by Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, SVG News
For the first time, an aerial camera permitted to operate directly over the ice during a Stanley Cup Final
With sky-high ratings for the Stanley Cup Playoffs thus far, two U.S. teams facing off for the first time since 2023, and all games airing on a broadcast network (ABC), ESPN is expecting plenty of eyeballs for its Stanley Cup Final coverage. And its production team is responding accordingly, rolling out massive 1080p HDR productions in Las Vegas and in Raleigh, NC, for the showdown between the Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes.
“Like any championship event, the audience is larger at the Stanley Cup,” says ESPN Coordinating Producer David Gibson. “Our mission is to give the fanbase — the diehard fans as well as the newer fans — more reasons to root for and more reasons to care about the players and the teams. Throughout the Stanley Cup Final, we will showcase these personalities through features, in-game interviews, and other storytelling techniques.”
In addition to deploying roughly 80 cameras for its productions, ESPN will continue to apply a variety of bells and whistles in documenting the game: a SkyCam flying over the ice, on-ice SkateCams, MindFly Ref Cams, and other unique looks that bring viewers closer to the action.
[…]
