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155:, with the eight tentacles of the octopus symbolizing the eight wins it took to win the Stanley Cup at the time. The Red Wings were a perfect 7–0 in the playoffs and were one win away from not only winning the Cup, but becoming the first perfect team in the NHL's post season history. Sure enough the Red Wings won that game, and the media made mention of the octopus "omen" in the papers the following day, thus establishing the octopus legend in the process. Fans have been throwing octopuses onto the ice at Red Wings games ever since. The tradition died down somewhat in the 1970s and 1980s during the Red Wings dismal seasons, but when the Red Wings became contenders again in the 1990s, the tradition resumed.
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163:), and every playoff year since, Al the Octopus gets raised to the rafters, when the Red Wings skate out onto the ice. As the years went on some modifications were made to Al, such as making it so his pupils light up red (blinking on and off), the adding of a large Red Wing Jersey to his body, and the removal of a tooth in order to give Al that "hockey player" look. Al often appears on Red Wings apparel and promotional items.
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Despite all this, there is no costumed Al mascot, perhaps due to the impracticality of such a suit, combined with the lateness of Al's adoption. Detroit remains one of very few hockey, and indeed
American sports, teams without a suited mascot to rally fans.
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Eventually, a drawn purple octopus mascot was created, and in the 1995 playoffs a large
Octopus prop was unveiled. The Octopus was eventually named "Al" (after former Joe Louis Arena and Little Caesars Arena building operations manager
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promotion. The promotion featured cases of Coke in which some cans were, in fact, containers holding the stuffed Al. Later, Michigan stores would carry the doll, and it would be sold via a mail-in.
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tradition, started on April 15, 1952, when two brothers, Pete and Jerry
Cusimano, who owned a fish market, decided to throw an octopus onto the ice at
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There have been many other types of Al merchandise, such as stickers, inflatable dolls, and decals. During the 1996 playoff year, a CD called
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Ryan, Shannon (May 19, 2009). "Flying octopi: When Red Wings fans throw 'em, he picks 'em up",
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Starkey, Joe (May 30, 2009). "Octopi to fly at Joe Louis Arena", originally published in the
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was released featuring Al on the cover. Being an octopus, Al's jersey number is 8.
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196:List of National Hockey League mascots
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47:adding citations to reliable sources
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559:Grand Rapids Griffins
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692:Don't Stop Believin'
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511:Little Caesars Arena
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801:Fictional octopuses
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712:1938 European tour
533:Colorado Avalanche
528:Chicago Blackhawks
449:Christopher Ilitch
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99:December 2009
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60: –
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54:Find sources:
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32:This article
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686:London Lions
671:Karen Newman
666:Russian Five
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474:Dylan Larkin
470:Team captain
429:Broadcasters
408:Original Six
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41:Please help
36:verification
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451:, chairman)
376:Draft picks
323:Founded in
785:Categories
699:Without Me
681:Al Sobotka
676:Budd Lynch
659:South Park
632:Hockeytown
627:Grind Line
547:Affiliates
462:Head coach
202:References
161:Al Sobotka
69:newspapers
521:Rivalries
438:Personnel
344:Franchise
331:Based in
165:Coca-Cola
760:Category
444:Owner(s)
371:Captains
275:, p. G6.
260:, p. I3.
242:, p. B4.
190:See also
770:Commons
601:WXYT-FM
414:Records
404:History
397:History
381:Seasons
366:Players
361:Coaches
140:of the
136:of the
132:is the
83:scholar
488:Arenas
134:mascot
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592:Radio
578:Media
147:This
90:JSTOR
76:books
596:WXYT
564:ECHL
351:Team
326:1926
62:news
554:AHL
171:or
45:by
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584:TV
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