Rabbit: There were so many other stories surrounding the Sharks last season that we didn’t get to talk about, like Jo PAW-velski! She’s a black cat that took the internet by storm when she appeared on the ice during warm-ups for the first playoff game of the second round against Nashville. └(=^‥^=)┐ She became sort of a good luck charm for the team and soon, you could find black cat plushies and t-shirts all over the Tank. They even had a full mascot show up for Game 5! (｡♥‿♥｡) Sharkie is still the best mascot, but Jo is a close second. While she was at Humane Society Silicon Valley, they put in a camera so you could check in on her to see how she was doing. Her pen had so much Sharks gear! Tiger, you and her could be twins!
Tiger: I think the coolest thing about the story is that Patrick Marleau and his family adopted her.
Rabbit: The Sharks also did some special things for two families as well. The first was during Military Appreciation Weekend when Sr. Airman Brandon Pettit surprised his wife and kids with his return from deployment in Qatar.
Tiger: The Sharks also hosted the Foley family, who had to flee their home when the massive wildfire near For McMurray broke out. The fire would trigger the largest evacuation in Alberta history and it would burn for almost two months.
Rabbit: With only 30 minutes to evacuate, Billy Foley chose to save his SJ jersey collection. A picture of the saved collection was tweeted to Sharkie via Twitter and the Sharks mascot sent Billy his jersey. The story could have ended there but General Manager Doug Wilson invited the Foley family to San Jose for Game 4 of the WCF to get the VIP treatment, San Jose style. Great to see that while hockey is just a sport, it can impact people in a positive way. (´；ω；`)
Tiger: Just like with the All Star Weekend in Nashville. Joe Pavelski and Brent Burns were the representatives for Team Teal but there was also an honorary member, John Scott, who used to play for SJ. There’s a really messy story about John Scott, who captained the Pacific Division All Star team, and how he got to the All Star Weekend. There was a fan vote conducted that any eligible NHL player could be selected to represent one of the divisions during the festivities. Now John Scott is not a skilled player, no offense to him, but he’s no Ovechkin or Stamkos. John Scott is known as an enforcer, a big guy that will drop the gloves any time. He has a great personality and he was well liked in the San Jose locker but he’s not someone who’d normally get an invitation to the All Star Tournament. The internet had other plans and decided to vote him ahead of everyone else. This is where things get strange, Scott was originally with the Coyotes which is in the Pacific Division but was traded to Montreal which is not in the Pacific Division. The NHL deemed that Scott was ineligible to participate which again, sent the internet into a craze. Eventually it was decided that he could attend but would wear a generic jersey.
Rabbit: Being an ex-Shark, Scott ended up playing the 3-on-3 All Star Game with Pavelski and Burns. In a very public and often ugly ordeal with the NHL, Scott was gracious and kept his sense of humor. He received standing ovations by the fans in Nashville and even scored two goals. He was also selected as the MVP of the All Star Tournament. ( ＾∇＾) It’s a great ending for a great guy and I’m proud that the San Jose Sharks players and fans supported him.
Tiger: The Sharks got some well-deserved recognition when Hockey News, the magazine, announced their 100 best jerseys of all time. Their number one pick? The original San Jose Sharks jersey that would ever mark them as Team Teal! (*•̀ᴗ•́*)و ̑̑
Rabbit: There’s an interesting story when the jersey was being designed that the jersey manufacturer and the NHL asked the Sharks more than once to reconsider their choice of color. They wanted the team to pick a more traditional blue like what the other teams wore. George Gund III and his team stuck by their choice and the rest is history. In a sea of red and blue jerseys, the San Jose Sharks truly stand out as being unique with their classic teal sweaters.
Tiger: 2016-2017 is definitely going to be a season to look forward to. We already have some new additions to the team in Mikkel Boedker and David Schlemko. The rookies Timo Meier, Dylan DeMelo, and others look to make a splash with the team. We’ve got the traditional massive November road trip, 16 grueling back-to-back games, 82 games in 178 days, and the Sharks will travel 48,872 miles. We even have new logos for the next season, they’ll be secondary marks for merchandise and not a new jersey design.
Rabbit: It’s definitely a great time to be a fan of the San Jose Sharks and of hockey in general. But before we can start the next season, we gotta finish this pizza! (○´∇｀)0━┳━0(´∇｀●)
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