Steven Hoffner’s ‘NHL Trophy Case’ Docuseries Premieres on ESPN+

Steven Hoffner’s latest hockey-themed project recently premiered on ESPN+ and Sportsnet.

NHL Trophy Case – which was aired by the U.S. broadcaster on June 16, and here in Canada the following day – is a documentary series chronicling the origin stories, histories and intricate designs of the greatest trophies in the sport of hockey.

Hoffner said he was first approached by director Tom Cohen to co-write and produce the project shortly after he accepted his then-new position as director of TFS’s Film Production program.

“The scope of the project wasn’t entirely insane, so I decided to put my name behind it,” said Hoffner, who worked at the NHL as a features producer and video editor at the beginning of his career, producing such projects as the Behind the Stripes: A Ref’s Life TV movie, the NHL Life documentary series, and The Connor McDavid Story, just to name a few.

“I have been involved with the NHL for almost two decades now, but this story spoke to me in a different and unique way. I had absolutely no idea about the history of (these trophies) and this doc offered some really cool insight into it.”

The first episode of the docuseries – which is now available to stream on the NHL YouTube channel HERE – features player, alumni, historian and journalist interviews chronicling the histories of the Hart Memorial Trophy for most valuable player, Vezina Trophy for most outstanding goaltender, and the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for sportsmanship combined with elite on-ice ability.

Hoffner said the team behind the NHL Trophy Case series, which also includes Rob Ford, expects to get greenlit for two more episodes, which will hopefully be released next year and the year after. 

In anticipation of getting to work on the next two installments, Hoffner said he’s excited to dive back into the hockey annals to see what treasures he can dig up next.

“It’s so cool to go through the vast NHL archive and remember clips from the ’80s and ’90s when I was a kid, and to be able to use that footage in a project,” he said.

“It’s funny, because I get branded as a sports documentary guy, but at the end of the day, I’m a storyteller. I love scripted and other genres as well, and it’s funny how sports and documentaries have just sort of worked in my favour throughout my career. It’s an incredible blessing to be part of such projects.