Photo by Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The fight for fans' rights to throw rotting animal carcasses on the ice of NHL arenas this postseason continues to wage on.A Nolensville, Tennessee man was arrested and charged after hurling a large dead catfish onto the ice of PPG Paints Arena during Game 1 of Monday's Stanley Cup Final, a 5-3 Predators loss. Jacob Waddell, 36, is being charged with disorderly conduct, disrupting meetings and processions, and possessing instruments of crime, according to police.
Tossing dead ducks was also something Preds fans got into during the Western Conference final against Anaheim.This dude was willing to travel over 500 miles just to stuff a catfish down his pants in support of his team. Nashville really is a premier hockey market.
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That instrument was, indeed, said catfish—which Waddell reportedly bought in Tennessee, vacuum sealed, and placed in his compression shorts to sneak it through arena security before tossing it onto the ice. A local Nashville councilor has asked his office to draft a resolution requesting a pardon for Waddell.Several Predators fans, even Tennessee Titans lineman Taylor Lewan, have been tossing catfish on the Bridgestone Arena ice in Nashville with regularity since the start of the team's postseason run, one that began with a historic sweep of the Blackhawks in Round 1. These fish-chuckers have been viewed as heroes in Music City, each time causing the crowd to erupt while gaining their own 15 minutes of social media fame.The tradition began back in 2003 when a fan was first caught throwing a whiskered local luxury on the ice, and has returned with a vengeance during the Preds' first-ever march to the Stanley Cup Final. Some local Pittsburgh grocers, including Wholey's Fish Market, made it well known that anyone trying to purchase catfish would have to prove they weren't from Tennessee. The market also applied the same policy to Detroit Red Wings fans in 2008 and 2009 in an attempt to prevent octopi from littering the ice in Pittsburgh.
Tossing dead ducks was also something Preds fans got into during the Western Conference final against Anaheim.This dude was willing to travel over 500 miles just to stuff a catfish down his pants in support of his team. Nashville really is a premier hockey market.