New “Random Rings” Sets Up This Year’s “NHL Big City Greens Classic”

As we are less than a day away from the second Big City Greens NHL Classic, we are getting treated to a special Random Rings short that sets up the whole premise of the second live hockey telecast from Big City, very much like last year!

What’s Happening:

  • A new Random Rings short has debuted on Disney Channel just ahead of the second NHL Big City Greens Classic, setting up the entire premise of this year’s live telecast of a real NHL game.
  • In the short, Gramma Alice calls NHL player Brad Marchand (of the Boston Bruins) to arrange a game to put Cricket in his place after winning last year’s Classic.
  • Marchand explains that he already has a game with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and adds NHL player Sidney Crosby to the call, becoming coaches for the family face-off. Turns out, he was already being called by Cricket!
  • So, the NHL will return once again to Big City LIVE and in the animated world of Disney Channel’s Big City Greens.
  • This year, Gramma Alice is ready to humble Cricket Green after last year's victory! Remy, Vasquez, Nancy, and Coach Cricket team up with Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins, while Tilly Green, Bill Green, Gloria, and Coach Alice team up with Brad Marchand and the Boston Bruins on March 9th at 3:00 PM ET.

  • ESPN, Disney Branded Television and the National Hockey League (NHL) are once again teaming up to bring fans the second NHL Big City Greens Classic, a live, animated NHL game telecast featuring the Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Boston Bruins on March 9 at 3 p.m. ET.
  • Last year’s NHL Big City Greens Classic featuring the Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers was the first-of-its-kind live volumetric animation presentation.
  • The alternate presentation of the Penguins-Bruins game will feature real-time virtually recreated animation of NHL players and teams modeled after characters on Disney Channel’s hit animated series Big City Greens.
  • ESPN+, Disney Channel, Disney XD and Disney+ will present the live, animated telecast, while the traditional telecast will be available on ABC and ESPN+.
  • The alternate presentation will once again leverage tracking technology to recreate the action on the ice as it is happening while featuring Big City Greens characters (based on the teaser, a lot more than last year!) skating alongside animated versions of the NHL players.

  • The presentation will blend two types of tracking technologies – NHL EDGE positional data (NHL Puck and Player tracking) and Hawk-Eye Innovations optical tracking – to create more dynamic player and character movement to help fans better visualize detailed limb and stick movement and mannerisms.
  • The ESPN commentators calling the action on the animated telecast – Drew Carter, Kevin Weekes and Arda Öcal – will wear virtual reality headsets for motion capture, to immerse them in the animated environment of Times Circle.
  • Big City Greens voice talent will also be featured in the presentation, including creator and executive producer Chris Houghton (Cricket), Marieve Herington (Tilly), Zeno Robinson (Remy), Artemis Pebdani (Gramma) and creator and executive producer Shane Houghton (various characters).
  • The two intermissions of the game will feature an animated skills competition between the Big City Greens characters.

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Tony Betti
Originally from California where he studied a dying artform (hand-drawn animation), Tony has spent most of his adult life in the theme parks of Orlando. When he’s not writing for LP, he’s usually watching and studying something animated or arguing about “the good ole’ days” at the parks.