Wawanesa’s Lindsey Gullett spent three full seasons playing hockey in the MJHL, including time with both the Neepawa Natives and the Dauphin Kings. Upon completion of his junior career he then attended Castleton University where he played hockey and continued his studies (Communication and Business Administration). From August 2013-July 2015, Lindsey returned to Manitoba where he was the Sales & Marketing Manager for the MJHL’s Virden Oil Capitals. An opportunity to join the AHL’s Manitoba Moose followed and he spent just a little over 2-years in their organization as their Game Producer. Currently Lindsey is the Manager, Event Presentation for the Edmonton Oilers, a position he has held since November of 2017. BDNMB.CA recently caught up with Lindsey to discuss his career and working for the Oilers.
BDNMB.CA – Lindsey, I would assume most people would have no clue how intense your current job is. Tell us about it.
– That is a fairly true assumption. It’s something that isn’t easy to explain as there are a lot of layers to it, but in short, I oversee the in-arena video board broadcast and atmosphere in the arena.
BDNMB.CA– Working during the NHL playoffs and Stanley Cup series in the bubble must have been incredibly difficult. Did working as the Producer, Game Presentation – 2021 World Junior Hockey Championship present any unique challenges to fix and correct?
– We had no idea what to expect going into the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It was a big “learn as you go” experience for everyone and things were likely to change daily. There was a tremendous team of people from the NHL that joined forces with our staff at OEG and pulled off, what ended up being, a very successful playoff run.
As for World Juniors, we gained a lot of experience from the SCP bubble to know what to expect in terms of how the show would be delivered. However, it still was a different vision with TSN taking the lead and wanting to make it look and feel different than what Sportsnet did with the Stanley Cup playoffs. Add in the curveballs of working within the very strict COVID compliance measures for all the staff, I thought it was equally as great of a feat as the fall.
BDNMB.CA – How often do you get buddies that come to Edmonton texting you looking for free tickets or looking to meet McDavid?
– Indirectly this might happen a bit, but it comes with the territory. If I’m ever able to help anyone out, I’m happy to do so, but overall people understand that it’s a business and sometimes things will or won’t line up.
BDNMB.CA – You met your wife while attending school at Castleton University in Vermont, has it been a culture shock for her living in Edmonton?
– I would say the bigger culture shock came in 2013 when we both moved back to Virden. For LeeAnne to live in a rural setting in a predominantly winter climate, knowing very few people, that was the toughest adjustment. With that said, she’s a very outgoing and adaptable person which has allowed us to meet some of our greatest friends over the past eight years. Virden and Winnipeg were both great to us. The transition to Edmonton wasn’t nearly as overwhelming as our previous moving experiences.
QUESTION – Millions of young boys dream to be in the NHL, for you this must be at times a very surreal feeling to be among the superstars of the game.
– It’s definitely a different path than you would originally dream about as a kid, but it has been a great opportunity for me to work in a venue like Rogers Place with the team of people I’m surrounded by. As a hockey person, I definitely don’t take for granted how fortunate I am to get to see some of our stars do extra special things on any given night. I think seeing the playoff bubble this past year put that in perspective even more. Getting the opportunity to see other teams multiple times in a playoff setting made you realize not every team has those instant game changers in their lineup and how special those guys are to a team.
BDNMB.CA –You obviously have lots of people to thank for the career you have today, who was a very key person in helping you get to where you are today?
– Cliche to say, but my parents supporting me to play DIII hockey in Vermont opened my eyes to a much larger world and other opportunities that are out there. Beyond that, as I got started in sports, you quickly realize you have to be willing to make sacrifices to take advantage of opportunities, especially in a niche role like I’m in. With this said, my wife has been my number one support through it all. She’s the only one that lives the life and sees the hours and commitment that is required for this line of work. If she wasn’t willing to adapt with her own career, we never would’ve been able to make the relocations work and I’m not sure I would even still be working in sports if it wasn’t for her.
BDNMB.CA – Any regrets? During the NHL playoffs with COVID – 19 you must have had some days where you wondered why are you doing this.
– Some days can become a grind, but you realize that any job field you work in can have challenging stretches. It definitely has to be about perspective. As much as the stretch of 81 games in 65 days during the playoffs was a marathon, there’s not many jobs where you can play a small part in something that millions of people are engaging with on tv, and hopefully soon again in a live audience setting. That’s rewarding to me to help tell the story and assist in those memories that people will have forever.
To quote Bruce Luebke, the Wawanesa product Lindsay Gullett showing you can still be a huge part of the game even if you are not on the ice.
