Rod Serling enters a suburban Pittsburgh living room and says:
“Joan Kozlowski thought this would be just like any other sleepy September Thursday. But unbeknownst to her, she was about to enter the Twilight Zone….
DO DO DO DO DO DO DO……
As Joan watched Oprah, with a can of Pledge in her hand and a Swiffer duster nearby, the doorbell rang. “Who could that be?” she wondered. Placing the can of Pledge on the coffee table, she headed for the door. Standing on her doorstep was the Captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Sidney Crosby. He was holding a package – she thought she must be dreaming, but no, in The Twilight Zone the star player of the team always delivers season tickets!
Well, it didn’t happen quite like that, but Crosby, wearing jeans and his 87 sweater, did appear at the door with Joan’s season tickets. She had been told the day before by the organization that a “player” would be coming, but she never dreamed it would be Crosby. Wouldn’t you think you were in The Twilight Zone???
All over Pittsburgh, other players were making the same deliveries. Evgeni Malkin, Marc-Andre Fluery, Ryan Whitney, Colby Armstrong and Max Talbot presented season ticket packages to 24 season ticket holders. In a stroke of absolute marketing brilliance, the players got to meet the fans up close and personal and vice versa.
Crosby was quoted in the local paper as saying, “It was nice. It was nice to see the reaction on people’s faces. Everyone appreciated it. It was fun for me and for the rest of the guys to go and interact with people who support us so much. Some of the people have been season ticket holders for 30 years. So this was nice for us to do and to say thanks personally.”
Quite a special dividend on a 30 year investment, I’d say!
Crosby continued, “You see 17,000 people every night but we don’t get to meet all of them. To meet a few and see their homes and the things they have up and the support they show, that’s something that I think hits home for everyone.”
Fleury, the goalie, agreed with his Captain. “It’s been good. Everyone has been really nice. It’s cool to meet the fans. They seemed happy. These people always come see us, so it’s great to meet them and talk to them one-on-one.”
The Penguins are making a real effort to be involved in the community and to make the bonds with their fans even stronger. This idea was certainly a step in the right direction. I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see this plan take off with all the other NHL teams, much like the “Shirts off our Backs” did after the Bruins introduced that special ceremony.
Rod Serling couldn’t have written a better script and Joan couldn’t have been more surprised if Rod himself had been standing at the door!
Way to go, Pens! |
