Pittsburgh fish market won't sell catfish to Tennessee customers
A local Pittsburgh fish market is doing its part to prevent catfish from winding up on PPG Paints Arena ice.
With the Nashville Predators' tradition of throwing catfish onto the ice becoming a more common occurrence as the team treks forward in the postseason, Jim Wholey, the co-owner of Wholey's Fish Market has implemented new policy to keep Preds fans at bay.
"You have to show ID if you want to buy catfish here," Wholey said, according to Ben Schmitt of the Tribune-Review. "If you're from Tennessee, we're not selling it to you."
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For Wholey this isn't the first time he has implemented such a rule to prevent certain sea creatures from making an appearance on Pittsburgh Penguins ice.
Back in both 2008 and 2009, a similar rule was put in place to try to deter Detroit Red Wings fans from throwing octopi onto the ice.
"Like I said in 2008, this is for eating, not throwing," said co-owner Dan Wholey. "Catfish are delicious, and we're going to eat them before, during and, after we beat the Predators."
During Round 3, an inspired Preds fan was lucky enough to sneak a giant catfish into Honda Center in Anaheim and chuck it onto the ice ahead of Game 2.
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It seems it might be up to the home fans to keep their bizarre tradition alive.