Blackhawks give Versteeg control over pregame tunes
It's loud. It's pulsating. It's nothing Patrick Sharp would be caught dead listening to.
But that's just fine with Kris Versteeg, the Blackhawks' unofficial team disc jockey.
The music that fans at the United Center hear as the Hawks warm up before each postseason game comes courtesy of Versteeg. His teammates gave the 29-year-old music lover full control over the tunes in 2010 as well as last season and this season.
So how does he pick which songs are blasting over the loudspeakers?
“Whatever (ticks) Patrick Sharp off,” Versteeg deadpanned.
Told that in the hallway before Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final, Sharp — just four years Versteeg's elder — said: “I'm old. I don't like that kind of music.”
Versteeg submits two playlists to the Hawks and they are mixed into 16 minutes of loud. Versteeg gives instructions on where he wants songs cut off, as well as the order in which he wants them to be played.
Younger teammates such as Scott Darling, Teuvo Teravainen and Trevor van Riemsdyk all said they love the pregame music as well as what Versteeg plays in the locker room.
“He's a great DJ,” said Scott Darling. “Really, really wide variety of music.”
“I don't know how he got it, but I'm glad he did,” van Riemsdyk said of the DJ gig. “He's got the songs that seem to be getting us going.”
So what does the Captain think?
“If he gets too carried away, we've kind of got to reel him in,” said Jonathan Toews, who added that he likes some of the choices “but some of it, not so much.”
Versteeg said he hopes his teammates enjoy what he plays, but also figures he's a bit of a good-luck charm.
“(I'm) a good guy to have faith in. We did it in 2010, too,” Versteeg said of the year the Hawks won it all vs. the Philadelphia Flyers. “Hopefully it works again this year.”
It certainly did, as the Hawks beat the Lightning in six games and claimed their third Cup in six seasons.
Blackhawks' Music Man
Here are Kris Versteeg's two playlists for pregame skate during the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Blackhawks will switch them after a loss.
<b>Playlist 1</b>Michael Jackson: Slave to the Rhythm (Audien Remix)
AfroJack & Matthew Koma: Keep Our Love Alive
Tiesto: Secrets
Michael Woods: In Your Arms
Clockwork & Taylor Reese: Signals
Kaskade & John Dahlback: A Little More
<b>Playlist 2</b>Steve Angello: Payback
Dillon Francis: When We Were Young
Hardwell & Tiesto: Colors
Adventure Club & David Solano: Unleash
Galantis: Runaway
Tom Swoon: Savior