On the Topic Of Mascots

As the Draft is being revealed as heading to Pittsburgh for June 2012, there needed to be some shuffling of scheduling for the Consol Energy Center. One of which was a "Furries" Convention that needed to be pushed a week earlier. If you're not familiar with the "Furries" craze....then read up on it at the link.

Not only is that kind of amusing to me, but it made me wonder about mascots and how fun it would be if the mascots actually picketed outside during the FanFest wondering where the convention was and why they weren't notified.

In any case, since it's August and not much is going on out there-- this is a post on mascots that are my favorite-- sans Boomer, because I've already done something about him before.

1. Harvey the Hound-- You always got to love the first in any movement and Harvey is the first mascot in the NHL. Introduced in 1983, Harvey has been most noticeable for having his tongue ripped out by then Oilers' coach Craig MacTavish. Plus, the fact they use-- I guess-- a rescue dog for the Flames and he doesn't have a shirt on.....makes it even more interesting. Good on Harvey for being the first and most unusual-to-the-team-name mascot.

2. Badaboum-- This was the mascot of the Quebec Nordiques and it almost seemed like the starting for the Quebecors to actually have crazy muppet-esque mascots for their representation. Sadly, Badaboum did not make the trek to Colorado and could make a comeback (doubtful) if there's a team that relocates to Quebec City.

3. Youppi-- To continue with the Quebec theme, the Canadiens' mascot could be the most versatile, as Youppi was the iconic mascot of the Montreal Expos; but when they moved to Washington, DC-- the Habs picked up the pieces and kept the tradition of the Expos alive. They have the retired Expos numbers in the rafters and brought over Youppi in order to kept that tradition alive.

4. Stormy-- A hog shouldn't correlate with a hurricane, but it does in Raleigh. You see, the Hurricanes could have been called the Ice Hogs because of the all the hog farms in North Carolina. Yet, it still makes me laugh that a hog is the mascot of the Hurricanes-- but it's probably better than anything they could have come up with otherwise.

5. Nordy-- While I did say once that he was an odd looking mascot-- you have to respect the Wild's mascot. Not only is he half-bear, half-fox, half-man (ManBearFox??), but he has a mullet. Any mascot that can rock the mullet is alright in my books, even if they look freaky as hell and make people cock their heads to the sides wondering what it is.

That's my five-- and while these choices aren't like the NHL Guardians, it's a little more family friendly and unique to the team at each turn. Some have a lot to do with the team, some do not-- but the ones that do not are the best because of the guessing game of why they actually exist.

Friday Five: Stuff To The Brim

After American Thanksgiving, we're at the cresendo of another week-- which means it's time for the Friday Five and tackling the stories from the week-- huzzah!!

1. With yet another blue alternate jersey being introduced, how much is this like the black alternates that seemed to pop up every now and again back-in-the-day??

The blue jerseys are whatever, they seem to really be like the black jerseys have been in the past, but there's two things that bug me about it. First, it's putting blue in there for blue sake, though that really only applies to the Penguins. They have that "Vegas Gold" in their palate, but they went "retro" for their jersey?? A bit bothersome. Second, the ALTERNATE being blue when the HOME jersey is already blue. It's not much of an alternate if it's the same color as the home jersey-- may as well call it "cash grab" jersey.

That said, I like the idea of having a home jersey and a clash kit, eliminating the whites if you wanted and adding more color to the game....though that's as gimmicky as some jerseys being made now.

2. Rumors abound about Chris Chelios returning to the game by way of the KHL. What more does he have to prove??

In Soviet Russia, elderly signs YOU!! WHAT A COUNTRY!!!

But, seriously-- I don't know much Chelios has left to prove, but if he has the drive to be competitive and play in a professional league, as well as someone willing to pay him; can't fault him for making some cash. That said, he couldn't find like a senior league team around the area or in Canada to play for so he could compete for the Allan Cup?? Come on, now.

3. Outside of the jerseys, the Blue Jackets are playing amazing; but can they keep the pace up??

You have enjoy the Jackets because they seem like an unassuming team because many think that the bottom could still fall out. Which it could do, but the tandem of Steve Mason and Mathieu Garon is playing fantastic, Rick Nash is proving his worth, and the role players are chipping in with some secondary scoring. If (and that's a big IF) all the key cogs can keep up the pace and stay healthy-- they could be a team to watch when it comes to late in the season. If there's more injuries-- it could be a rough second-half for the Jackets.

4. It took 21 rounds, 42 shooters to end a shootout in Germany. While many people hate the shootout, doesn't a longer one create that drama??

There's plenty to dislike about the skills competition to end the game, but I think the longer it's drawn out, the more drama that's created; even in the deepest of skeptics....or not. Either way, I think that there's plenty more that can be done to prevent a shootout, like extending the overtime period. The funny thing about this is that people bitch about games ending in ties, then they bitch about the solution that's come from not making a tie. Can't win there.

5. With the introduction of Boomer in Columbus; who are the most bizarre mascot you can think of when it comes to the lexicon of hockey??

As a Caps fan, before Slapshot, there was Winger-- or as I like to call him, Ephrim the Retarded Eagle, mostly due to his out of proportion body. In St. Louis, Louie the Polar Bear is something out of sort, which I don't think is better than their possible mascot-- Cool Cat, which would have been with those crazed third jerseys in the Keenan era. However, you look at Nordy of the Minnesota Wild, the mix of the bear, fox, and yokel makes him epic......plus he has a mullet.

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That's another week in the books, and I hope you are as stuffed on Turkey as you are of this drivel. To contribute to make it better, email me at Scotty.Wazz@Gmail.com with your subject and it will probably make the cut when it comes to what to talk about. Huzzah!!

Mascot Off To A Booming Start

This is Boomer. He is the new Columbus Blue Jackets' mascot, but only when they wear their spiffy new third jerseys. According to CBJ's press release, this is the description of Boomer:

Also during the live unveiling, the team introduced a second, kid-friendly mascot, "Boomer," a cushy cannon character with a friendly face and fluffy moustache. This season, Boomer’s game-night appearances at Nationwide Arena will be reserved specially for those games in which the team wears the Third Jersey. Boomer will make his first start in conjunction with the official on-ice debut of the Third Jersey this Friday.

The jersey itself is something that I don't like, mostly because of the fact of navy blue being the new black in third jerseys, being overused. Plus, the logo seems to be overused with the logo being surrounded by text; however, I enjoy them keeping with the Civil War theme, so you have to like it, even though it looks a bit plain. It also incorporates the initials on the back neck line of former owner John H. McConnell, as the back neck line is another thing teams are using a lot of.

Yet, the big pull is Boomer....who, let's be honest-- looks very much like a penis. The jokes are just there, only with looking at the thing, the Face Off Hockey Show and Lyle Richardson of Spector's Hockey did 15 minutes of innuendo jokes on the November 24th show and it's been joked about on the Twitter, too. The question is how does this get through the marketing department without someone actually saying, "Hey, this could be a little racy." Not only did it have to get through the Jackets' marketing department, but it had to get through the NHL, too.

The shape itself and and the wheels on the side speak for itself, but the moustache is the real kicker. It's definitely something that will be (cannon) fodder for the short time until the novelty wears off (maybe), but you have to hand it to the Blue Jackets for thinking outside of the box....so to speak. They're going with two crazy mascots: A "bee" who gets mistaken as a fictional blue jacket bug because of the name and a cannon that looks sexual in nature and could have many lewd jokes made about it.