The Canadian Hockey League made major strides today by announcing new technological initiatives.The biggest news from the CHL’s press conference today, being held in Brandon, Man. at the MasterCard Memorial Cup, was the announcement that the league will be completely revamping all 60 team’s websites.
"On behalf of the Canadian Hockey League we are very excited to launch the CHL’s new online network next season," said CHL President David Branch. "This initiative will enable us to expand our network to reach new fans, while creating new and exciting content across the entire CHL."
Along with every team in the Western, Ontario, and Quebec league getting new websites, each league’s homepage will also be updated.
According to several tweets, the new pages will be similar to the NHL’s and MLB’s, where every team has the same layout but with different features.
The news is much needed for several sites across the CHL. Many teams’ websites are lacking important information or have a horrid layout.
"We are thrilled to be working with the CHL to build the largest online sports network in Canada," said David Watkins, MRX’s Vice President of Business Development. "We have already started working with the leagues and teams to ensure that the website features they want are provided, with the mutual goal of generating traffic while encouraging fans to explore the entire network on a regular basis."
The news that the CHL was generating new websites was leaked this past week by the PEI Rocket’s newsletter.
“The redesign will provide a more streamlined set of websites with improved navigation, consistent advertising opportunities with national and league sponsor recognition, standard schedule and ticket locations on every site, along with the ability for leagues and teams to easily share news and video features for fans across the entire CHL to enjoy,” read a CHL press release.
With the Rocket leaking the news of the plans and creating a YouTube page in the past few weeks, there very well could be a video channel setup for every team in the league for next season.
In other CHL news, the league finally made it official that they will indeed be featured in EA Sports’ NHL ‘11 next season.
“The CHL is very excited to partner with an industry leader like EA SPORTS to create a brand new way for CHL fans to associate with their favorite CHL teams and players while playing one of the best sports games in the world,” said Branch. “This opportunity also provides EA SPORTS fans around the world the ability to learn more about the next wave of NHL stars as they compete in the best development league in the world.”
“It’s exciting to have the CHL integrated into our game for the first time,” said Jordan Edelstein, VP of Marketing, EA SPORTS. “Their inclusion will make NHL 11 the most definitive and complete hockey experience available.”
The licensing agreement between EA SPORTS and the CHL allows the following to be included in NHL 11:
- Ability to play with all 60 teams that make up the CHL
- Names and Likenesses of players that are on the rosters of a CHL team
- MasterCard Memorial Cup
- CHL new RBK Edge Jersey design in NHL 11
- WHL, OHL and QMJHL logos and league structures
The CHL integration in NHL 11 will tie to several modes in the game, including Be A Pro, Be A GM, Tournament Mode, Season Mode and Playoff Mode.
NHL 11 will be available for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system with an MSRP of $59.99. It is developed by EA Canada in Burnaby, B.C. The game has not yet been rated by the ESRB or PEGI.
Many league officials and players chimed in over the exciting news.
“Me personally? Never,” said Taylor Hall to the Toronto Sun when asked how many times he’s played as ‘Hall’ on an NHL video game
“But throughout the Memorial Cup, I’ve got a really good record against my teammates in NHL10,” he added.
“It’s going to be an extra opportunity for our fans across the CHL to know more about our players through the new video game with EA Sports,” QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau said.
-With files from the Canadian Hockey League
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