Winnipeg Jets playoff run generates 'invaluable' free publicity for city

Cameron MacLean · CBC News

· Posted: May 06, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

The occurrence of the Winnipeg Jets successful the NHL playoffs truthful acold this play has done much than assistance the spirits of hockey fans — it has fixed the metropolis a wealthiness of escaped exposure.

The televised hockey games — and the accompanying whiteout thoroughfare parties — have put a spotlight connected the metropolis and its downtown. 

It's excessively soon to cognize the afloat economical interaction of the games and parties, which gully an estimated 22,000 radical to the events, a spokesperson for True North Sports and Entertainment said successful an email statement.

"The broader vulnerability of the Whiteout, for the sport, the Jets and our city, is invaluable," spokesperson Krista Sinaisky wrote. 

Economic Development Winnipeg has contributed up to $90,000 to the parties done the City of Winnipeg's peculiar lawsuit tourism fund. 

It besides partnered with 10 societal media contented creators from crossed Canada and the U.S. to travel to Winnipeg and beforehand the games. That contented generated 58 cardinal views, worthy astir $2 cardinal worthy of "earned media," said Natalie Thiesen, vice-president of tourism.

"That quality to presumption our metropolis successful a antithetic mode and having much eyeballs connected Winnipeg, allows america to bash our jobs and widen our scope successful a mode that our fund doesn't allow," she said.

Paying to beforehand the metropolis connected a tv programme with the level of viewership of an NHL crippled doesn't travel cheap, said Martin Fisher, CEO of Show and Tell Agency, a Winnipeg-based advertizing firm.

"You astir apt would extremity up having to walk astir $1.5 million, $2 cardinal to get the fig of eyeballs that would person seen that connected a … North American ground … You're into Super Bowl benignant of money," said Fisher.

WATCH | Fans, section businesses look guardant to 2nd circular of playoffs:

The whiteout parties began successful 2018. An investigation from Economic Development Winnipeg recovered the lawsuit saw 120,500 radical attended the parties implicit the people of the six weeks the Jets were successful the playoffs that year. That did not see the 15,000 radical watching the crippled wrong the arena oregon astatine downtown bars, restaurants and different places.

In presumption of "earned media" — fundamentally third-party publicity without nonstop outgo — Economic Development Winnipeg calculated the worth astatine astir $2.2 million, including astir 400 abstracted quality articles with a scope of implicit 233 cardinal views. 

The full outgo of the enactment successful 2018 was $2,167,000, including $1,084,000 from True North Sports and Entertainment, $120,000 from Economic Development Winnipeg and $962,000 from the City of Winnipeg, not including $153,000 it received from True North to screen other policing and transit costs.

Felicia Wiltshire, communications manager for the City of Winnipeg, said successful an email the metropolis whitethorn besides supply further "in-kind" services, and is heavy progressive successful readying and execution of the events including immoderate indispensable roadworthy closures, metropolis beautification and different work.