Youppi! makes his Habs debut

From the Toronto Star:

Just like old times in Montreal, Youppi! was there to high-five Andre Dawson and Gary Carter amid the wild cheers of a sellout crowd. Sadly, for fans of the city's late and lamented baseball team, last night he was standing on skates at centre ice at the Bell Centre — not outside the Olympic Stadium dugout — and all three were wearing Montreal Canadiens jerseys. Dawson and Carter, two of the greatest players in the Expos' 36-year history, were on hand as guests of the Canadiens for a ceremony honouring the four numbers retired by the National League team, which moved to Washington, D.C. last season.

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Youppi!, the Expos' fuzzy orange mascot since 1979, did not move with the team.With the arena's lights dimmed, the video scoreboard showed Canadiens defenceman Sheldon Souray looking into the camera in the team's dressing room and offering encouragement to an unknown, who was obviously making his debut. Cheers filled the rink as the familiar mascot's image was seen wearing a Canadiens uniform and grabbing a toy stick and oversized puck before racing onto the ice to the approval of the audience.


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