NHL's 'Hot for Hockey' campaign ends after not-so-hot reception

A series of audio stories promoted by the National Hockey League as a way to tap into the success of hockey romance shows such as Heated Rivalry appears to have been removed from Spotify after they garnered widespread criticism and concern.

The "Hot for Hockey" campaign featured NHL players and games in 60- to 90-second audiobooks, presented in the style of hockey-themed romance novels, according to a Sports Business Journal report announcing the campaign last week.

One of the first instalments, titled "The Storm Between Us," featured Carolina Hurricanes centre Sebastian Aho and the team's season opener against the Florida Panthers on Sept. 29.

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But by Tuesday morning, the audio stories could no longer be found on Spotify.

In an email to CBC News on Monday afternoon, a spokesperson said the NHL had partnered with "real hockey authors, illustrators and voice actors."

"This was a small way to give a playful nod to something that's clearly going on in the cultural zeitgeist — among many different marketing activations," the spokesperson said.

"As a start of the season concept, these were matchup-specific posts designed to run during our opening games in the first week."

The statement did not explicitly say that the stories had been removed from Spotify. The Sports Business Journal had reported that instalments would roll out "throughout the season."

CBC News asked when and why they were apparently taken down, but did not immediately hear back from the league spokesperson on Tuesday.

One of the first 'Hot for Hockey' instalments featured Carolina Hurricanes centre Sebastian Aho. (@nhl/TikTok)

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