencers, media personalities, NHL alumni, and other celebrity hockey fans - appear remotely during the sho
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
20/11/2025
Berklee Presents Holiday Extravaganza: Duke Ellingtons The Nutcracker Suite and ...
19/11/2025
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, a...
19/11/2025
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 ...
19/11/2025
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 Rebu...
19/11/2025
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, Pe...
19/11/2025
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
Awards season is heating up, and the International Documentary Association just ...
19/11/2025
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 formalise their teaming agreement at MilCIS 2025, streng...
19/11/2025
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
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
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 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
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
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
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 Col...
19/11/2025
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 (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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Martin Freeman, Jessie Buckley, Wu-Tang Clan's Raekwon, Eddie the Eagle and ...
19/11/2025
Rohde & Schwarz collaborates with Broadcom to enable testing and validation of n...
19/11/2025
Back to All News
Innato, starring Imanol Arias and Elena Anaya, arrives on Netf...
19/11/2025
Back to All News
Guillermo del Toro Sits Down With Troll 2 Director Roar Uthaug...
19/11/2025
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
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
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
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
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 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 Wor...
18/11/2025
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 transform...
18/11/2025
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...
18/11/2025
SVG All-Stars: Mimi Fotopoulos, Director, Talent and Production Operations, Tenn...
NHL Productions In-House Studio Ops Continue to Grow with Data-Driven Stanley Cup Central' Live-Streaming Show By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor 
