Strangers in a strange land
Two-game set NHL’s first shot at gaining foothold in massive market
He was 9,000 kilometres from home, but in the Vancouver Canucks’ first press availability in China, Henrik Sedin said the atmosphere at the Mercedes-Benz Arena felt comfortable and familiar, almost like any other rink the Canucks might visit.
And maybe that’s true. But on this day, you could see and hear things that weren’t familiar to the world of the NHL; things that reinforced to the interlopers that they’re strangers in a strange land.
For example, they fielded questions like the following to Canucks head coach Travis Green: “What is your strategy in helping your players co-ordinate with each other?”
Or this to Daniel Sedin: “Can you briefly tell me how long you practise hockey and how long did you practise every day as a child?”
Or you could listen in as a Chinese TV crew ask Alexander Burmistrov who he thought the Canucks should start in goal. Or you could look down at the Canucks practice session and see an eerie mist enveloping the ice surface.
Or, my personal favourite, you could watch as members of the media gave the Sedins an ovation after the presser.
To be clear, their answers weren’t any better than they are in Vancouver.
Even the Canucks’ flight to Shanghai, in a chartered 777 that resembled a cruise ship more than an air- plane was out of the norm.
But they’re here now, here to bring the NHL to this market of 1.4 billion in a two-game series that could mean so much to the league and the players. Where this goes from here will be determined over the next decade or so but, whatever else they are, the Canucks and the Kings are the first NHL teams to play live games in China.
And when you’re the first at anything, it’s important.
“We never thought there would be a hockey market over here and now it feels like we’re pioneers,” said Sam Gagner. “There’s a bigger goal in mind (for the game), but we’re the first and that’s exciting.”
On Thursday, the Canucks and Kings meet in the opener of the twoset China Games in Shanghai, and while you wouldn’t exactly say this megalopolis of 24 million is consumed by hockey fever, the league and the two teams remain enthused over everything this pre-season series represents.
This, after all, is the first strike in the game’s larger campaign to secure a place in the massive Chinese market. This is a chance for the league and its players to expand its horizons and, more to the point, its revenue streams.
True, ticket sales for the Shanghai game have been sluggish, but there is a bigger goal in mind for the NHL and its players, and the players are vitally aware of their responsibility.
“This will be a good showcase to show this country what the NHL is all about,” said Daniel Sedin. “Growing up, this was an unknown for us. It’s a big chance to see something different. So far it’s been really interesting.”
A lot more interesting, at least, than your standard NHL pre-season games.
The Canucks, for example, scored major PR points with their hosts by signing Chinese national team goalie Zehao (Taylor) Sun to an amateur tryout contract.
Barring an injury, Sun won’t see any live action in either of the two games, but he’ll act as the Canucks’ third goalie in China and is scheduled to practice with the team Wednesday and Thursday after sitting out Tuesday’s session.
Sun came to the Canucks’ attention through former NHL defenceman and Vancouverite Barry Beck, who’s been a driving force in the Hong Kong hockey program for a decade. Beck remains close to the Canucks’ Stan Smyl, his old junior teammate with the New Westminster Bruins.
Sun, meanwhile, had his own press availability on Tuesday, where he revealed Kings goalie Jonathan Quick is his hero. He also received an ovation from the assembled media. “Being asked to help the Canucks is a dream come true for him,” Beck writes in an email. “The Canucks can learn a lot from him, especially Chinese culture. He’s no gimmick and he can play.
“You never know. He could get into a game for a minute. Stranger things have happened. If he does and the camera is on him, well, I think the fans would like that.”
And if the fans like what the Canucks and Kings serve up this week, everyone wins in China.