NHL fans cheer and they boo. They celebrate game-winning goals and they mock
chant opponents. They even have creative ways to suggest referees get
glasses.Bruins Crowd during the 2011 Stanley Cup Final

But for a select few, it's not enough to vocalize their support or disdain.
These visionaries bring their feelings to the forefront by covertly bringing
odd objects into an arena and catapulting them on the ice. Though it often
slows down the game, calling for cleaning crews to be deployed, there's no
denying it adds a smidgen more entertainment value for the rest of us.

Be warned though. These days, if you throw something other than a hat onto the
ice, you'll likely be escorted out of the arena by security. Paying top dollar
for seats close to the ice won't help your case, either. With an eye toward
safety, arenas have been clamping down on spectators who lob stuff to the ice,
barring them from returning for a season, leveling fines and in a few cases
also handing out criminal records.

Here';s a look at fifteen of the more memorable traditions and odditites that
have made the ice surface.Hats

Alright, this isn't crazy, but it's too obvious to ignore. No one really knows
for sure how celebrating a "hat trick" by tossing hats was first celebrated.

One theory suggests the tradition of throwing hats on the ice began in the
1950s with the New York Rangers' OHL farm team, the Guelph Baltimore Mad
Hatters. According to the story, the team's sponsor, the titular haberdashery,
 would apparently award any player to score a hat trick with a fedora.(Amy
Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Another tale claims it was a Toronto-based hat manufacturer that started the
tradition of awarding hats to players who tallied three goals in a game.

Once collected, hats are often presented to the player who scored the hat trick
 in the dressing room.

"If the player who achieved the hat trick wants them, they';re his," said Jason
 Rademan, media relations for the Dallas Stars.

Some players actually pick out one to keep, but the rest are either tossed due
 to health concerns or donated to local charities. The Columbus Blue Jackets
have a giant transparent hat bin on the main concourse of their arena that
houses all the hats the team has collected since the franchise';s first hat
trick, according to Karen Davis of the Jackets.Sweaters

A few seasons ago, disgruntled Toronto Maple Leafs fans who were so frustrated
by their team's futility and decades of abysmal play chucked their sweaters
(jerseys for newcomers). Dubbed "Jersey-gate", the protest got three fans a
fine and yearlong ban from Toronto's Air Canada Centre for their disruptive
behavior.(John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports)

Similar jersey chuckings occurred in Edmonton a few years ago, when frustrated
Oilers fans tried to show their disappointment and make a statement.Bras

Left wing Jeff Cowan put up 81 points in 413 NHL games. More notably was his
695 penalty minutes. So when the Los Angeles Kings waived him in December 2006,
 the Vancouver Canucks - a team without much grit - quickly added the enforcer
to their squad.

After joining the team, Cowan lived the life of a scorer for a little over a
week, netting six goals in four games. One of his admirers was so excited that
she showed her support by surrendering hers. The woman tossed her bra onto the
ice while the crowd raucously chanted his name. It earned a new nickname: Cowan
 the Bra-barian.

What's incredible is that the Canucks chose to embrace the spectacle when they
 auctioned off a team-autographed bra to raise money for breast cancer
research. Two cups...errr...thumbs up!Hamburgers

Undrafted Ottawa Senators goalie Andrew Hammond earned the nickname ‘The
Hamburglar' when he went on an incredible 20-1-2 tear to push his team into the
 playoffs. With that moniker, fans honored their 27-year-old winning goaltender
 by throwing a barrage of hamburgers onto the ice.Andrew Hammond (Gary A.
Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports)

Though he never took a bite of one, teammate Curtis Lazar did, saying. "I was
hungry, so why not?" and later tweeting it "could've used some ketchup."Waffles

In December 2010, a disgruntled Toronto Maple Leafs fan leggo of his Eggo,
chucking it on the ice in the Air Canada Centre. Using the Twitter handle
"EGGO_BOMBER", the person who claimed responsibility for the golden pastry had
a clear message to the team: wake up and eat the most important meal of the
day!

Leafs management was not amused, giving the fan a lifetime ban from the Air
Canada Centre, who later complained, "People throw hats when they think
they';re playing good. Why can';t we do something to show disapproval for
what';s happened over the past 44 years?"A Banana

While taking his turn during a shootout, Philadelphia Flyer Wayne Simmonds had
a banana hurled his way by a fan in London, Ontario during an exhibition game.
According to The Toronto Star, the 26-year-old fan was charged with "engaging
in a prohibited activity under the provincial Trespass to Property Act."
Simmonds took the high road and stayed classy, brushing off the incident in an
interview.

"I don't know if it had anything to do with the fact I'm black. I certainly
hope not. When you're black, you kind of expect (racist) things. You learn to
deal with it. It shocked me and knew I had to keep going and get a shot
off."(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Simmonds acknowledged the banana rattled him, and his only thought was to get
off a shot - which went in for the Flyers' only score in the shootout.Catfish

As a newcomer to the league in 1998, Nashville didn';t have a history to drawn
upon. So fans took inspiration from the Red Wings'; use of octopi, and began
chucking catfish onto the ice at Bridgestone Arena. The tradition dates back to
 2002 as locals have visited their favorite seafood stores to acquire the
ray-finned fish with whisker-like barbels.

Though not tightly associated with Nashville, catfish is popular in the south
and if Predator fans like to hurl them, more power to them. Especially when
they';ve gone through the trouble of wrapping it up, strapped it their leg or
back and getting through security.Rats

Most people see a rat and get grossed out. Not Scott Mellanby. Before the
Florida Panthers home opener in 1995-96, Mellanby killed a rat that was found
in the Florida locker room by shooting it across the floor. He then scored two
goals that night in a 4-3 win, leading teammate John Vanbiesbrouck to call it
the "rat trick" during a post-game interview.

At the next Panther game, after a Florida goal, a fan tossed a plastic rat onto
 the ice. The rat brought good luck as the Panthers made it to the Stanley Cup
Final that season, ultimately losing to the Colorado Avalanche.

It's since been banned due because it was delaying the game so much. In fact,
the NHL changed the rules to allow for a team to be given a delay of game
penalty if fans throw things on the ice, outlined in section 9, statute 63.4
of the regulation book. Goalies would even take cover inside their nets to
avoid getting hit by rat rain.Octopus throwing in Detroit.Octopi

The tradition of throwing an octopus on the ice began on April 15, 1952 at the
beginning of the playoffs. The six-team league had two best-of-seven rounds, so
 eight wins (or eight tentacles) meant a Stanley Cup. The eight-legged moluscs
were chucked onto the ice at Detroit Olympia at the start of the series by Red
Wing fans Pete and Jerry Cusimano for good luck. The Wings swept both the Leafs
 and Canadiens to win the Cup. And one of hockey's most iconic good luck
symbols was born.

Cleaning up the beasts is not for the weak. "They are so gross. They';re huge,
they';re heavy, they stink and they leave this slimy trail on the ice. But,
hey, if it';s good for the team, I guess we can deal with it."Ducks

In Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals this year, when the Nashville
Predators were hosting the Anaheim Ducks, a fan threw what appeared to be a
dead mallard onto the ice. The Ducks won the game, 3-2. This was not the first
time a duck was tossed to rile the team from Anaheim.

One can only imagine if Anaheim played the Predators while Paul Gaustad was on
the team. They could play 'Duck, Duck, Goose.'; No need to leave a comment in
the comment section on that one... I';ll groan for you now.Sharks

Apparently hockey fans like their seafood chilled. In 2007, a San Jose Sharks
fan managed to smuggle a four-foot leopard shark into HP Pavilion (now the SAP
Center) during Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals with the Detroit
Red Wings. It was then chucked onto the ice during play.

The feat has been copied since then, when these two teams met during the
playoffs. In an elaborate scheme in 2010, a fan threw a shark to the ice with
an octopus sewn into its mouth, seemingly to represent the Wings. Points for
creativity.A Bench

Robbie Ftorek';s played in 334 NHL games, but one of his most well-known
highlights came as a coach of the New Jersey Devils.

After Jay Pandolfo, a Devil, raced to nullify icing and was plastered from
behind, face-first into the boards. Gushing blood, the refs let the play
continue as the Red Wings came down the ice and scored. Outraged, Ftorek blew a
 gasket and chucked a bench onto the ice. He was ejected from the game and
suspended for another. Pandolfo needed 84 stitches.Sticks

Fans aren't the only ones that can express their feelings. In 1991, Los Angeles
 Kings'; coach Tom Webster was so ticked off at referee Kerry Fraser that he
threw a tantrum as well as his players sticks at the well-coifed zebra,
javelin-style. The handiwork earned Webster a 12-game suspension - the longest
penalty ever given to a coach by the league. The Kings were also fined $10,000.

"In handing down this decision, the league wishes to make it clear that there
can be no excuse for taking physical actions against any official," NHL Vice
President Brian O';Neill said in a prepared statement.Sean Avery

By the time Avery was in a Rangers'; uniform, he had already played 139 games
for the Detroit Red Wings and Los Angeles Kings, so teams knew what to expect
from him.

The New York Rangers threw Sean Avery onto the ice for 264 games, usually to be
 their agitator. Though he scored 45 goals for the Blue Shirts, it was one of
the most consistently offensive things any NHL team has tossed onto the ice in
the modern era. He even has a rule named after himself.Sean Avery (THW Library)

After retiring in 2012, the eclectic Avery began working at an advertising and
creative agency in New York City, but the firm closed without notice in
September 2013, reportedly due to financial problems.Teddy Bears

You won't get thrown out of the arena for this one. Several minor league teams
share the Christmas holiday season tradition of having fans toss plush teddy
bears on the ice, usually after the home team scores its first goal.

Once gathered up, they';re donated to needy kids. The Calgary Hitmen "raised"
over 25,000 teddy bears. The Kamloop Blazers may have been the first to start
the tradition during their 1993-94 season.

The post 15 Craziest Things Ever Thrown on the Ice appeared first on The Hockey
 Writers.

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