David Ayres and the Carolina Hurricanes are a Perfect Fit

When David Ayres dressed as the EBUG, little did he know he was going to go on the biggest ride of his life. The Hurricanes made sure it was a comfortable one.

When David Ayres went to Scotiabank Arena as the Emergency Backup Goalie during the game between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Toronto Maple Leafs, he did not expect to get dressed, let alone get on the actual ice to win and if you told him the future that was ahead of him in the following 2-3 days, he would have probably told you you were crazy.

We all know the story by now. 42 year old Zamboni Driver defeats the Major League affiliate of the team he work for in an official NHL game. Every hockey player knows this story and has seen the footage. Every EBUG across the league now fully aware of what their reality might be. Every beer league goalie now picturing themselves out on the ice with the crowd chanting their name.

And thanks to the efforts of the Carolina Hurricanes and their Marketing and PR departments, everyone in the nations of Canada and the US now knows his story, Hockey fans or not.

The Carolina Hurricanes took David on a national tour of all the hottest and biggest interview shows. Of Course they took him to New York City, where he had a schedule so busy, he admits forgetting what day it was. Just take a look at his schedule:

Just look at this list. He basically hits every channel that ever mentions sports in one way or another. NBC. ESPN. FOX. TSN. CNN. Not to mention a slew of radio shows. It was almost impossible to get away from news about David Ayres. The entire nation now knows about the second Miracle on Ice.

https://twitter.com/NHL/status/1232401203268640769

Lost in all this is the fact that even if you lived under a sports rock and avoided sports it still managed to find you because they found time to get David in with the biggest Carolina Hurricanes fan hosting a late night show. That’s right. Stephen Colbert!

He literally subs in for Colbert before the break. How great is that?!

For those of you who may not know, Stephen Colbert is, as Tripp Tracy would say, a HUGE Caniac. Growing up in South Carolina, he may not have grown up a Hurricanes fan, but if he had to choose an NHL team, he would have to the Canes because, as he puts it, “Canes Rule!”

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But the PR and marketing did not stop there, in the short time he was in Carolina he met with thousands of fans, was named an honorary citizen of the state by the Governor Cooper, held several press conferences with the local media, and had his name forever in the history books of Raleigh, NC after February 22nd, 2020 was named David Ayres Day by the mayor. Wild.

So what did the Hurricanes do with this newfound golden goose that they managed to coax to lay as many golden eggs as possible? They made a T-shirt of course. But they did something even better than just sell the T-shirt to as many people as possible, they turned it into a philanthropic fundraising machine for something that is very near and dear to Dave:

For those who have been in the wilderness for the last week, Dave is also the recipient of a kidney transplant. While Dave was lucky enough to find a perfect donor in his Mom, he understands that not everyone is that lucky. So he asked the Hurricanes to help him raise funds for it. Naturally they said yes.

But that didn’t stop there. Jordan Martinook, legendary team player and all around good guy, took his partnership with Storm Brew even further and took 20% (!!!) of proceeds from the same of the beer to be sent to the National Kidney Foundation. That is proceeds not profits. Can only assume it added thousands of dollars to the overall total donated.

Between the TV shows, Philanthropy, T-shirts, and cranking the siren at the game, David Ayres was given the royal treatment by the Carolina Hurricanes and rightfully so.

But without the amazing team at the helm at the PR and Marketing departments, none of this would have been possible. The story would have flared and burned out in Toronto, which is what the Leafs would have prefered.

There is no mistaking the amazing work the Carolina Hurricanes have done, but credit must also be given to Ayres was did not let the moment get too big for him, either on the ice nor in the spotlight. He managed to keep his cool through it all and give us the best feel good story of the year, decade, and quite possibly the century.

Thank you David Ayres!

Question for CC Readers: Could any other team have managed to push out Ayres story the way the Hurricanes have?