NHL Mascot Showdown to commence during All-Star Weekend

TAMPA, Fla. -- The
2018 NHL All-Star PreGame
at AMALIE Arena's Silver Parking Lot and Cotanchobee Park will be the site of the fourth annual NHL Mascot Showdown™ as part of the
2018 Honda NHL® All-Star Weekend
, Jan. 26- 28, in Tampa. Thirteen Eastern Conference Mascots, led by the Tampa Bay Lightning's own ThunderBug™ will face 14 Western Conference Mascots, led by 2017 Most Valuable Mascot Bailey™ from the Los Angeles Kings, in three days of friendly but fierce competition, culminating in an all-mascot All-Star Game prior to the
2018 Honda NHL® All-Star Game
at AMALIE Arena on Sunday. Jan. 28.

The NHL Mascot Showdown™ is one of the most anticipated events at the 2018 NHL All-Star PreGame, a three-day, free outdoor hockey festival. Twenty- seven NHL Mascots™ (not every NHL team has its own mascot) will showcase their hockey skills and athletic prowess, offering family-friendly fun for fans of all ages. NHL in-arena host Mike Todd will handle play-by-play duties for each event. Each planned event will be preceded by a mascot parade from AMALIE Arena to The PreGame, a warm-up and stretching session led by ThunderBug™, a ceremonial puck drop and a group photo. Select young fans in attendance will be able to take part in the warm up and stretching session prior to each planned event.
"This annual event has quickly become a staple of the NHL All-Star Weekend," said Dave McCarthy, NHL Vice President of Consumer Products Marketing. "We encourage fans to come celebrate the sport of hockey with our mascots as they show off their athletics skills and lovable personalities."

NHL Mascot Showdown events and competitions (all times ET)

Friday, Jan. 26:
8 p.m.; Best of Five Dodgeball Competition
Franklin Family Hockey Rink at 2018 NHL All-Star PreGame
Saturday, Jan. 27:
2 p.m.; Relay Races
5 p.m.; Dance Competition
Franklin Family Hockey Rink at 2018 NHL All-Star PreGame
Sunday, Jan. 28:
12:30 p.m.; Bean Bag Toss
Franklin Family Hockey Rink at 2018 NHL All-Star PreGame
Sunday, Jan. 28:
2:15 p.m.; Prior to the 2018 Honda NHL® All-Star Game, the NHL Mascots will face-off in their own All-Star Game consisting of two 8-minute periods, live streamed on NHL.com and via Facebook Live. The game will conclude with presentations of the NHL Mascot Showdown Trophy to the Captain of the winning team and the Most Valuable Mascot Award. A ticket to the 2018 Honda NHL® All-Star Game is required for entry.
AMALIE Arena

The NHL Mascot Showdown™ teams

Eastern Conference NHL Mascots
Blades™ from the Boston Bruins
Sabretooth™ from the Buffalo Sabres
Stormy™ from the Carolina Hurricanes
Stinger™ from the Columbus Blue Jackets
Stanley C. Panther™ from the Florida Panthers
Youppi™ from the Montreal Canadiens
NJ Devil™ from the New Jersey Devils
Sparky™ from the New York Islanders
SpartaCat™ from the Ottawa Senators
Iceburgh™ from the Pittsburgh Penguins
ThunderBug™ from the Tampa Bay Lightning
Carlton™ from the Toronto Maple Leafs
Slapshot™ from the Washington Capitals
Western Conference NHL Mascots
Wild Wing™ from the Anaheim Ducks
Howler™ from the Arizona Coyotes
Harvey the Hound™ from the Calgary Flames
Tommy Hawk™ from the Chicago Blackhawks
Victor E. Green™ from the Dallas Stars
Hunter™ from the Edmonton Oilers
Bailey™ from the Los Angeles Kings
Nordy™ from the Minnesota Wild
Gnash™ from the Nashville Predators
S.J. Sharkie™ from the San Jose Sharks
Louie™ from the St. Louis Blues
Fin™ from the Vancouver Canucks
Chance™ from the Vegas Golden Knights
Moose™ from the Winnipeg Jets

Northwest Kids Zone at the 2018 NHL All-Star PreGame

Fans will be able to meet some of their favorite NHL Mascots during "Story Time with Holly" at the Northwest Kids Zone during the 2018 NHL All-Star PreGame. The Northwest Kids Zone will include fun activities for our youngest fans including face painting, balloon creations, coloring and author Holly Preston reading her award-winning NHL Mascot and Friends children's book together with some lovable Mascots. Readings are scheduled for Friday at 6:30 p.m., Saturday at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m., and Sunday at 1 p.m.
The Northwest Kids Zone will showcase a child's ultimate NHL-themed dream room complete with bedding and accessories from the Northwest Company. At the conclusion of the event, the Dream Room and all its contents will be donated to a local charity.
Hockey fans can follow all of the live action from the NHL Mascot Showdown™ on Snapchat and Twitter and access a convenient list of NHL Mascot Twitter handles. The NHL's Facebook page will include an album with photos, bios and Twitter handles for each NHL Mascot. For the latest news on the 2018 NHL All-Star PreGame, fans can visit NHL.com/AllStar and follow the NHL on Twitter (@NHL) via the official hashtag #NHLAllStar.

2018 NHL All-Star PreGame Public Hours of Operation (all times ET)

Friday, Jan. 26; 5 p.m. - 10 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 27; 12 p.m. - 11 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 28; 12 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

About the 2018 Honda NHL® All-Star Weekend

The Tampa Bay Lightning, who are celebrating their 25th season, and the city of Tampa will host the 2018 Honda NHL® All-Star Weekend. The League's midseason showcase will take place at AMALIE Arena and will include the 2018 GEICO NHL All-Star Skills Competition™ on Saturday, Jan. 27 (7 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS) and 2018 Honda NHL® All-Star Game on Sunday, Jan. 28 (3:30 p.m. ET, NBC, CBC, SN, TVAS).