SBJ Unpacks: NHL braces for impact of tariffs

Tonight in Unpacks: Hockey gear is expensive, and as NHL teams prepare equipment budgets for the 2025-26 season, they face a great deal of uncertainty. But they do know one thing, as SBJ’s Alex Silverman reports in next week’s magazine -- they’ll be spending more for their gear.

Also tonight:

• Kim Ng is ready for her next challenge as AUSL commissioner
• Kyle Larson leading NASCAR merch sales halfway through 2025
• Lew Sherr named Mets president of business operations
• Dunk Dynasty hoops game enjoys strong launch

Listen to SBJ’s most popular podcast, Morning Buzzcast, where Abe Madkour wraps up the week with TicketMaster’s need to battle bots and resellers reflecting the intense interest in NFL games in U.K., NCAA Charlie Baker hoping to have final decision soon on expanding March Madness, the strongest markets for soccer in the U.S. and more.

Each year around this time, Buffalo Sabres equipment manager Dave Williams submits a proposed budget to ownership for the next NHL season. Typically, he can be confident that the cost to ensure players have all the sticks, skates and protective gear they need for an 82-game schedule will be 3%-6% higher than it was the year before.

Given the uncertainty brought on by the second-term tariff policies of President Donald Trump’s administration, however, Williams and his counterparts across the league are planning for a much larger jump for the 2025-26 season. Determining the size of that increase has been a struggle, as equipment manufacturers try to get a handle on how tariffs will affect input and import costs.

“The prices I’ve seen for next year have been a moving target because the companies don’t want to put a number on stuff yet in such an unknown time period,” said Williams, who also serves as president of the Society of Professional Hockey Equipment Managers. “I’ve had one company already release a price list and then revoke it, saying that they have to take a look at things a little bit further because the tariffs have been rescinded recently.”

Last week, the U.S. Court of International Trade blocked the president from imposing some of his proposed tariffs, but the administration will appeal the decision and could look for alternate routes to institute its tariff plans.

Hockey equipment is notoriously expensive, with top-of-the-line skates retailing for more than $1,000 per pair and high-end sticks approaching $400 apiece. NHL teams don’t pay retail prices, of course, but have to cater to players who may use a new pair of skates each week or a stick per game.

Unlike lower-level professional leagues, many of which have exclusive sponsorship and supply agreements with a single equipment company and can negotiate the most favorable prices, NHL teams allow players to choose which gear they want to use and wear. Even in cases where players have endorsement deals to wear a specific brand, teams foot the bill to keep the locker room stocked with their gear of choice.

Multiple team sources said NHL organizations spend around $1 million per season on equipment for players, though that number can vary significantly from team to team. One team president estimated the difference between the lowest- and highest-spending teams could be upward of 30%. Teams with tighter budgets may engage in “quantity management,” or efforts to limit the amount of equipment players use throughout the season, and teams with separate facilities for practices and games might have to double up on certain gear.

Williams said Ontario-based CCM initially communicated plans to increase its equipment prices by 27% across the board due to the anticipated impact of U.S. tariffs on imports from a range of countries, most notably Canada, China and Mexico. Many of the Trump tariffs, however, have since been reduced or paused, which has led CCM to revise its increase to 14%. That figure is in place for short-term orders, Williams said, but the company still plans to release updated pricing for next season.

A CCM spokesperson declined to comment on its pricing, citing the “constantly changing” tariff landscape. The brand is one of the industry’s two behemoths, along with New Hampshire-based Bauer. According to geargeek.com, which tracks the equipment choices of NHL players, the cross-border rivals are the top two most-used brands for sticks, skates, gloves, helmets and pants. CCM is the most popular stick manufacturer, with a 40% share among NHL players, while Bauer is the most popular skate brand, with 68% of players lacing up its boots.

For now, Williams is pointing to CCM’s initial 27% price increase as the benchmark for next season in conversations with Sabres management. With Trump’s policies liable to change in the wake of the recent ruling, however, it could be a while before NHL teams can accurately forecast equipment costs for 2025-26.

Kim Ng has already dealt with the pressure that came with being the first woman to hold the title of general manager in any of the five major North American men’s professional sports leagues.

However, the 56-year-old trailblazing baseball executive recently told her husband, Tony Markward, that she feels a different type of pressure in her new role as commissioner of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League. In fact, in some ways, Ng says she feels more pressure than she did when she was GM of the Miami Marlins from 2020-23.

“They’re both front and center, but this one [AUSL] feels like there have been a number of iterations in the past; we have a runway, we have support and the bottom line is we just can’t fail,” Ng said as Opening Day of the inaugural AUSL season approached. “We have to succeed.”

The season opens June 7, with four teams — the Bandits, Blaze, Talons and Volts — playing a touring schedule of 24 games each across 10 U.S. cities through July 23, culminating in a best-of-three championship series. That will take place from July 26-28 in Tuscaloosa, Ala., at 3,940-seat Rhoads Stadium and be broadcast on ESPN2. Next season the league will become city-based.

It’s a challenge for which Ng has long been prepared. She played college softball at the University of Chicago before embarking on a groundbreaking three-decade run as an MLB executive. In 1995, at age 26, she became the youngest executive and first woman to present a salary arbitration case while working for the Chicago White Sox. Three years later, at 29, Ng became the youngest assistant GM in baseball when she was hired by the New York Yankees for that role. She helped the Yankees win three World Series and was termed “indispensable” by general manager Brian Cashman. In 2005, she became the first woman in baseball history to interview for a GM job (Los Angeles Dodgers), served as assistant GM for the Dodgers and senior vice president of baseball operations for MLB, before breaking the glass ceiling with Miami.

“Trailblazer, in my mind, is a word that comes with a lot of responsibility,” Ng said. “It’s a special kind of pressure. And once you get to certain levels, it’s not just about getting there. It’s about succeeding there after that. I take the word seriously.”

Ng declined her mutual option with the Marlins for the 2024 season after the club moved to hire a president over her. She wasn’t a free agent for long. She had been introduced to Athletes Unlimited founders Jon Patricof and Jonathan Soros through Yankees President Randy Levine in 2019. She reconnected with AU higher-ups through a chance meeting in February 2024 with Hilary Meyer, AU senior vice president of impact, at a Women’s History Month event at the residence of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris. Following a couple months of conversations with Patricof, she was asked about a senior advisory role.

“She was one of the first people that got how we were trying to innovate and do things differently,” Patricof said. “I told her, ‘I can’t take no for an answer. I need you to do this. It’s going to be great, and you’re the perfect person to take this role.’”

“The bottom line is, we just can’t fail. We have to succeed.”

—  Kim Ng

Before accepting, Ng reached out to about a dozen people in the softball world, including Team USA softball legend Jennie Finch-Daigle and Sarah Padove, MLB senior manager of baseball and softball development.

Ng wanted to learn more about AU and the softball landscape, and make sure her next move was the right one with the right people. And this passion project gave her flexibility as she contemplated her future in baseball. “She does her homework,” said Patricof. “She’s incredibly analytical and thoughtful about things.”

Ng joined Athletes Unlimited as a special adviser last July. Throughout that summer, she and Patricof outlined what a full-time role could look like if the partnership went well. Ng had conversations with MLB clubs about continuing her career in baseball, but ultimately decided that she was all-in on the AUSL. So when Patricof approached her about becoming commissioner in November 2024, she was ready to commit, although the announcement of her new role didn’t come until April 16.

“She obviously brings instant credibility to the league, as well as unbelievable experience and knowledge,” said Levine. “She’s been a great administrator. She knows the sport. She was a successful GM and has business acumen as well.”

Already, Ng has been instrumental in galvanizing key stakeholders, assembling a group of softball’s biggest names to serve as head coaches, GMs and ambassadors, guiding the creation of the first four team brands as well as the league’s inaugural draft, which was held on May 3 and broadcast on ESPNU.

She also helped establish a package of unprecedented player benefits, including year-round health insurance, mental health services, paid leave for pregnancy or adoption and in-season child care (there is no players union). Ng led negotiations with the cities and venues that will host the AUSL this year while also overseeing various operations, including rules and scheduling.

“Kim is proving to be the ideal leader,” Patricof said. “She inspires tremendous confidence, and people have so much respect for her. It’s really sending the message to everybody that this is a league that is now set up for success.”

Past professional softball leagues — most notably National Pro Fastpitch — have failed, and two previous versions from Athletes Unlimited were at best stepping stones. But the AUSL is already in a strong position after receiving an eight-figure financial investment from MLB that also will include broadcasting select AUSL games on MLB Network and MLB.com, joint sales and marketing efforts and extensive promotional support via MLB’s editorial, digital and social platforms.

“We had really kind of focused on AUSL before Kim joined, but she was an additional huge positive in terms of finalizing the deal,” said MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred. “I’ve known Kim her whole career in baseball, she worked for me; I was always impressed with Kim’s diligence, her managerial skills, and she’s a historic figure. The first female GM in baseball, not an easy thing to achieve, and we like partnering with high achievers.”

“I would have taken the commissioner’s job without that,” said Ng, who came on after initial conversations with MLB about an investment began. “But I think the opportunity for this sport is tremendous. I really do. The foundation is clearly there for this sport to really take off in the professional space.”

College softball has been seeing record viewership in recent years on ESPN, and the AUSL will have 33 games broadcast on ESPN’s platforms this season. Part of Ng’s mission is to capitalize on the popularity of college softball. One way the AUSL has done that is by handing out 12 “Golden Tickets” at college stadiums to players who were selected in the draft. “It allowed us to connect to the college market in a really organic and authentic way, but we need more of that,” said Ng, adding that more outreach and engagement will take place at the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City this week. “You see on social media a lot of pictures of girls anywhere from 5 to 15 years old saying, ‘I want a Golden Ticket.’ It was eye-opening for us.”

There is still much more for Ng to learn. “I was on the operations side for decades. I was not marketing or selling tickets,” she said. “You have to be creative. You have to have your relationships in the space. You have to understand what you don’t know and then seek help elsewhere and be resourceful. And sometimes the answer is right there in front of you. You just have to make it happen. You have to execute.”

Among Ng’s immediate goals is expanding the league’s revenue to the point the players can make it their full-time job. Average salaries are in the $40,000-$45,000 range, though some will make more than that. AUSL has six sponsors, including Mizuno and Rawlings, plus five more that work across Athletes Unlimited’s portfolio of other sports. The venues where teams will play have attendance ranging from 1,000 to 4,500.

“The knowledge and experience she has, you can’t put a price tag on it,” said Lisa Fernandez, a three-time Olympic gold medalist for Team USA who serves as GM for the Talons. “She’s been incredible. She’s been hands-on. She’s been a mentor. She’s had meetings with just the GMs in order to kind of help us be able to be the best versions of ourselves.”

Ng is not worried about the next step in her career, or any unfinished business people think she has in the major leagues. “I just want to enjoy myself and know that I’m doing something impactful,” she said. “Coming back to softball, this is just fun. It taught me so much about different leadership styles as a kid. I’ve loved the game and met so many great people along the way. It’s given quite a lot to me, so now I’m just giving back.

“I consider myself a shepherd of the game,” she said, “and I’m really trying to propel it forward.”

Kyle Larson is the leading NASCAR driver in merchandise sales halfway through the 2025 regular season, another indicator that he’s contending with his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott to be the sport’s most popular figure as the series holds a tripleheader at Nashville Superspeedway (including the 14th of 26 points races for the Cup Series).

Halfway through the regular season, NASCAR Holdings provided a top 15 ranking of merch sales this season, with the NASCAR brand itself coming in at No. 1. When it comes to drivers, Larson was No. 1, followed by Elliott, who has won NASCAR’s most popular driver award seven consecutive years. He was followed by Kyle Busch, then Ross Chastain and Ryan Blaney. As always, the Earnhardts were on the list, as was their usual Xfinity Series driver Justin Allgaier after he drove in JR Motorsports’ Cup Series debut at the Daytona 500 in February.

Larson’s popularity has been increasing in recent years as he becomes a more standout performer in the Cup Series and made two headline-grabbing appearances in the Indy 500. In 2024, Elliott was No. 1, the NASCAR brand was No. 2 and Larson was No. 3, and in 2023, the NASCAR brand was No. 1 while Elliott was No 2 and Larson No. 3.

Meanwhile, NASCAR also told SBJ that trackside merchandise sales at the Coca-Cola 600 last weekend were the highest since 2010, with catalysts including limited-edition numbered hats and collectible diecast for the Coke 600 event brand itself, as well as souvenirs around the Larson “Double” entry with the Indy 500 and a Dale Earnhardt Jr. collaboration with Budweiser and MLB. Hendrick Motorsports was selling special “Hendrick 1,100″ merchandise for Larson’s attempt at the 600- and 500-mile races. The Daytona Beach-based sanctioning body also said its social channels were up 16% in engagements year over year during the Coke 600 and had a 6% increase in visits to its digital properties on the day of the 600 at 2.4 million. NASCAR also says that its game on the Roblox platform has now eclipsed 100 million visits in 100 days.

Steve Cohen didn’t need to look far to find the Mets’ next President of Business Operations: just across the street from Citi Field.

In a surprising move, the Mets have named USTA CEO LEW SHERR as their President of Business Operations. He will join the organization in July and report directly to owner STEVE COHEN.

Less than two weeks ago, the USTA outlined $800M worth of self-funded renovations to the event’s host site, the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center –- located in Queens right beside the Mets’ ballpark. It’s a plan Sherr had stewarded, and it marks the organization’s largest single investment into the property.

Sherr is replacing SCOTT HAVENS. The team announced Tuesday that Havens was stepping down from the role, which he’d held since 2023, with Cohen citing the two having “differing perspectives on long-term strategy.”

Sherr will be charged with providing strategic and operational leadership for the Mets, who have been undergoing regular changes to the front office since Cohen bought the team in late 2020. Sherr will oversee the senior leadership team for all front office functions, with the exception of baseball operations, which is led by DAVID STEARNS.

“Lew shares my vision for creating an exceptional fan experience at Citi Field and making the Mets an even greater part of New York’s cultural fabric,” Cohen said in a statement. “I am confident that Lew’s extensive experience and track record of success in driving growth and innovation at organizations across sports, entertainment and media will make him a great addition to our leadership team.”

While attending the U.S. Open, Cohen saw a two-week mega-event driving massive revenue, with a blue-chip roster of sponsors, tremendous facilities, and an enhanced customer experience that did especially well with New York’s high-end market. Sources said Cohen wants to emulate that same type of experience at Citi Field, with even casual fans who attend a game or two in Queens feeling like they’re at a special event. And he believes Sherr’s track record and mindset is exactly what the Mets need, people briefed in the process said.

Cohen has always wanted to move fast in business operations and told reporters after buying the team in November 2020, “I’m not crazy about people learning on my dime.”

Throughout his tenure as owner, the Mets have had frequent changes to their top executive ranks. ANDY GOLDBERG (CMO), KATIE POTHIER (Chief Legal Officer), NANCY ELDER (Chief Communications Officer) and PETER WOLL (SVP/Finance) have all left the organization in recent months.

SAMANTHA ENGELHARDT was brought in as chief operating officer last September, a key move that followed the additions of ANDREW GROSSMAN (chief growth officer, May 2024), KATIE HAAS (EVP, Ballpark Operations and Experience, April 2023) and JAKE BYE (SVP, Ticketing and Premium Experience, January 2023).

Sherr spent 15 years at the USTA, first serving as Chief Revenue Officer from 2010-2022 and then as CEO & Exec Dir for the past three years, where he was instrumental to the growth of the U.S. Open’s infrastructure, programming and revenue. For the first time last year, the tournament hosted more than one million fans across Fan Week and main draw play, raking in nearly $560M in revenue.

Sherr was also a leading voice during the Grand Slams’ push to reformat the tennis calendar into a “premier tour” of majors and 1000-level tournaments, which began in late 2023 but lost momentum over the course of 2024.

His final day with the USTA will be June 30. Upon his departure, USTA Board Chairman BRIAN VAHALY and Chief Operating Officer/Chief Legal Officer ANDREA HIRSCH will serve as interim co-CEO’s during the organization’s search for Sherr’s replacement.

Before working at the USTA, Sherr was the SVP/Marketing Partnerships at Madison Square Garden.

“For right now, my focus is the smoothest possible transition, but I’m hugely excited about what’s happening over there,” Sherr said in an interview with The Associated Press at the French Open.

On the baseball side, the Mets have been through five general managers since Cohen bought the team, one of whom, Sandy Alderson, was an interim in his second stint in the role and served as the team president until stepping down in September 2022. The position remained officially open until Havens was brought in 14 months later.

The franchise had plans for double-digit business growth in 2025. Boosted by their run to the NLCS last season, the December signing of JUAN SOTO to a 15-year, $765M contract and a 34-22 start this year that has them atop the wild-card standings, the Mets rank fifth in average attendance this season, up from 17th in 2024.

“Steve and Alex Cohen have made a commitment to that team that is unrivaled in sports,” Sherr added in the AP interview, referring to the Mets owner and his wife. “You see it on the field, off the field. The energy around the team. The energy around what they’re trying to do for the community with their foundation. The plans for the casino and the hotel and entertainment district.”

Sherr is referring to Cohen’s hopes of securing one of the coveted downstate New York casino bids. On Tuesday, a parkland alienation bill overwhelmingly passed in the state senate. Cohen wants to do an $8B Metropolitan Park project, including a Hard Rock Casino, adjacent to Citi Field.

NetEase Games’ Dunk Dynasty launched last week and has already garnered more than 1 million players for its streetball hoops game that carries licenses from the NBA and NBPA.

After its first week, the publisher said Dunk Dynasty ranks atop the App Store game download charts in the U.S. and top downloads among all apps in several other countries in Southeast Asia, such as Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines, a hotbed of basketball fandom (it helps that Jazz G Jordan Clarkson, who is part Filipino, helped promote the game).

NetEase worked directly with the league and players’ union for the license, and right now, the list of players in the game includes (in addition to Clarkson):

• Lakers F LeBron James
• Warriors G Steph Curry
• Nuggets C Nikola Jokić
• Lakers G Luka Dončić
• Bucks F Giannis Antetokounmpo
• Thunder G Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
• Heat C Bam Adebayo
• Nets F Cameron Johnson
• Rockets C Steven Adams
• Pistons G Dennis Schröder
• Warriors F Jonathan Kuminga
• Hornets C Jusuf Nurkić
• Hornets G Seth Curry
• Kings F DeMar DeRozan
• Hawks C Clint Capela
• Pelicans F Zion Williamson
• Mavericks G Klay Thompson
• Spurs G Chris Paul
• Suns G Devin Booker
• Heat F Kyle Anderson
• Heat F Andrew Wiggins
• Nuggets G Russell Westbrook
• 76ers G Paul George

ESPN NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins also provided commentary for Dunk Dynasty.

• Commissioner Brett Yormark met with reporters in Orlando and over Zoom on Friday alongside Baylor President Linda Livingstone, addressing a slew of topics that came up over the three-day Big 12 spring meetings, including private equity investments in college sports and CFP discussions, reports SBJ’s Ben Portnoy.
• NBC saw its lowest mark for a Premier League season since 2021-22 as Liverpool clinched the title with over four weeks remaining. But while lower than recent seasons, NBC Sports was above the 500,000-viewer mark for the fourth-straight season -- a record in the U.S., writes SBJ’s Austin Karp.
• Smith Entertainment Group and Fanatics have a new long-term deal making Fanatics the official omnichannel retail partner of both the Jazz and Mammoth, reports SBJ’s Bret McCormick.
• McCormick also notes that a study analyzing two potential sites for a Baltimore MLS Next Pro stadium was made public on Friday, one that makes no recommendations on where to build.
• Canadian law firm Borden Ladner Gervais LLP will make its debut as the Whitecaps’ jersey sleeve sponsor when the MLS club takes on Cruz Azul on Sunday in the Concacaf Champions Cup final at Estadio Olímpico Universitario in Mexico City, writes SBJ’s Alex Silverman.