The proud candidate. Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images

Schmid sees this as more than a chance to honor the game's ham-and-eggers. "If the NHL could figure out how to market their players like Fitzpatrick is being marketed by us now, it would be an incredible recipe for their success," he said, coming off as someone who is in the middle of telling a joke when they realize that people are taking them seriously and then simply decides to go with the flow. But you know what? He's absolutely right.

Instead of sweeping this under the carpet -- as it may have done in the early vote counts -- the NHL needs to embrace this effort. Because, in case the league didn't recognize it, this is opportunity knocking.

What started out as a little joke for the most hardcore of hockey devotees has the potential to capture the attention of sports fans across North America -- most of whom wouldn't know Sidney Crosby from Sidney Bristow. 

Fitzpatrick's inclusion in the ranks of the stellar might even get some of those otherwise oblivious fans to tune into the game on Jan. 23 just to see how Everyman does. Once there, they'll be exposed to the game's long-term selling points, like Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin, Ilya Kovalchuk and Joe Thornton.

That's why the NHL needs to take ownership of the Fitzpatrick hype. NBC is broadcasting the game. The league should be on the phone today working the cross-promotional angle. Let's get Everyman Rory on Jay Leno to tell his story. Have him exchange healthy cooking tips with Meredith Vieira on the Today Show. Let him reveal to Barbara Walters what kind of tree he'd like to be. Arrange a photo-op date to a Hollywood premiere with Jessica Simpson. (Hey, it's for the good of the game. Surely his wife can't object to that!)

Can the Fitzpatrick story create a new generation of fans? Of course not. But look what online hype did to Snakes On A Plane. A cinematic curiosity that otherwise would have slipped into direct-to-DVD obscurity, Snakes was on everyone's radar for months. And while the hype didn't translate into a box-office smash, it did far better than anyone expected before the online campaign started. And really, wouldn't the attention-starved NHL be happy with that?

Fan balloting ends  on Jan. 2. As of yesterday, Fitzpatrick is still more than 150,000 votes off the pace. But as this week's numbers prove, a lot of ground can be made up in four weeks.

If the NHL plays its cards right, Rory Fitzpatrick is a shoo-in. And the game will be better for it.