The initial reactions to the Seattle Kraken’s new mascot are not looking good.
Just days into the Seattle Kraken’s second season, the team on Saturday unveiled its new mascot at Climate Pledge Arena: a troll named Buoy, with blue hair and a gold anchor earring.
The mascot is said to be a nephew of the Fremont Troll, a 13,000-pound concrete structure set underneath the Aurora Bridge.
Immediately, fans began lamenting the new mascot as an underbaked design, a monstrosity and a knock-off of Gritty, the famous acid-orange, googly-eyed mascot for the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers.
“My 7 year old daughter is terrified by this mascot. I’m confused as to how they couldn’t find any connection to the sea/water or Seattle. What a miss. An actual buoy would have been better than this abomination,” one reader commented on the initial story introducing Buoy.
“What a joke. Just when you think you can take a team seriously, the PR department steps in and says, “NOPE”,” wrote another commenter.
On social media, some fans complained the mascot had little connection to the Emerald City.
Other fans said they were afraid of the new mascot.
The reaction wasn’t all bad. A few commenters seemed just fine with Buoy, mostly sharing they thought the new mascot could be a hit with kids.
New branding to a sports team, especially a mascot, always courts controversy and it’s too early to tell whether Buoy the troll will win over or alienate Seattle residents.
Maybe it depends on how the rest of the season goes. “Win a few games and I will over look this … whatever it is” one commenter wrote.
Only time will tell if Buoy will sink or swim.