Hockey is now a huge part of the West Coast sports world. Previously considered to be a victim of warm weather culture, hockey teams such as the L.A. Kings, the San Jose Sharks, and the Anaheim Ducks have made the cold-weather sport popular in California. Oh, and now there’s Vegas.
On Saturday, the Kings will be throwing it back to a time when the sport wasn’t quite so popular. In fact, the sport was having so much trouble gaining traction in some places that FOX broadcasts tried to use new technology as techniques to drive engagement.
The mother of them all, the “Glow Puck”.
The idea is pretty simple; the puck would appear to have a glow around it on the broadcast in an effort to make it more visible. The thinking behind this is that people aren’t watching hockey because they are having a tough time seeing what’s happening with the golden snitch of hockey.
In celebration of their “90’s Night” on Saturday night against the Edmonton Oilers, FOX Sports West will be contributing by bringing back the Glow Puck. It was hated at the time of use, and generally seen as distracting rather than helpful, but since then it has become a little more endeared solely based on how weird it seemed at the time.
While fans are likely happy that Glow Puck won’t be sticking around for the long run, the novelty of it for 90’s Night is something we can get on board with.
(H/T L.A. Kings)
