Ahead of the Stanley Cup Final on June 30, the NHL has experienced its highest viewership since the 2016/2017 season. Going into the postseason tournament is always at least a little emotional, but the NHL is leaving its 2021/2022 season with the assurance of more great moments to come.
Created in partnership with Highdive, the NHL has premiered its latest campaign, “The Handoff,” which highlights prior Stanley Cup winners while promising that the cup will continue to change hands. This is the final release of a three-part campaign, following “If There Was No Cup” and “Who Wants It.”
Passing down the trophy
“The Handoff” continues the story of the coveted Stanley Cup through 30- and 60-second ads. Capturing a number of incredible historical moments in NHL history set to a cover of Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are a’Changin’,” the spot shows the exuberant joy of winning while driving home the reminder that the best thing about the Stanley Cup is that it will continue to be passed along to new champions year after year.
“Unlike other trophies, there is only one Stanley Cup. For 130 years, it has been passed down from one year’s champion to the next—a tradition binding hockey’s past, present and future,” Casey Hall, NHL senior vice president of marketing and consumer insights, said to Adweek. “So while each player earns his time with it and even gets his name engraved on it, the Cup is not his to keep—it belongs to the game. It’s one of many special things about the greatest trophy in sports.”
This platform follows a broadcast partnership with Turner Sports and Disney/ESPN and its “Nothing Regular” campaign, which launched at the Thanksgiving Showdown in 2021. Since then, the NHL has experienced a 61% increase in brand awareness. The spots will continue to air throughout the playoffs, as well as across social media channels.
CREDITS:
The Handoff
NHL
Brian Jennings – Exec VP, Marketing
Casey Hall – SVP, Marketing & Consumer Insights
Josh Dubin – Sr. Director, Marketing
Glenn Hyams – Manager, Marketing
Allison Hellman – Sr. Manager, Consumer Research & Insights
Highdive
Chad Broude, Co-founder/ CCO
Mark Gross, Co-founder/ CCO
Megan Lally, Managing Partner, Operations, Account and Strategy
Jen Passaniti, Head of Production, Executive Producer
Alan Snitow, Lead Strategist
Kristin Woodke, Group Account Director
Jamie Lazaroff, Sr. Account Executive
Brian Culp, Creative Director
Katie Bero, Creative Director
Pat Seidel, Creative Director
Chris Rose, Creative Director
Johannah Scarlet, Producer
Kelley Beaman, Director of Business Affairs
Elastic
Design Studio: Feed Me Light x Elastic
Executive Creative Director: Denis Bodart
Creative Director: Mark Mullan
CG Lead: David Calvet
CG Generalists: Pierre Clenet, Amelia Tzemis, Ricardo David, and Florent Rousseau
Compositor: John Wilkinson
Editor: Mark Mullan
Online Editor: John Valle
Creative Producers: David Botchey and Dai Davison
Producer: Kevin Daly
Executive Producers: Ryan Goodwin-Smith and Ben Leyland
Executive Producer: Luke Colson
Executive Producer / Head of Production: Kate Berry
Managing Director: Jennifer Sofio Hall
Lime
Zac Fisher -Audio Mixer
Michael Baran -Audio Assistant
Susie Boyajan -Executive Producer
Highdive
Chad Broude, Co-founder/ CCO
Megan Lally, Managing Partner, Operations, Account and Strategy
Jen Passaniti, Head of Production, Executive Producer
Alan Snitow, Lead Strategist
Kristin Woodke, Group Account Director
Jamie Lazaroff, Sr. Account Executive
Brian Culp, Creative Director
Katie Bero, Creative Director
Pat Seidel, Creative Director
Chris Rose, Creative Director
Will St. Clair, Executive Producer
Kamerin McAllister, Producer
Kelley Beaman, Director of Business Affairs
Cutters
Billy Montross, Editor
Christian Leontios, Assistant Editor
Heather Richardson, EP
Patrick Casey, Head of Production
Another Country
Jordan Stalling, Sound Design + Mix
Erik Widmark, Sound Design + Mix
Flavor
Brian Higgins, Color
Chris Elliott, Color, Finish and VFX
Colby Capes, Graphics
