Happy Birthday Gritty!

September 24, 2018.

One of the most important days in recent Philadelphia sports history.

On this date, the entire world was blessed with the debut of the Flyers new mascot, Gritty.

It’s easy to forget now because he is such a beloved figure, but Gritty was pretty much panned when he first was introduced.  Social media was against him and even late night comics like Stephen Colbert and John Oliver took their shots at the creature.  The Guardian even called him an acid trip of a mascot.  So it was not the best welcome for the newest mascot to the Philadelphia sports family.

It all changed with a single tweet.

The Penguins, seeing the backlash that Gritty had been receiving, thought it would be a good idea to join in on the mocking by tweeting “lol ok.”  Gritty struck back with his own tweet: “sleep with one eye open tonight, bird.”

That one tweet changed everything.  Everyone was instantly sold.  Gritty had just become a made man.

Since that point, Gritty has only gone on to become the most popular mascot in the NHL by far, and is challenging the Phanatic’s long standing position as the best mascot in Philadelphia sports.  It seems as though every week something new is coming out on Twitter making us love Gritty even more.

So on Gritty’s first birthday, let’s look back and remember all the fun times and memories Gritty has given us over this past year.  From him slipping on the ice during his very first appearance during a game, to him coming out of the rafters on the Wells Fargo Center to Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus, to him streaking during the Stadium Series against those hated Penguins.  The list goes on and on

Gritty, thank you for all the good times, laughs and smiles.  All Philadelphia fans look on the past year with you with joy, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for you as you continue to cheer on the Flyers and entertain the masses.

So from all of us to you: Happy Birthday Gritty!