Two Words About the Current State of All About the Jersey

Status quo.*

...

OK, I cannot just leave it with just two words.

You may be aware of the news that many of the NHL sites at SB Nation have received word that they would no longer be supported. This is part of a larger set of layoffs at Vox Media. They will only support six sites beyond February for hockey. The New Jersey Devils blog, All About the Jersey, is one of them. (Aside: Don’t ask me who the other five are, I don’t know and this isn’t the time anyway.)

I do not write this in jubilation, victory, or even relief. It is out of sadness. Today, a lot of people were cut. A lot of passionate fans, hopeful media members of the future, and those in between were effectively told they were done. Communities built up around these sites will cease. A lot of very talented people are being let go. A lot of very talented people who built up these brands both in public and behind the scenes will see many fall by the wayside. A lot of hockey fans will lose out on reading what the sites have provided for free, not behind a subscription or a paywall. This includes sites that have predated this one as well as the many that have joined the network since then. My heart goes out to all of those who have been cut today. Specifically those at the following sites, who have announced somewhere about their eventual end of support:

Hockey Wilderness, Broad Street Hockey, Davy Jones Locker Room, Raw Charge, Pension Plan Puppets, Habs Eyes on the Prize, Japers’ Rink, Blueshirt Banter, Silver Seven, Knights on Ice, Second City Hockey, Die by the Blade, and Winging it in Motown.

Apologies for any SBN sites I did not mention; but I did not see any public comment confirming status. They may be active through to the end of February. After then is unknown. And some have already went effectively defunct like St. Louis Game Time, Anaheim Calling, and Jewels from the Crown.

I wish them all the best as well as the fans who have contributed to them with their time, their views, and their words.

As far as All About the Jersey goes, for now: status quo.

My suggestion is to continue to be the People Who Matter, hope the Devils remain successful, and read and share what we provide. My belief is that those three are the main factors are why I am writing “status quo” and not anything else right now. This site literally would not be what it is without the staff writers, past and present, and without you giving us some of your time to read us, share us, and comment at us. Even if you do not like us, you are all truly the People Who Matter. Thank you for reading.

*Evening Update: I didn’t check my filtered mailboxes as I received another, separate message from Vox management about the podcast support. That is handled differently within Vox/SBNation. Unfortunately, support for Garden State of Hockey is impacted and that is set to end on February 28, 2023. The notice about AAtJ not being impacted was literally just for AAtJ. And this is not unique to us; for example, it is happening to PensBurgh. Dan and I will sort out what we will do - if anything - in the near future when that time gets closer. Alas, it is not fully 100% status quo as I thought when I wrote this. My apologies for this bit of bad news.