'Guardian 30 Match-Up' Launched to Unveil Each Highly Anticipated Superhero From the Guardian Project

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 21, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Guardian Media Entertainment – the partnership created between the National Hockey League (NHL), SLG Entertainment, LLC and Stan Lee (Chairman, POW! Entertainment, LLC) – has launched GUARDIAN 30 MATCH-UP (www.guardianproject30.com).

With the highly anticipated unveiling of the 30 individual Guardians within the Guardian Project, the Guardian 30 Match-Up is a Facebook application that will enable fans to determine the order in which each team's Guardian will be unveiled. Voting at www.guardianproject30.com will continue throughout January, with fans determining which team will win each match-up. The winners will be revealed daily, beginning with a face-off between the "Penguin" vs. the "Capital" to celebrate the 2011 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic® match-up on Saturday, Jan. 1, 2011.  The last winner will be unveiled on Sunday, Jan. 30, when all thirty Guardians will come to life during a special presentation within the 2011 NHL® All-Star Game presented by Discover in Raleigh, N.C. 4 p.m. ET live broadcast on VERSUS in the U.S. and on CBC and RDS in Canada.

Created and developed by Stan Lee, Tony Chargin, EVP of GME Creative Affairs, and Jake Shapiro, each Guardian has been derived from its corresponding hockey team, complete with special powers representative of each team and city.  Every day for the first 30 days in January, the winning Guardians will be revealed at 8 pm ET with an exclusive image designed by legendary comic book artist Neal Adams along with their bio.

With an initial plan to reach an all-family audience and narrower target demo of tween boys, GME hopes to bring a new audience to the NHL, while engaging the existing, established hockey fan base through a compelling tale of good vs. evil.  

"Guardian 30 Match-Up is the latest strategic marketing tactic for reaching our core youth demographic of Guardian Project fans and building excitement around the unveiling of Guardians throughout January," explained Brian Jennings, EVP, Marketing for the National Hockey League, L.P. "Introducing the Guardians to fans through Facebook, a proven social media platform for engaging NHL fans, is an ideal way to set the stage for the exciting unveiling we have planned during the All-Star Game."

"Our entire business model is focused on creating content for the ways in which entertainment is consumed today," added Adam Baratta, GME Chief Creative Officer. "Social media is a very important medium for reaching and engaging our core demographic which is why this was such an organic initiative for the launch of the Guardian Project brand."

Fans will be able to vote for their favorite teams and learn about the Guardians at www.guardianproject30.com and by going to the "GP Vote Now tab of www.facebook.com/NHL.

In addition to heavy social media outreach, Guardian Media Entertainment (GME) will drive awareness and exposure for the Guardian 30 Match-Up through the airing of promos in NHL arenas, on the NHL Network™, on VERSUS and on NHL.com, etc.

About Guardian Media Entertainment, LLC.

GME will serve as the company responsible for the creation, development and exploitation of The Guardian Project.  The executive team includes Howard Baldwin, Chairman, Mark Terry, Chief Operating Officer; Adam Baratta, Chief Creative Officer; Tony Chargin, Executive Vice President of Creative Affairs; Aldo LaPietra, Executive Vice President, Production & Business Development; and Jennifer Sprague, Senior Vice President, Marketing & Communications.

About the NHL:

The National Hockey League, founded in 1917, is the second-oldest of the four major professional team sports leagues in North America. Today, the NHL consists of 30 Member Clubs, each reflecting the League's international makeup, with players from more than 20 countries represented on team rosters. According to a Simmons Market Research study, NHL fans are younger, more educated, more affluent, and access content through digital means more than any other sport. The NHL entertains more than 250 million fans each season in-arena and through its partners in national television (VERSUS, NBC, TSN, CBC, RDS, RIS, NASN, ASN and NHL Network™) and radio (NHL Radio™, Sirius XM Radio and XM Canada). Through the NHL Foundation, the League's charitable arm, the NHL raises money and awareness for Hockey Fights Cancer™ and NHL Youth Development, and supports the charitable efforts of NHL players. For more information on the NHL, log on to NHL.com.

About Stan Lee

Stan Lee, Founder, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of POW! Entertainment, LLC Stan Lee's famous co-creations include Spider-Man®, The Incredible Hulk®, X-Men®, The Fantastic Four® and Iron Man® among many others. Lee, known to millions as the man whose Super Heroes propelled Marvel® Comics to its preeminent position in the comic book industry, first became publisher of Marvel® Comics in 1972 and is presently the Chairman Emeritus of Marvel® Enterprises, Inc.

About SLG Entertainment, LLC

Formed in 2008, SLG Entertainment, LLC is a company whose vision is to merge the worlds of entertainment and sports by creating, developing and exploiting original superhero content derived from the intellectual property owned or controlled by professional and amateur sports organizations.  It's owners include, Stan Lee and POW! Entertainment, award-winning producer Adam Baratta, Aldo LaPietra, Mark Terry, co-creators Tony Chargin and Jake Shapiro, and Academy Award nominated producer and former owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Howard Baldwin.

About POW! Entertainment, LLC

POW! (Purveyors of Wonder) Entertainment, LLC, an advanced media and entertainment company, was founded by world famous comic book and motion picture icon Stan Lee, together with award winning producer Gill Champion and intellectual property specialist Arthur Lieberman, Esq. POW! Entertainment's principals have extensive backgrounds in the entertainment industry encompassing the creation, production and licensing of original intellectual properties including some of the most successful entertainment franchises of all time. POW! Entertainment, capitalizing on this combined expertise specializes in franchises for the entertainment industry, including animation and live-action feature films, plus television, DVDs, video games, merchandising, and related ancillary markets all of which contribute to global expansion.

NHL, the NHL Shield and the NHL Winter Classic word mark are registered trademarks and NHL Network is a trademark of the National Hockey League.  All Rights Reserved.

SOURCE Guardian Media Entertainment