Self promoting is not commonly known in the world of hockey. A sport that is known to be more quiet and out of the spotlight, the players have mostly done the same. Recently however, players have been more intune with self-promoting.
Last year Sidney Crosby from the earned $4.5 million in endorsement dollars. This is no comparison to the likes of Lebron James or Peyton Manning, who each earned $44 million and $12 million last year, or the Houston Rockets’ James Harden, who just signed an endorsement deal with Adidas that will pay him over $15 million per season. It is interesting that hockey players aren't usually as involved with brands or endorsed by certain companies wanting them to be the face of their brand. This is a strong statement to understand that some of us don't know the names of famous hockey players (other than the household names like Wayne Gretzky). But we know the names of famous football players simply because we see them on ads. This is a powerful statement when it comes to branding yourself.
PK Subban from the has become apart of this branding spotlight this year. Known for his budding personality and tailored suits, Subban has gained attention. But not just attention, respect.
Subban has signed sponsorship deals with Samsung, Gatorade, RBC, Degree, Boston Pizza, Hyundia, and Nike.
The NHL has progressively evolved to embracing Subban’s personality. When Subban was featured in a backstage video series in 2014, the NHL media gained popularity which also means they gained followers. They changed their approach to marketing which helped them gain more of a following. Another popular example would move towards social media. When the tweeted their victory over the Vancouver Canucks (2012), fans liked that. Fans retweeted causing news to flow through many different mediums.
All of this is a great example of how important a player can be for a team. Whether it is for the NHL or any team, a player can cause fandom, which markets not just them personally, but the team.