Aggressive Blackhawks threaten Wolves

By Patrick Kissane | Jul 22, 3:48 PM

The Chicago Blackhawks are promoting themselves in a much more aggressive marketing campaign, according to a story in today's Chicago Tribune. With a slogan of "One Goal," the team has announced it engaged the leading advertising agency of Ogilvy & Mather. This follows the decision, last season, to hire Chicago Cubs President John McDonough as the president of the Blackhawks.

Following the success of the outdoor game between the Buffalo Sabres and the Pittsburgh Penguins on New Year's Day, 2008, McDonough is understood to have pitched the idea for an Original Six game between the Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings to the NHL. That game was announced at the Chicago Blackhawks first fan convention, held last weekend.

Other significant moves include the decision last season, by the BHawks, to reverse the long-held policy on television broadcasting: all Hawks games will now be broadcast. And the team has a high-quality outlet in place with WGN AM 720 broadcasting the games. Pat Foley, the team's former broadcaster, has been hired away from the Chicago Wolves and returns to the broadcast booth too this season.

It could be the biggest turnaround ever for a sports franchise. Ridiculed for years, the team was named the worst major league franchise by Sports Illustrated. The death of team owner Bill Wirtz was met by dances and laughter on Chicago sports radio. But, now, in mid-July, the team is back in the news, with front page coverage of the new on-ice captain and a Business section front page story in the Tribune.

Proof of greater interest in the Blackhawks is also evident in the note, in the Tribune story, that season tickets increased threefold, currently to between 9,000 and 10,000 from about 3,000 - 4,000 in the previous season.

The "One Goal" mentioned in the ad? Not the playoffs, which eluded the team last season, but the Stanley Cup. It is a worthy rejoinder to the Chicago Wolves campaign reminding fans of its recent Calder Cup victory. The Tribune article, which completely forgets the Wolves, may be a warning sign to the Rosemont team: a winning Blackhawks team may eclipse the Wolves as completely as a poorly managed major league team was bested for years by a smaller, feisty minor league team.

Tagged: Chicago Wolves, Chicago Blackhawks