• by Karl Greenberg , October 8, 2010

The National Hockey League is hoping to attract younger consumers to become fans of its franchise via a deal with none other than Stan Lee, godfather of comic book superheroes. The league has partnered with Lee's SLG Entertainment to form Guardian Media Entertainment, which will be the platform for "The Guardian Project," a league of 30 superheroes called Guardians. Each represents one of NHL's 30 teams.

The heroes will incorporate NHL elements, but are not set in the world of hockey, according to the NHL. Each of the character's powers relates to the hockey team and home city he or she is meant to represent. The 30 Guardians will be unveiled together in a special presentation during the 2011 NHL All-Star Game on Jan. 30 in Raleigh, N.C. The producers of "Ironman 2," Vicon House of Moves, created a teaser package that was unveiled at the Oct. 8 panel presentation at New York Comic Con, the city's all-things-comic-and-superhero convention.

The near-term rollout plan for the Guardian Project will include an online presence, mobile applications, publishing, gaming, in-arena, broadcast, merchandise, promotional and sponsorship activities. Content will be on GuardianProject30.com.

The NHL says it is also now the first professional sports league with a full-time, dedicated presence on Foursquare, a location-based social networking service, as a key component of its social media strategy. The launch coincided with NHL Face-Off on Oct. 7, which is opening day for the NHL, and includes an entertainment festival at Dundas Square in downtown Toronto.

The way the program functions is that NHL fans attending the Toronto event can use their mobile device to log in to Foursquare, which will serve tips to fans, and point them to "secret locations" in Dundas Square, where NHL representatives will give away prizes such as free subscriptions to NHL GameCenter Live. The program was created by digital agency RocketXL.

The League says that people who check into the NHL Face-Off on Foursquare can get a Swarm badge after 50 fans check in, as well as a SuperSwarm badge after 250 fans check in. The NHL will encourage fans via Facebook and Twitter to help earn these badges.

The League's social media efforts on Foursquare include giving people who log in to the platform's mobile site at NHL games and events tips and facts featuring memorable moments in NHL history, as well as other unique content, discounts, incentives and rewards.

Said Perry Cooper, the NHL's SVP of digital media in a statement: "Social media platforms like Foursquare are bringing down the geographic walls around the social elements of the fan experience."