New Team, New Logo, Time for A New Intro

Mar 29, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; A view of the arena before the game between the Dallas Stars and the Minnesota Wild at the American Airlines Center. The Stars defeated the Wild 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

One of the most important aspects of building a strong professional sports team is establishing a team personality the fans can relate to. Creating a memorable, unique and overall enjoyable fan experience is what keeps butts in the seats and money in the pockets of the big guys.

And nothing’s going to grab the attention of the fans right off the bat quite like the team’s entrance sequence.

The past few years have provided extremely diverse video introductions, from pop to country and, most recently, to straight instrumental overlaid with some of the best sports announcing from the team’s history in Dallas.

Three years ago it was the chorus from the Jay-Z / Rihanna hit “Run This Town.” With lyrics like, “Victory’s within the mile, Almost there don’t give up now. Only thing that’s on my mind, Is who’s gonna run this town tonight” and an ending that states “We gonna run this town tonight” who wouldn’t be at least a little bit pumped up, even if Rihanna’s not on your playlist?

The following year it was Johnny Cash’s “Ain’t No Grave.” After missing out on the playoffs three years in a row, it seemed fitting. “There ain’t no grave, can hold my body down.” Basically, in my personal interpretation, I’ve fallen about as far as I can, but I’m not going to stay there.  If only the lyrics and my interpretation predicted a change in the Stars’ chances for the post-season.

And last year, in celebration and recognition of the team’s 20th anniversary in Dallas, a series of video clips from the previous two decades signified the team’s entrance.

Thankfully, after being replaced for a few years, the team’s theme song, Pantera’s “Puck Off” returned last year to welcome the guys to the ice and kick off every home game after the intro video concluded.

So what should the new, improved, revamped, youthful team have in an entrance sequence?

First things first, it has to be something new. Not just something new to the team, but something new and fresh on the airwaves; something that screams “new beginnings.” And because so much of the roster hasn’t spent any time on the ice in Dallas Stars gear, player footage is kind of out of the question. So the opening video will probably come down to focusing on everything that’s actually new. The logo, the uniforms, the staff, the players, it’ll all come down to highlighting what’s making the organization hot and unique right now.

So here’s my suggestion: take Macklemore’s “Can’t Hold Us” chorus and sync in a little Skrillex-esque dubstep for a beat that will make it hard for fans to stay sitting down and can flow well with the right video clips. Check out this DJ mashup from about 1.39 to about 1.52 for a peek inside my head. Add that classic Pantera when the team hits the ice and American Airlines Center will be shaking.

And now I want to know what’s inside your head. Fire off your suggestions in the comments and let’s see how it all goes down on October 3.