There was once a time in college hockey where teams from the East Coast
(HE) played teams from the midsection (WCHA) back when both conferences
were smaller.  I laughed so hard when I saw this fish flying through the
air at the old Mariucci Arena during a Gopher-UNH game.  The crowd was
abuzz, and they interviewed the thrower for the school newspaper (Yes, The
Daily).  One of the Wildcat players was from MN and had one of his high
school buddies sneak it in.  There sure wasn't an uproar when the tradition
was brought to MN, and back in those days (the early ones of HE) creating a
tradition was important, even if it was on the road.  (Similar to a high
school swim team pouring a bottle of their pool water into the pool when
they were on the road)
 
 
Leigh M Torbin wrote:
>       The differance between this and the fish is that the fish is
>controlled. There is a regulated system for throwing it, and it is done
>in almost a ceremonious fashion, not a crazy drunken one. Being on the
>opposing side I obviously hate seeing the fish fly, but I will defend it
>as being one of the unique rituals that makes college hockey such a
>wonderful thing.
 
>Mike Machnik wrote:
>On the other hand, all of the criticism of it has come from outside HE,
>from people who seem unfamiliar with the tradition as carried out at UNH.
 
Now as far as I can tell there are some things that are okay to throw on
the ice.  Of course the fish, as long as it's bigger than a smelt so that
the players don't trip on it, and as long as it's smaller than a porpoise
(those are endanged anyway) so that it doesn't land on the coach.  Also
gophers would be okay as long as certain guidelines were followed.  The
gopher would have to be roadkill, or it would have to die in a humane way,
like from old age or cancer.  It must only be thrown if it was embalmed, or
if the carcass was less than 10 hours (fresh) or 10 days (frozen, but
thawed before throwing) old.  The animal has to be intact, and the fur must
NOT be removed before throwing.  Dressing the gopher up in a gopher jersey
or in those silly gopher ears (sorry Eric :) ) is optional, but adds to the
delight of the crowd.  Also the thrower must be wearing the jersey from the
team he's rooting for so everyone knows whethrer to ridicule or cheer him
(obviously women have much better sense to throw anything on the ice).  If
someone has already thrown an animal on the ice you must wait your turn and
only throw it if your team scores again.  You must remove the animal from
the arena if your team is shut out (see freshness note above).  Throwing
roses onto the ice is forbidden, unless you're trying to get a date or your
team has made it to the Rose Bowl.  Oranges are allowed, but only if your
team colors are orange.  Any other team color will require that you dye the
fruit, or find another fruit or vegetable (eg Broccolli for UND) with a
suitable team color.  Food items are also allowed if: 1. They are cans or
individually wrapped and can be donated to a foodshelf, or 2.  THey are
Power Bars, because I'm sure that the players could always go for a boost
of energy right after the adrenilin rush of a goal.  Little hard candies
like peppermint drops are okay, as long as you bring enough to give to
share with everyone.  I confess, I once threw a dustbuster on the ice after
a sweep, I didn't have a broom, is there a support group for me?  :)
 
Matt Evans
Minnesota '89
UMD '91
UW-Milwaukee '00
 
HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey;  send information to
[log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.