NEW YORK —A hockey team’s mascot is being replaced after a controversial pre-season unveiling skit in which the puck-headed mascot overpowered an actor portraying a firefighter.
Adirondack Flames president Brian Petrovek said they can’t risk ruining its brand image with Scorch, the team’s mascot, the Post Star reported.
“We’re extinguishing Scorch,” Petrovek said. “The misjudgment we made was such that we came to that decision.”
The team issued an apology for the skit on Oct. 9, which featured a story line portraying Scorch as the lone flame from the devastating Great Fire of 1864.
Scorch supposedly had smoldered 150 years and reignited to get fans “fired up” to support the new American Hockey League team in town, according to the report.
In the skit, Scorch overpowered an actor portraying a firefighter in an attempt to show the strength of the mascot and the team. The plot instantly became a topic of conversation on social media, with some commenters questioning the team’s judgment.
In telling of his story, Scorch overpowered a firefighter. That happened. pic.twitter.com/ZIpW7Qmw5l
— Diana C. Nearhos (@dianacnearhos) October 9, 2014
The next day, the Glens Falls Fire Department issued a news release stating that the department’s only involvement was to loan the team firefighting gear, according to the report.
“Our department had no prior knowledge of the event’s content or the design of the mascot,” the fire department said. “The Adirondack Flames organization contacted our department and asked us to provide a firefighter for the event. We denied that request, but in the spirit of cooperation and support for the team, we provided them with a set of firefighting gear.”
Petrovek said management is designing a new mascot that will be associated with fun, not fear, according to the report.
“They (mascots) should be 100 percent fun,” he said. “That’s what our intention has always been, and that’s what it will be moving forward.”