We've grown accustomed to certain traditions as Blues fans (insert lack of Stanley Cup joke here). Some of them good, some of them bad (looking at you Towelie). As a team that is only a few years removed from earning the 1st overall draft pick through futility of the season prior on top of the season lost due to the lockout, the Blues have done a fine job of getting the fans back to the Drinkscotch Center in good numbers. Nothing brings fans back like a winning squad, but marketing and PR departments have to pull their weight, too. Remember Doug Weight bringing each of us flowers?
With all of that said, not too many things are better than a good ol' fan originated tradition. Of course, some of those traditions have the potential to be completely ridiculous. Let's have a look at why some of these traditions kick ass and why others...and why others are Towel Man.
The Good
When the Blues Go Marching In: Organist was playing "When the Saints..." and the old Arena equivalent of today's 19,150 decided the tune needed a change in the lyrics. The tradition has been around since the early days of the franchise and is one of the few still "living" links to the franchise's roots. Of course, there's also Bob Plager who can tell you all about how friendly the Philadelphia police are. By the way, buy his book if you haven't. That shit's required reading for the hardcore Blues fan.
*Toot Toot Toot* LET'S GO BLUES: Among the newer of traditions are the various horn guys. Whether it be their vuvuzelas, their pocket-sized air horns, or their own damn vocal cords, this is the perfect way to generate noise and cheering without distracting fan's attention from the game.
Tacos: Cheap food after 5...er 4 goals? Sign me up. Even if it's now just a Big Mac instead of as many 35 cent tacos as I can cram in, I'll take it.
Underground Fan Papers: Not that we're ever one to toot our own horn around here. This operation is proof that a bunch of crazy assholes with a printer and a website can co-exist with the actual organization being analyzed. Of course, having a good-sized following that might start a small-scale revolution should the organization ever decide to pull the plug helps, too.
The Bad
Ice Girls: I'm all for good lookin', scantily clad women, but the Ice Girls phenomenon shouldn't have done a damn thing in terms of drawing fans. You got Blues tickets? Oh, well, I'd be more interested in going if there were half naked chicks shoveling the snow during commercials. Good for the Blues on pulling the plug on this one.
Louie: I understand having a big furry mascot for the kids to embrace. All that I want to see is some damn pants on him. Please. Just some pants.
The Ugly
Whatever that dog mascot thing was that we had before Louie: What the hell was that thing, anyway? Somebody explain that one.
Towel Man: No individual fan has drawn the ire of Game Time more than this guy. Why? Anytime you decide to distract fans from a perfectly good hockey game with any of your airbrushed pants, three numbered jerseys, Lite-Brite jerseys, or your hand-signed towels, you're going to piss off a good number of fans like the ones here at Game Time. All together now...JUMP!
Rant and rave about which traditions have worked or not worked in the comments, fan-generated or from the front office folks at 14th and Brett Hull Way.