Media Guide

So my first week, even though it was 3 days, is now in the books with the Panthers. I got a lot of assignment today, FINALLY!!!

The first thing I am doing is one of the most important press releases all year. Most press releases take about 10 minutes for me to write, but this one will take a week. It is the release announcing our schedule for the upcoming season. It takes forever because the schedule is changed a bit other the course of the next week. For example, we had a game moved a few days because of a schedule conflict with what I assume to be a concert. But also, we need to break down the schedule on the release, announce meaningful games, like Todd Bertuzzi's return to Vancouver. Also it is our first chance to announce ticket packages. We have a ton of Saturday night home games so I'm sure our sales department will give me a Saturday ticket package to announce. Expect the announcement by the end of next week.

I also began working on our Pre-season Media Guide, not to be confused with the real Media Guide for the season. This guide is just an outlook at the players and the year to come. It's simple, but tedious work because it is a lot of updating stats. Adding this past season's total onto career numbers, adding them together, seeing what records where broken, etc. This isn't due for over a month now but I'm happy that I'm soo far into it already. Obviously, there will be players that we sign or potentially do not sign that will be added or subtracted before rookie camp begins Sept. 6.

Also, I got assigned 4 stories to write for our publications. One story is a Q&A with the newest star Panther Todd Burtuzzi. I'm very excited for this one because Todd will be the first player I get to sit down and get to know. I am either going to talk to him Tuesday or Thursday. He is coming to town this week along with the other ex-Canucks Bryan Allen and Alex Auld. The three will be attending a Panthers Summer Camp at Incredible Ice and participating in the Panthers Cook Out at the Bank Atlantic Center on Thursday. I of course will be there escort in some respects. But again, I'm very excited to speak with him. Today I did some background research so I have great questions to ask him.

The other three stories are on 3 other players that we signed this offseason. One is on Ruslav Salei, the defensemen we signed from Anaheim. The other 2 are a combined story as we signed two players from Finland, where our capitan Olli Yokinen is from. So I am going to write a story on both these new players and their Finnish connection.

I actually get tomorrow off, unless we sign someone which is unlikely. Sunday is another Cats BBQ so I will attend that but it shouldn't be anything too exstensive. I will chime in again next week!!