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Oilers Unveil New Mascot Hunter The Lynx, Named After Team's Late Founder

The Oilers yesterday unveiled Hunter the Canadian Lynx as their new mascot, "named in honour of Wild Bill Hunter, the legendary player, coach and promoter who founded the Oilers and the WHA," according to Paula Simons of the EDMONTON JOURNAL. The team said that Hunter was "designed to be cuddly and huggable, suitable for classroom and hospital visits." But with his eyes and teeth the way they are, he "might induce anything from hysterics to cardiac arrest." Univ. of Alberta professor Marvin Washington said, "It's a bit scarier than it needs to be. It's a bit creepy. ... I'm confused about what they're trying to convey. ... How do you go from the Oilers to a lynx?" Simons notes Lynx "are cool," but they "don't actually live in Edmonton." They are "shy and solitary; they don't hunt in packs." Then again, very few NHL mascots "make much sense" (EDMONTON JOURNAL, 9/27). In Edmonton, Terry Jones noted more than 2,200 students from kindergarten through ninth grade were "surveyed to identify the most popular mascot candidates produced." Oilers Entertainment Group Senior VP/Marketing Jeff Harrop said Hunter was "far and away the most popular." Jones notes the Oilers were founded as a member of the WHA in '72. Thus Hunter will "wear No. 72 on his orange Oilers jersey." The decision to bring on a mascot is "mostly a matter of timing," as many new aspects of the game experience are going to be "dramatically different." Harrop said with the new Rogers Place, "we have so many tools at our disposal, he’s going to be a complementary piece, not our only piece" (EDMONTON SUN, 9/27). 

SUPERSIZE ME: In Edmonton, Juris Graney notes Rogers Place includes "several premium rental options." It is "little surprise that 54 of the 57 private suites at Rogers Place are all licensed for the next three, five or seven years." That leaves three 12-fixed-seat suites "available for game night rentals at a cost of $900 per night (for an Oil Kings game) or $8,500 (for an Oilers matchup)." The suites being on a private level allows them to have been "built without glass on the front, which adds to the atmosphere." The high ceilings "accentuate that airy feel." There is also the PCL Loge level, which includes two tiers of "table seating between the upper and lower decks (along with one tier of ledge seating) for 800 fans with access to an open concourse that has three free standing bars and two food service locations" (EDMONTON JOURNAL, 9/27).  

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