The state of Minnesota has seen a surge in online searches for ice hockey streams in the time period from August 2021, to July 2022. But according to data provided by ExpressVPN, that is in contrast to the rest of America.
So can this anomaly be put down to the performances of the Minnesota Wild? Or is it that Minnesota is just ice hockey-mad?
Of the top five streamed sports in the US, hockey comes fifth. That puts it behind American football, basketball, soccer, and baseball. With the new NHL season about to start, it will be interesting to see if that percentage of live streams in the US changes.
Minnesota; The anomaly state when it comes to streaming
When the stats are broken down state by state, Minnesota is the one state that has the most searches for ice hockey streams in the US. The other states are dominated by searches for football and basketball streams. “Stream baseball” and “stream soccer” didn’t come out first in any state. Despite coming fifth overall, “stream hockey” did well to win out in Minnesota.
The local ice hockey franchise in the state is the Minnesota Wild. The Wild had a decent season last year, finishing second behind the eventual Stanley Cup winners, the Colorado Avalanche. In the playoffs, the Wild lost 4-2 in the first round to the St Louis Blues, who finished one place below them in the Central Division in the regular season.
So, was it the success of the Wild in the regular season that led to a lot of these stream searches? Other sporting franchises in the state are the Minnesota Twins MLB team, and the Minnesota Vikings, in the NFL. In MLB, the Twins are at a similar level to that of the Wild in the NHL. But the Vikings, are not as successful in the NHL. So it stands to reason that there would be fewer searches for American football, but not so much baseball.
In contrast, the most successful state for ice hockey last season was Colorado. But in this state, “stream basketball” was the most common search phrase. The Denver Nuggets are the most high-profile NBA team in Colorado, but they were nowhere near as successful as the Colorado Avalanche were last season. Meaning it’s highly unlikely the search phrases were based on the performances of the respective franchises.
Minnesota is just Ice Hockey Mad
The reason for the search phrases is more likely down to Minnesota being hockey mad. Every year the state of Minnesota celebrates the sport, with Hockey Day Minnesota.
Hockey Day Minnesota started in 2007 and has since become an annual tradition. The event moves from city to city every year. In 2022 it was held in Mankato, and in 2023 it is to be staged in the city of White Bear Lake.
Minnesota’s hockey day highlights just how crazy the state is for the sport. And as such, probably goes some way to explaining the high amount of online searches for “stream hockey” within the state.
Photos: JohnRothwell@prohockeynews.com 2022 Winter Classic St Paul, MN
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