Puck of the Draw
Hershey Bears invite Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons for ceremonial puck drop, forget to explain what a puck drop is
As far as sports traditions go, the ceremonial puck drop is about as straightforward as it gets. Some so and so—from the top local car salesman to the Masters champ—gets an invite. Come out here for the game, they say. You drop the puck before and we’ll hook you up with some good seats. We’ll even throw in a carpet so you don’t fall on your ass. Easy, peasy … unless of course you don’t know what a puck drop is and no one bothers to explain it to you. That’s what happened at the Hershey Bears’ game on Monday night when legendary Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons was invited out for the puck drop, despite being deeply unclear on the whole puck-drop thing.
As you can see, Parsons thought all he had to do was walk out to center ice, drop the puck, turn around, and get clear of the blast. You can tell he thinks it’s stupid and doesn’t make sense, but guys eat cereal out of the Stanley Cup. This isn’t weirder than that. Thankfully, however, the opposing centers quickly make their way out to him and explain how it’s actually supposed to work, at which point Parsons takes a sheepish mulligan. After the game, even Saquon Barkley had some fun at the expense of his former teammate.
Moral of the story? If you don’t know, ask. Everyone wants to be the expert of everything, but we all have gaps. Own them and, in doing so, fill them up with knowledge. Then, when the time comes to drop the puck or flip the coin or fire off the opening tee shot, you won’t end up getting retweeted into oblivion. It may be embarrassing to admit you don’t know something, but it’s a million times worse to pretend that you do. Just ask Parsons.