Inside the making of ESPN’s ‘The Inner Circle’ Stanley Cup Final Game 6 Open

When ESPN Creative Content Unit Producers Brian Arnold and Jean-Luc LaDouceur first began talking hockey with NHL legend and ESPN analyst Mark Messier years ago, they weren’t developing a campaign.

They were building a relationship.

Over multiple seasons, Arnold, LaDouceur, and Messier developed a creative partnership rooted in a shared appreciation for the history, tradition and mythology of the Stanley Cup.

Those conversations eventually led to a simple question: If winning the Cup grants access to a place only champions know, what does that world look like?

That answer became “The Inner Circle,” a storytelling concept that became the Game 6 Open for the Stanley Cup Final Sunday night on ABC. The Carolina Hurricanes won the Cup with a 3-0 series-clinching victory over the Vegas Golden Knights.

How did the Open, which you can watch in its entirety above, come about?

Supported by ESPN Vice President, Production Linda Schulz and brought to life through the collaboration of ESPN’s Creative Content Unit, production teams, designers, editors and NHL partners – “The Inner Circle” transformed the Stanley Cup Final into a cinematic world built around the idea that every champion earns membership into hockey’s most exclusive club.

The production spanned three separate shoots and multiple locations over 10 days in late May and early June.

Anchored by a custom-built speakeasy-style bar at The Back Room in New York City, the set was transformed through detailed art direction and design.

Oversized Baroque portraits of hockey legends replaced traditional artwork, custom champagne bottles were created for every potential Stanley Cup Final game. Every detail was designed to reinforce the mythology of the room.

The authenticity of the project was elevated through participation from some of hockey’s most recognizable figures.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman appeared behind the bar, while Stanley Cup Keeper Philip Pritchard joined a dedicated shoot centered around the Cup itself.

The team also secured access to the Stanley Cup, creating a series of champagne celebration moments that became a cornerstone of the campaign.

The scale of the effort extended beyond principal photography.

Following the New York shoot, a custom set was transported to Stanley Cup Final Media Day in Carolina on June 1, allowing the team to recreate the speakeasy environment and capture player interviews that tied directly into the campaign’s central theme.

None of it would have been possible without the trust of Messier, the support of Schulz or the collective effort of the Creative Content Unit and its many partners across production, operations, design, editorial, talent relations, and the NHL.

For Arnold and LaDouceur, “The Inner Circle” represents more than a successful campaign.

It is the result of years of relationship building, creative trust, attention to detail, and collaboration. The result: A simple conversation turns into one of the signature storytelling pieces of the Stanley Cup Final.

“THE INNER CIRCLE” PRODUCTION TEAM

Art Director Support
• Flo Marińez
• Daviel Abreau
• Rachel Razor
Lacee Basch & Josh Miller

Production Coordinator (Creative Content Unit – On Site)
• Michelle Walton
• Lacee Basch
• Josh Miller

Associate Producer (On Site)
• Denise Starr, Editor
• Jack McNamara, VFX Team
• Tom Beers
• Eric Freiler