USA Today’s Mary Clarke posted a light-hearted article which attempts to rank the 30 “mascots” which are associated with NHL teams, and while nobody wears a big, purple suit to walk around Little Caesars Arena, I’d certainly like to see more of this guy, soon:
10. Al the Octopus: Detroit Red Wings
Though not a mascot by the standard definition anymore, Al the Octopus rocks. Al is yet another NHL mascot tied into its team’s traditions but the Red Wings pull it off wonderfully with a giant octopus that descends from the rafters. Here’s hoping we get to see Al the Octopus at a Red Wings game again in the near future.
Continued (with Gritty as #1); I wish that the Red Wings would employ Al the Octopus on a much more regular basis, not saving him for playoff time almost exclusively.
Kids love that big, purple thing, adults love that big, purple thing, and while I don’t want to see a mascot walking around the rink, “Al” would make a great secondary logo on an alternate jersey, for example.
I haven’t even seen Al in the rafters at LCA the few times I’ve been there. As far as a walking mascot goes, we already have the Little Caesar dude walking around the arena during the pizza toss contests.
We did have the Red Winger back in the 80s… https://www.freep.com/story/sports/nhl/red-wings/2020/04/22/detroit-red-wings-mascot-red-winger/2997603001/
Ah, the 80’s, when the Wings had a mascot and a theme song!
I would love to see “Al” in the rafters, but I’m not even sure that’s legal at this point.