Dustin Sproat entered the Dragons’ Den prepared for a battle, and when the smoke cleared he was victorious.
The former Red Deer resident and his business partner Kyle Hagel pitched their Shnarped Hockey app on the popular CBC television show in an episode that aired Wednesday evening. All five of the investment moguls wanted a piece of the venture — a hockey-focused software application that enables users to interact with professional players.
The dragons’ unanimous endorsement of Shnarped Hockey, and the prime-time exposure it received, is certain to boost public interest in the app.
“I won’t be able to measure it for about three or four weeks, but we’ve had a fantastic response,” said Sproat on Thursday. “The phone and the email and the Facebook and the Twitter have blown up.”
Also helping drive interest in the app — which already had about 15,000 users — was a Twitter mention on Wednesday by TSN hockey commentator Bob McKenzie.
Available free through the Apple and Google Play app stores, Shnarped Hockey provides statistics and personal information about players in the National Hockey League, American Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL.
Users have access to news alerts and video highlights, as well as a direct Twitter link to the players they’re tracking. They can congratulate players and even receive a response.
Currently, some 350 pro players are verified users of the app, including 80 NHLers, said Sproat.
“We have a lot of big name NHL agents use it because it’s great for tracking various players that move around in all these different leagues.”
During their Dragons Den’ appearance, Sproat and Hagel presented panelists Jim Treliving, David Chilton, Arlene Dickinson, Kevin O’Leary and Bruce Croxon with NHL jerseys.
Chilton and Dickinson combined to make one offer for a share of Shnarped Hockey, with Croxon and Treliving combining for another, and O’Leary proposing a third. Ultimately, the dragons joined forces to offer $250,000 for one third of the business — which Sproat and Hagel accepted.
“We went in prepared to get grilled pretty hard by a lot of them, especially Kevin O’Leary,” said Sproat.
“We went in armed and ready, and are really happy with how it turned out.”
The episode was actually filmed in April. Since then, Sproat and Hagel — and a third partner, Kamil Sikorski — narrowed their list of celebrity investors to one.
“We closed a deal with Jim Treliving earlier this week, which we’re really excited about,” said Sproat.
He pointed out that many of the deals struck on TV are never formally concluded.
“Often the entrepreneurs turn down the dragons and often the dragons turn down the entrepreneurs.”
The app already displays the logo of Boston Pizza, which Treliving franchises, and more are expected shortly.
The partners are also negotiating licensing deals with a number of NHL teams that would generate further revenue, said Sproat.
Born and raised in Red Deer, Sproat went through the city’s minor hockey system before playing with the Drayton Valley Thunder of the Alberta Junior Hockey League and the Princeton University Tigers of the NCAA.
He also spent three years in the ECHL with the Fresno Falcons and Cincinnati Cyclones, and was a member of the Bentley Generals Senior AAA Hockey Club that won the 2013 Allan Cup.
Sproat and Hagel played together at Princeton, and later at Fresno, with Hagel currently a member of the Portland Pirates of the AHL.
Ironically, he was signed by Brad Treliving, assistant GM of the Pirates’ NHL affiliate Phoenix Coyotes, and Jim Treliving’s son.
Sproat recently completed his MBA at the University of British Columbia, and is now devoting all of his time to Shnarped Hockey.
Additional information about the app can be fond online at www.shnarped.com.
hrichards@www.reddeeradvocate.com