CBC's Hockey Night In Canada announced today they're looking for "inspirational, energetic songs" and are bringing in some Canadian musicians to judge this year's Song Quest.
According to the broadcaster's site the program and CBCMusic.ca are asking bands and musicians to submit their songs at the competition's site with hockey experts and musicians judging the tunes. Three of the five panelists are singer-songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk, Joel Plaskett and Tegan and Sara's Sara Quin. Former NHL players Theo Fleury and PJ Stock (a current HNIC panelist) round out the judges.
The judges along with fan voting will determine the winner who will have the song produced by Plaskett and featured in an upcoming Hockey Night In Canada vignette. The musician will also travel to Lloydminister and perform the song during a Jan. 18, 2014 concert as part of Hockey Day In Canada.
"Growing up, we always had Hockey Night In Canada games on in our house on Saturday, and it rarely mattered who was playing," said Sara Quin of Tegan and Sara in a statement. "The playoffs were my favorite time of the year and nothing could compare to the build-up to the Stanley Cup Playoffs."
The contest opened on Saturday (Oct. 5) and runs until Nov. 20. A "Top 50" voting period begins from Nov. 23 and concludes on Dec. 11. The "Top 50" will be announced on Dec. 14's Hockey Night In Canada broadcast with another voting period to select the Top 10. A third voting period determining the winner will be held with the announcement for the top prize coming on Jan. 1.
"We’re looking for an energetic song from one of the following musical genres: pop, rock or adult alternative," the regulations state on the contest FAQ page, adding the winning song "must have a vocal performance and a verse/chorus construction." The length doesn't matter but "explicit language is a no-no." Finally the song "must celebrate what hockey is all about: teamwork, commitment, hard work and going for the goal."
Hockey Night In Canada made headlines for all the wrong reasons back in 2008 after losing its longtime opening song over a licensing dispute. "The Hockey Theme" -- written by Dolores Claman -- quickly ended up on TSN and is now used on their NHL hockey coverage.