A hockey logo is sacred ground in locker rooms across the National Hockey League, which is why pop star Justin Bieber caused a minor uproar in Chicago on July 9 when photos of him standing over the Blackhawks’ famed indian head circulated around the internet. Some fans were enraged that Biebs had his picture taken with the Stanley Cup, but others (including Hawks players Andrew Shaw) were outraged even more by a second photo that depicted Bieber talking his own camera-phone pic of Lord Stanley’s chalice — while standing in black sneakers right on the face of the Blackhawks crest. That’s a huge no-no, regardless of your level of fame.
With Bieber in Boston over the weekend to perform at the TD Garden, our city’s arena people were wonderfully proactive, and roped off the Bruins locker room logo in the chance the bratty heartthrob rolled in to get comfy. Cam Wolbach snapped a pic and posted it on Twitter, and it’s been reported everywhere from ESPN to Barstool Sports.
Bieber is in Boston tonight… Smart move by the Bruins #onlyhockeyfanswillgetit pic.twitter.com/WUC2ITgxeN
— Cam Wolbach (@cwolbach5) July 20, 2013
As I was told by a member of the Bruins organization a few years ago, Hockey Hall of Famer Dave Andreychuk established the rule prohibiting walking on the team logo in the center of the locker room after he signed with a young Tampa Bay Lightning team in 2001. The veteran Andreychuk created the ban as a means of establishing a universal respect for the team’s unifying identity, and would severely fine players who broke the law. As legend has it, the Kangaroo Court rule was still in effect when Mark Recchi signed with the Bolts in 2008.
Later that season, Recchi was traded to Boston and allegedly brought the mandate to the Garden (side note: I feel like this practice must have been going on for years across the league, but that’s how it was told to me).
During the Bruins recent playoff run, Tyler Seguin was known to warn reporters about stepping on the logo as they’d crowd around his locker.