From left to right: Mike Kelly, Neil Lane, Scott MacIntosh and Brian MacDonald discuss sports analytics. Photo by Alec Brideau.
Mike Kelly uses unique information to give a different perspective on hockey
Statistical analysis consists of collecting and analyzing information or statistics about target groups or trends, in order to better identify and understand them. This procedure, now used by most sports organizations, was discussed at the John Molson Sports Marketing (JMSM) conference on Nov. 2, and panelists see it as a benefit for fans.
“I think it allows the fans to understand the game and the players better,” said TSN hockey analyst Mike Kelly. “The more you understand something, the more passionate and invested you will be in it.”
Kelly explained that statistical analysis often brings new angles to his stories. It is an asset in his work, as it helps to reach a vaster audience.
“I think my goal in all of this is to get [sports fans] more engaged in the game,” Kelly said. “It tells them stories they might not know, or adds context and layers to stories they might know.”
The JMSM conference was held from Nov. 1-3 in downtown Montreal. Photo by Alec Brideau.
Statistical analysis is used in many different ways to customize a fan’s experience. Scott MacIntosh, head of sports analytics and business development with SAP Sports, said the use of statistical analysis in sports can go as deep as it can be casual.
“If you start building products that fit with the fans and the level [at which] you identify them, in terms of what experience they want to have with you, it can go really deep, or stays as casual as a fan telling you they want a certain thing,” MacIntosh said.
MacIntosh added that statistical analysis allows creativity for organizations, which leads to unique experiences for their fans.
“There was a team in the United States that was giving something as interesting as creating virtual season tickets for the fans,” MacIntosh said. “An NBA fan could receive a recorded phone call from their favourite player on a game day. They were bringing that experience from the start of the day, right until you got to the arena.”
According to co-founder and CEO of Stathletes Neil Lane, the use of statistical analysis to improve fans’s experiences is done by thinking from their perspective.
“Everybody’s on their phone, and there are not a lot [of fans] watching the game,” Lane said. “So how do you use analytics to create more entertainment for our fans? From my experience, on [Kelly’s] side and on the media’s side, there are a lot of ways you can engage them with statistical [tools] that will tell them better stories.”
Lane explained that sports teams have many techniques in place to gather statistics and build better experiences for fans.
“Some arenas have cameras in them that are just watching the fans,” Lane said. “They’re seeing what fans are wearing, reading, drinking, texting, and even what site they are on on their phones.It takes the data points so it can drive that second experience in the future because of that.”
Kelly said fans have been really open to statistical analysis in his work.
“There are still fans who just want to sit down, have a beer and watch a hockey game,” Kelly said. “For me, it’s just a way to tell different and unique stories, and I think a lot of fans have been very receptive to it.”
The importance of sports analytics were on full display at this year’s JMSM conference
Advanced statistics and hockey analytics were a hot topic at the John Molson Sports Business conference held on Nov. 4 at Hotel Bonaventure.
A panel, titled “Grit and Character: The Evolution of Analytics,” was moderated by Concordia journalism graduate Salim Valji, and featured four guests well-versed in the sports analytics world.
Panelists included Sportsnet writer Dimitri Filipovic; TSN, Sportsnet and Vice Sports contributor Andrew Berkshire; Stathletes co-founder Meghan Chayka; and hockey analyst Mike Kelly.
The talk began with each panelist discussing how hockey analytics have changed over the last few years. In the past, goals, assists and plus/minus were ways to track whether or not a player was performing well. However, new statistical measurements, such as Corsi, Fenwick and PDO, have created new ways to gauge a player’s effectiveness on the ice. Corsi and Fenwick are similar, as both measure how many shots a player takes in relation to everyone else on the ice, while PDO keeps track of a team’s shooting and save percentage.
However, one of the challenges with advanced stats is properly recording what is happening.
“A lot of it is going to come down to video player tracking,” Filipovic said. “Zone entries and loose pucks aren’t something we can quantify right now.”
Due to advanced stats being relatively new, the panelists said players don’t have much respect for advanced analytics. Valji referenced an article in which Montreal Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty said he can’t judge a player based on a pie chart.
Berkshire added that stats like Corsi can make people “roll their eyes,” but that doesn’t mean they should be dismissed. Filipovic agreed, saying a team’s management should care about the new analytics.
“You want to look at it from a manager and coach level,” he said. “Why bring it to the players if they don’t care that much?”
For players to understand their own advanced stats, Chayka suggested the use of visual elements be emphasized rather than the actual numbers.
“Heatmaps and visual maps of the ice are great for showing players their performance,” Chayka said. “You have to know your audience.”
The panel then talked about how a player’s grit and character is different from their stats. Kelly brought up former Ottawa Senators forward Chris Neil, and how he isn’t an effective player on the ice, with 112 career goals in 1028 games, but his grit, character and presence in the locker room helped the Senators win games.
Chayka and Berkshire disagreed, with Chayka stating that because the Senators didn’t win the Stanley Cup with Neil on the team, it doesn’t matter that much. Berkshire added: “If character and leadership actually mattered that much, the Habs wouldn’t be terrible right now.”
The panel ended with each member giving some advice to students on how to make it in the industry and how to be effective at delivering analytics to an audience that might not otherwise know what you’re talking about.
“Make what you’re doing as relatable as possible to those consuming the information,” Kelly said. “The ones who are the most successful are the ones who text you at 10 p.m. with fresh ideas.”
Chris Moynes has his own asset management firm for athletes. Photos by Ana Hernandez.
Three speakers in the sports business industry shared their knowledge at the JMSM speaker series conference
Around 40 JMSB students packed into the Sheraton Hotel on René Lévesque Boulevard for the John Molson Sports Marketing speaker series conference on March 24.
The event was organized by JMSB students and featured three speakers, including Rob Campana, Jonathan Mailhot and Chris Moynes. Each spoke for about an hour, with Campana and Mailhot presenting students with a case study where students had to come up with ideas to fix a problem that affected the speaker’s business. Moynes was the keynote speaker.
At around 1 p.m., Campana, who is the founder of Flag Plus Football league in Montreal, spoke to students about starting his sports league and the challenges that came with it. A graduate of JMSB, Campana started Flag Plus Football when he was 19, in 2005.
“I started the league because the leagues that did exist seemed to not want my friends and I,” Campana said. “It’s like we weren’t part of their friend group so I felt like I needed to make something for my friends.”
There were only 18 teams when the league started in 2005, but now there are over 300. Since then, league has become a luxury brand for recreational flag football in Montreal.
As a former student, Campana was happy to speak at the conference and share his knowledge with the eager crowd.
“It’s interesting to stay connected with the John Molson community as an alumni,” Campana said. “Sports marketing has always been a passion of mine, and I was honoured that they wanted to have me.”
After giving his talk, Campana presented the students with a case study related to his own company. Flag Plus Football grows about 10 to 15 per cent each year, according to Campana. However, low profit margins make it hard to expand the business.
Campana looked to students for solutions to his problem. After 30 minutes, the students came back with ideas, which Campana listened to and gave feedback on.
“John Molson students are very smart,” Campana said. “I’m always curious and interested in what they come up with.”
Some students thought that one route Campana could go, is license his league’s services to other recreational leagues for a royalty fee.
Jonathan Mailhot is in charge of advertising, media planning and innovation for the Montreal Canadiens.
The next speaker was Mailhot, who is the head of advertising, media planning and innovation for the Montreal Canadiens. Mailhot spoke to the group about his role with the Canadiens, as well as how he got there, having started out as a student in JMSB.
In his role with the Habs, Mailhot helps develop advertising campaigns, as well as create promotional videos for the team’s various events and media platforms. For instance, Mailhot is in charge of the season launch campaign, which lets fans know the Habs are back.
Mailhot said he remembers being a student and attending these conferences.
“I think the biggest thing is I was in those chairs not so long ago,” Mailhot said. “Presenters don’t even notice how much impact they have on someone’s life, so I always like to think of what I would have liked to learn and then bring that information to these types of conferences.”
For Mailhot’s case study, he asked students to figure out how the Montreal Canadiens could make their Bell Centre tour more enticing to people. He also wanted to see if students could tie the tour into a social cause that would help the organization give back to the community.
He said despite students only having 30 minutes, he was impressed with the ideas the students came up with.
“I was curious to see what people came up with. It was a real challenge that we have at the Montreal Canadiens, so it was interesting,” Mailhot said. “What came out today was a bit of what we’ve worked on already, but to hear it from a group of students may have confirmed some of those projects.”
The third and final speaker was Moynes, who is the creator of One Sports Entertainment Group. The firm helps professional athletes manage their assets and make the right investments so they don’t go bankrupt.
Moynes talked about his early years as an employee at his father’s company which also dealt with asset management. There, he would help manage the assets of some of hockey’s biggest names. He then went on to work at RBC and later started his own company.
Each student got to go home with two of his books, The Pro’s Process and After the Game, which discuss how athletes can avoid financial instability later in their careers and after retirement.
While speaking about his career path, Moynes left students with some motivational words.
“In life, you never know where you’re going to end up,” Moynes said. “But with hard work and determination, you’re going to go down the path you want to go.”
After his talk, a networking cocktail was held for students to formally meet each of the three speakers.
The 19th annual John Molson Sports Marketing conference was an incredible success by Elias Laradi
This past weekend marked another great yearly event that was hosted by Concordia’s John Molson Sports Marketing (JMSM) team. The student-organized conference, which is carried out every November, brought well-known personalities and executives from the world of sports together for a three-day conference. Attracting students from across Canada and the United States, this year’s conference was entitled All The Way.
From Nov. 6 to 8, the JMSM team recruited 24 different speakers, which included general managers from the NHL and MLB, renowned sports journalists and professionals on marketing and analytics to come and talk to the delegates.
“It’s great, I feel that we really achieved our goal in giving the delegates an opportunity to hear from some of the best in the business,” said Daniel Kozel, a JMSM team member and executive. “It’s also exciting because these people showed a lot of interest in wanting to speak at our event this year.”
On Thursday, Nov. 6, Newport Sports Marketing founder Don Meehan took to the stage and kicked off the event. Meehan explained how his education from McGill’s law program would later lead to a career as a professional agent. TSN reporter John Lu moderated the evening’s discussions.
The second day of the conference, Friday, Nov. 7, was the JMSM’s team’s most impressive feat. Held at Concordia’s D.B. Clarke Theatre in the Hall building, the first panel of the day was hosted by Darren Dreger, a hockey insider for TSN. Joining him was Marc Bergevin, general manager of the Montreal Canadiens, and Julien Brisebois, the assistant general manager for the Tampa Bay Lightning. The two managers shared what they have learnt and the lessons they’ve taken away from their jobs as professional decision makers.
Travis Yost, from TSN’s analytics department, hosted a panel between Bloomberg sports journalist Alex Burwasser, and Ned Colletti, the former general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The three spent the time talking about analytics, stats and their growing importance in the world of sports. By early afternoon, Rogers-Sportsnet journalist Elliotte Friedman hosted a sit-down with Colletti. Colletti dived into his journey as a manager and his life in the big leagues.
The last group of the day catered to the business side of professional franchises. The list of speakers included Kerry Bubolz, the president of business operations for the Cleveland Cavaliers, and David Snyder, the vice president of Corporate Partnerships for the Milwaukee Bucks. Hosted by Abe Hefter, who works for TSN radio and is a journalism professor at Concordia, they discussed the behind-the-scenes work that goes into running a franchise.
The final day of the conference, Saturday Nov. 8, heavily appealed to the marketing side of students Throughout the day, three separate panels discussed the intricacies of executive and marketing duties. There were 11 speakers during the day, some of whom represented professional franchises like the Columbus Blue Jackets, Boston Celtics, Tampa Bay Rays and the Montreal Canadiens.
On Saturday, Nov. 8, All The Way came to an end with the keynote speaker, Mitch Garber. Garber is a Canadian businessman and CEO of Caesar’s Acquisition Company and Caesar’s Interactive Entertainment (CIE). From Montreal, Garber shared his successes and failures as a businessman. Stressing that being persistent, and remaining focuses on your goals, will pay off in the end.
As the delegates and JMSM organizers celebrated with an open bar at the end of the night, it was clear that their hard work had paid off.
“The conference was a huge success. The entire committee is so proud of how everything went. It took months and months of preparation. Since May, we’ve been working on securing hotels, venues, speakers and inviting schools all across North America,” said Kristyna Spooner, the delegate director for the JMSM team. “It took a lot of dedication from the entire team, especially throughout the weekend. But everything ran smoothly and we are very proud of how the conference turned out.”
The importance of hard work, passion and ambition defined this year’s conference
by Tim Lazier
In the closing ceremonies of this year’s John Molson Sports Marketing (JMSM) conference, president of the JMSM team Steve Lyberopoulos didn’t prepare a speech. He couldn’t fathom an appropriate statement that described how much hard work and commitment his team dedicated to the project. Without even realizing it, this was the perfect way to summarize the extraordinary three-day event.
Like any annual gala or event, the notion of ‘bigger and better’ is always promised, but rarely executed. While some big-name guests helped the cause, the reason that this year’s JMSM conference was special to the delegates in attendance was because of the underlying theme that stayed constant from the opening ceremony to the keynote speaker.
Appropriately entitled All The Way, the conference was about pursuing your passion to the best of your abilities, to go all the way. With a little bit of luck, a lot of hard work and unbeatable ambition, no dream is too far out of reach. And for the hundreds of wide-eyed students that attended the discussions, the message was exactly what they wanted to hear.
Don Meehan, a professional agent and the man behind Newport Sports Management (NSM), preached the importance of education in his discussion with TSN reporter John Lu during Thursday’s opening event. Meehan understands how many students can’t wait to get past school and be onto the next step, but the time spent in a classroom is invaluable. Even after formal education, the learning doesn’t stop. With an intimidating presence yet soft-spoken manner, Meehan told delegates to embrace the learning curve.
Beginning the season, NSM represented 129 NHL players. Although it has been 34 years since Meehan began NSM, he can remember when he was just starting out. Meehan explained how he just had to keep his head down and keep working, something many students can attest to.
Lu first spoke at JMSM four years ago as the keynote speaker and has returned every year since. Like Meehan, he hopes his experience can help students in any way possible.
“I know what challenges there are in trying to launch a career, and when working towards a purpose,” said Lu. “There are all sorts of challenges attached to it, so I always appreciate the opportunity to impart my experience and lessons I’ve learned.”
On Friday, the conference was moved to Concordia’s 387-seat D.B. Clarke Theatre, and with good reason. Delegates filed into their seats by 11 a.m. to see the main attraction. Habs general manager Marc Bergevin sat down with TSN’s Darren Dreger and Tampa Bay Lightning’s assistant general manager Julien Brisebois to discuss the responsibilities of being in charge.
While talking about their daily duties, Bergevin and Brisebois brought up the importance of ambition and passion. The idea of never having to work a day in your life can become a reality if you follow your passion. Brisebois admitted that he can’t wait to get to the office every morning.
Even in the midst of defeat, Bergevin told the crowd that there are opportunities to learn and to improve. With every Canadiens loss, Bergevin takes a moment to find out how his team can improve, rather than looking for people to blame.
“Winners find solutions, losers look for excuses,” said Bergevin.
While the Canadiens’ main-man may have been the big-ticket item on the bill, former Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti was one of the more inspirational speakers at this year’s conference. As a part of two panels on Friday, his second appearance was a one-on-one with Rogers-Sportsnet reporter Elliotte Friedman.
Comfortably sunk back in his chair with a voice that could have reached the back row even without a microphone, Colletti answered questions about his past and the values that he was brought up with.
“A blue-collar kid in a white-collar job,” explained Colletti.
Colletti, who was the Dodgers’ general manager from 2006 to 2014, grew up with very little in Chicago, but credits his father for teaching him the importance of a strong work ethic. Colletti told a few stories about his father and portrayed him as a simple man. His father had seven other siblings and the only thing he knew for sure was how to work hard. Coletti’s mother and father had known each other since they were 14 years old, and were side-by-side until the day Colletti’s father died of cancer.
By now, the room was hanging onto Colletti’s every word.
Throughout his career, and evident in his genuine manner on stage, it was never in Colletti’s make up to be flashy. He relied on hard work and hoped somebody would eventually notice him.
“I’m not the smartest guy in any room I’ve ever been in,” said Colletti.
As the conference dwindled down to a close on Saturday at the Centre Mont-Royal, the keynote speaker, Mitch Garber, wrapped up the event in fitting fashion. Garber, a Canadian businessman who is currently the CEO of Caesar’s Acquisition Company and Caesar’s Interactive Entertainment, spoke of his path to success and all the speed bumps along the way.
“My road has many more spectacular crashes than successes,” said Garber.
Coming from a man who is valued at $200 million by Celebrity Networth, he spoke of the importance of persistence.
Garber shared a story about one of these crashes and how in 1997, he had an opportunity to get involved with Hotmail. At the time, the idea of electronic mail seemed foreign and Garber needed time to think about it. Little did he know, a week later Microsoft bought Hotmail for 500 million dollars. Garber had missed his chance.
As the room groaned, Garber smiled and reminded delegates to just keep going.
Because if you’re going to go, go all the way.
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This article has been edited to add further details by Tim Lazier.
On Nov. 7-9, the John Molson Sports Marketing (JMSM) Committee held its 18th annual sports business conference. As a non-profit, JMSM’s main goal is to promote business in sports; their message is “Business at hand, Sport at heart.” Every year, they plan a three day sports business conference where students organize conferences and business students are invited from across the nation. These delegates learn and listen to speakers who are in the sports industry today. The main speaker at this year’s conference was Los Angeles Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti, who gave the keynote address about his struggles and rewards in life. In the past, the conference has brought in sports agents like Don Meehan and former JMSB student, Julien BriseBois, who is now the Assistant General Manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Concordian had the chance to interview one of the key members of this year’s team, Anton Sakiz, who was director of PR at the conference.
Q: What is it like planning the conference?
A: It is a very long process. We started planning around May of this year and the workload has kept increasing ever since.
Q: How do people get involved with the conference/JMSM?
A: People registered for JMSM through our website. To make them aware of the conference, we use a mix of social media posts, online advertising and emails sent to business schools associations.
Q: How did you use social networking to interact with people who didn’t have chance to be there?
A: We communicate a lot with the delegates on Twitter. A Facebook group is also set up to help them ask any questions they may have. We have a committee member whose sole purpose is to interact with delegates on social media.
Q: How do you guys contact the speakers?
A: We have a great speaker team who used every mean available to contact speakers, be it by mail, phone or through their various contacts. Once a contact is established they accompany the speakers throughout the conference.
Q: Did you or your team accomplish what you want to do?
A: Yes, we are extremely proud of how JMSM13 turned out. Each panel was a blast, attendance was excellent and the conference went without a hitch, everything coming together as planned.
Panels
The first and most hyped-up panel had Greg Campbell, former president of Business Operations for the Memphis Grizzlies, Pierre Boivin, former president of the Montreal Canadiens, Chris Wallace, General Manager and VP of Basketball Operations for the Memphis Grizzlies and Ned Colletti, General Manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Colletti and Wallce explained why they came to the JMSM conference. “I know when I was growing up it was always powerful for me to speak to someone who was working in professional sports because I could learn a lot from that person,” he said.
“I haven’t been at conference where you can be involved with young people who have a passion about sports and want to advance it as a career,” said Wallace.
Colletti also gave advice for anyone who wants to work in the sports market. “Get yourself through the door with internships or work for free,” he said.
Greg Campbell, former president of Business Operations for the Memphis Grizzlies, had advice for anyone who wants to make it in the sports business. “Sports has small number of teams in North America, you have to find a way into the door,” he said. “Once you are inside, you have to use your skills to show your superiors.”
Wallace also talked about how in big market like Boston you do not need to make a connection with your fans. The Celtics have a history and legacy that is pass on through generations, much like the Montreal Canadiens. However in Memphis they are a first generation team, which means that is hard to get fans interested in them especially when you have great university basketball at the University of Memphis.
The growth of Sports Business
Ian Clarke, MLSE’s chief financial officer; Johanna Miller, digital media and social media specialist with Reebok and CCM; Clare Zovko, a sports law attorney; Andrew Baker, the director of the Olympics games for Canada. Johanna Miller discussed how in today world, kids want to wear a brand of their favourite players such as fan-favourite Sidney Crosby. She also mentioned how CCM and Reebok have a pee wee camp in which young hockey players have the chance to be pro players with training on the ice and off the ice, they have nutrition seminars.
Andrew Baker focused on how the Canadian Olympic committee support athletes who need crowd funding to make to the Olympics where Own the Podium only provides funding for the Canadian athletes who are contending for medals in the Olympics. Baker also stated that the Sochi Olympics are going to be the most expense Olympics for Canada.
Clare Zovko talked about a big issue in college sports today: should student athletes be paid? “Probably, but it would create a lot of problems because institutions who don’t have large budgets may not exist because they aren’t making profit now, she said. “Also schools with large budgets may not exist because they would have to play sports that are non-revenue generated.”
Ian Clarke talked about what it meant for Toronto to be hosting the 2016 NBA all-star game (ASG), as this is the first time that is it not being held in the United States. “It’s put Toronto on the world stage, showcase the great city and it draws great attention in positive ways,” he said. Clark expects that the ASG will bring in $50 million. The ASG will also provide Canada a chance to see NBA all-stars.
