From the Rangers' perspective, a fairly slow news day. No more billboards placed outside KeyBank Center for one. Karl Henriksson, a second round pick in 2019, will come over to training camp and attempt to earn a spot on the team. In addition, in what really should come as no surprise to anyone, the NHL will allow ads on jerseys beginning in the 2022-23 season.
Karl Henriksson and why he is ineligible to go to the AHL::
#NYR prospect Karl Henriksson expected to make the trip to North America for NHL pre-season.
— Stat Boy Steven (@StatBoy_Steven) August 16, 2021
Henriksson will try to earn a spot on the team. If he isn't successful, he will return to Frölunda Indians in the SHL as he's ineligible to play in the AHLhttps://t.co/C396j9pczv
Henriksson is slated to play next year at Frolunda. In addition, as seen above, he is ineligible to go down to the AHL, so either he makes the parent roster and sticks or goes back to Sweden as planned. For Henriksson, at worst, it's a chance to get experience and see what it takes to make it at the next level. In addition, he learns Gerard Gallant's system, which puts him in a better position to possibly make the team the following season. At best, he impresses, and earns the 3c spot. As jimbo noted, due to the lineup around him, Henriksson is protected physically. Maybe his skill set plays well on the third line, flanked potentially by Filip Chytil and Chris Kreider.
Ads on jersey:
EXCLUSIVE: The @NHL is adding advertisements to its jerseys for the 2022-23 season https://t.co/5HibbGIlYJ pic.twitter.com/HHkkV5ElyT
— Sportico (@Sportico) August 17, 2021
Once the NHL sold ads on helmets last year - which honestly, after the initial first blush, wasn't that noticeable - you knew this was next. With revenue down, this could generate north of $100 million, similar to what ads on helmets brought in. As Sportico noted, the NHL becomes the last major U.S. sports league to sell marketing space on player uniforms during games. The ads must fit a rectangle 3 inches by 3.5 inches, making them slightly bigger than the patches that the NBA added to its jerseys for the 2017-18 season.
For those who are worried that the ads will be on jerseys purchased, my understanding is that for NBA jerseys, you can get the patches on the side and add them on. A bigger concern would be if they come on the jersey and you need to remove them. But that appears not to be the case. In addition, it is possible that only the jerseys worn by players will have them but ones sold to fans will not.
As long as the league doesn't go the way of overseas hockey leagues, where ads are all over the jersey, people will get upset initially and calm down. The Rangers had Chase on their helmets. If they went with similar on the jersey, especially if just the logo and not the name, how much would it really stand out?
The potential exists for this to go off the rails, like ads on dasher boards. This holds especially true if the pandemic spikes again and fans are not allowed in the buildings, resulting in the cap remaining flat. But as long as limited to a single 3x3.5 inch ad, I am not about to start railing on the idea. The league clearly needs the revenue and this is a viable stream, as long as it does not remain unchecked. I am not in love with the idea, but understand the reason behind it and have to hope that it is limited to just the one ad.