Teams across the NHL embrace the tradition of an over-the-top postgame prop for team morale after a win, and Isles are excited to roll with the Iron Man theme this season. The origin? A little bit of online inspiration and ideating that have been in the works since training camp.
“We saw a clip of someone else having one of those things and thought it was cool,” Lee said. “Nothing more to it other than we thought it was awesome. Picked one up for ourselves. We have to figure out how to use it properly, we’ll get there but it’s a fun little thing to do after the game.”
It’s a high-end, functional, remote-controlled helmet with more tech than their previous props, which included a WWE belt and a rubber chicken in recent years. The mask is digitized and retracts in the front.
“It’s a legit helmet, it’s movie-quality,” Lee said.
“It’s way cooler when it pops up,” Horvat quipped.
Not only is the presentation of the helmet a moment of its own, but the recipient gets to have a moment in the room to say a few words to the group, which brings the locker room together in celebration.
“Winning’s fun, you get a second to come into the room and spend a couple minutes with just the guys in here,” Kyle Palmieri said. “It’s a good tradition.”