Wayne Gretzky helped make the Los Angeles Kings a relevant NHL team in 1988 and through the early ’90s after he was traded there from the Edmonton Oilers.
And Pat Donahue Jr. helped make them relevant again during their run at what would be their first Stanley Cup win in the 2011-12 season.
Donahue is the man behind the Kings’ Twitter account, which is known throughout sports for its snark. While the Kings being contenders again made them a conversation piece in the sports world, Donahue’s wit made them appeal to more fans.
L.A. Weekly profiled Donahue — which is worth a read — who said that he’s just trying to make the usual scores and updates a little more fun and creative. It started when Donahue was an intern during the 2012 Western Conference quarter-finals. The eighth-seeded Kings beat the Vancouver Canucks, and Donahue tweeted, “To everyone in Canada outside of BC, you’re welcome.”
The mood has since changed, and Donahue now tweets with a little more confidence.
“I’m still tweeting the kinds of things that go on in my head during the game, but I tell people that I’m now tweeting with a ring on my finger,” Donahue said. “We’re not eighth seed. We’re champions, and we’re going to win again.”
And whether or not they like the L.A. Kings, most hockey fans know, and maybe even follow, the team’s Twitter account.
“The L.A. Kings account is like my baby that I’ve raised,” Donahue said. “We even have a lot of people who aren’t even necessarily Kings fans. I’ve favorited two or three hundred tweets where they said they are rooting for the Kings to win just because of their Twitter account.”
Photo via Instagram/@patatack
