At the beginning of the year, things were looking grim for Oregon club hockey.

The team was $13,000 in debt and risked having the plug pulled on their season.

Things needed to change.

When current team coordinator Patrick Sgarlata approached team photographer at the time, Conner Gordon, about their financial crisis, Gordon was all ears.

“I was like, ‘Oh man, I’m here with you. I’ll take this (debt) on as a project,’” Gordon said.

In addition to helping the club with fundraising efforts, Gordon came up with the idea to restart and revamp the live broadcast in order to bring some publicity — and money — to the team.

There was just one problem. They didn’t have any gear.

While Sgarlata and Gordon chipped in some of their own money for equipment, the team solicited donations from family in order to get the feed up and running on Ustream.

They came back with unexpected and extraordinary results.

A parent of one of the players was interested in helping get the broadcast on its feet. After a few emails between him and Gordon, an agreement was reached and $10,000 was donated to the team for the sole purpose of the broadcast.

“I could tell from corresponding with Conner by email and talking to him that he really had a clear vision,” Rob Burgess, who made the donation, said. “He knew what he wanted. It was well researched. He was going to make it happen, so I felt very good about (donating).”

Burgess had a few reasons for contributing to the team.

“I wanted to watch Brock (his son) play and I’m always looking for opportunities to give back,” he said. “I figured there were a lot of hockey families that would like to watch their kid play hockey, including family members of mine up in Canada. I thought it (donating) was a good thing to do.”

It isn’t only family members tuning into the broadcast, though. Ducks hockey alumni have also frequented the stream.

“I’m living with another ex-teammate, Matt Hanlon, and we like to catch up on what our team is doing and see how they’re performing this year,” former Ducks hockey goalie Kyle Adamson said. “It’s good to see and it brings back the nostalgia of playing for the team.”

People all over the nation are following the games like Adamson has from Orange County, Calif. The stream has boasted viewers from over 10 states and Canada.

Though a diverse audience shows how much the broadcast has grown, what’s important is that the original plan to increase attendance has succeeded. Recently the the team recorded a season high at Lane County Ice: roughly 310 people.

But numbers aside, Gordon is just glad people finally can support their team from afar.

“Something that’s just spectacular is going to away games and having people … say, ‘Thank you guys so much. I can now watch my kids play. I can watch my team play and without you I wouldn’t have been able to do that,’” he said. “That’s more satisfying than the attendance or viewership.”

Follow Anne Yilmaz on Twitter @anneyilmaz

[Originally published here by the Daily Emerald on February 5, 2014]