When the Philadelphia Flyers dropped their new Mascot, Gritty, they likely didn’t realize he’d become a national talking point. There were no rumors of his creation, no huge advertising push prior to nor was there any content pushed prior to his revelation. All this, the Flyers inclusion in the Outdoor Series and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman’s insistence on every team having their own mascot leads many to speculate if Gritty was born with alternative motive. Then came the Facebook Rumor:
After tweeting this several people familiar with how the organization operates spoke to me about this rumor. One speaking with anonymity said “…It would not surprise me if there was a memo sent heavily suggesting that a mascot is needed in Philadelphia. It is known that for certain national events (i.e. The Stanley Cup, Winter Classic, Stadium Series) they(The NHL) come in and control tickets, marketing and a lot of the operations.” Another great point from my source: “I will say if you pay attention they are having more mascot driven events at the all-star game and other national events and I am sure this was the driving force behind it.”
So, can we come to the conclusion that Gritty is an orange Demon Seed born to spite Gary Bettman? Philadelphia will most certainly love the idea of a Mascot born in Spite of a League Commissioner.