New York Islanders: John Tavares Heading to the Final Four

John Tavares continues to cruise through the NHL 13 cover vote. Tavares has outlasted the heavily favored number one seed on the right side of the bracket in Pavel Datsyuk of the Detroit Red Wings. The Islanders star is now one win away from the final vote. This round, Tavares faces Nashville Predators goalie, Pekka Rinne. Rinne and Tavares recently formed a social media alliance on Twitter to help get through to the semifinals.

That hasn’t been the only use of the social media world though. Tavares has set up a campaign that consists of a number of NHL players. “Team Tavares” includes P.K. Subban of the Montreal Canadiens, Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Jeff Skinner of the Carolina Hurricanes and Patrick Sharp of the Chicago Blackhawks. The team is not complete with a few teammates as well. Tavares’s teammates, Matt Martin and Michael Grabner round out “Team Tavares.”

In addition to tweeting, the Islanders have also made several graphic promotions. In the images, such as this one, they throw Tavares in classic video games such as NBA Jam or World of Warcraft. They also have campaign pictures with members of team Tavares.

The latest voting craze is the “#voteforjohnonthejohn” campaign. In this social media craze, people take a picture of themselves sitting on a toilet while voting for Tavares to advance to the finals with either a phone, tablet or computer.

All the social media marketing has been a huge success to this point for the Tavares campaign. However, according to actor and well-known New York Islanders fanatic, Kevin Connoly, the Islanders playmaker currently trails Rinne by more than 9,000 votes. Tavares will need some more Islander support if he is going to overcome the current deficit.

The other two finalists currently facing off are the Philedelphia Flyers’ Claude Giroux and Pittsburgh Penguins Evgeni Malkin. One of the well-respected centers will face Tavares or Rinne in the finals. You can vote for Tavares or any other semifinalists here.