Octopus twirl now illegal, punishable by $10,000 fine (NHL)

Mlive/AP ^ | 4-20-07 | George James Malik

[Darren McCarty]

Much as the NFL is called the no fun league, Gary Bettman (Buttman) has done the same to the great sport of hockey. More than any other person, this non-hockey jackass has done his best to run a great sport into the ground with his disrespect of tradition.

There's a reason Bettman is booed out of more arenas than Chris Chelios at road games. Clarence Campbell is rolling in his grave.

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What the heck is an octopus twirl?

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I immediately thought of Squidward in a tutu.

[miliantnutcase]

ROFL

[Darren McCarty]

At Red Wings home games, some fans throw an Octopus on the ice. It's an old tradition from the 1952 Red Wings team that won eight games to win the Stanley Cup.

Al used to take the Octopus, and on his way off the ice, swings the octopus around like fans swing towels at games.

[Popman]

Jerry Mendoza/Associated Press

Al Sobotka, the Zamboni driver at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, twirling an octopus, a ritual at home playoff games.

I never knew this as a tradition, seems pretty weird to me.

[Dr.Deth]

"Twirling the octopus?"

Is that what they call it these days?

[martin_fierro]

I dunno, but it looks something like this.

[Squawk 8888]

In Detroit it’s become a tradition for fans to toss an octopus onto the ice during playoff games. It started when the Stanley Cup playoffs were two rounds, meaning that it took eight playoff victories to win the championship. The “octopus twirl” is where the player who picks it up from the ice twirls it over his head a few times.

[Cobra64]

I don’t have a clue what this has to do with politics. Please post this stuff over on Sports Illustrated. Thank you. Thank you.

[penowa]

"More than any other person, this non-hockey jackass [Bettman] has done his best to run a great sport into the ground with his disrespect of tradition."

Worth repeating...

[Cobra64]

Ummm... Really? WOW!

The ramifications should change the course of events in the free world.

[DannyTN]

Isn't it crueler to throw the octopus onto the ice, than to twirl it.

Can they replace it with a midget toss?

Cat Juggling?

[ridesthemiles]

I never knew this as a tradition, seems pretty weird to me.”

When you are stuck in Detroit for the winter, anything can happen. You look for your “traditions” where ever you can find them.

[Red Steel]

What the heck is an octopus twirl?

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That’s a picture I can’t get out of my mind. :)

[Paleo Conservative]

Not cat jubbling!

[netmilsmom]

And the harm in this is, What?

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At Red Wings home games, some fans throw an Octopus on the ice. It's an old tradition from the 1952 Red Wings team that won eight games to win the Stanley Cup.

Al used to take the Octopus, and on his way off the ice, swings the octopus around like fans swing towels at games.

I thought maybe it was a metaphor, not to be confused with metefore. :)

Thanks, I learned something new today - Octopus Twirl.

[RGSpincich]

An earlier thread said that twirling the octopus could prevent prostate cancer. No,.. wait. Maybe that was something else.