The Florida Panthers have launched an official investigation following a tense altercation between their mascot and an opposing fan.
The incident occurred during the NHL team's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday night (February 6), The New York Post reported.
During the final minutes of the game, a Tampa fan began picking a fight with the Panthers' mascot amid his team's embarrassing 7-1 loss.
Fortunately, the altercation between the fan and Viktor E. Ratt - the Panthers' mascot - was captured by a bystander and posted on Twitter. "So where was [the FLA Live Arena] security?? Reason number 5 billion why Tampa fans are a circus show," the user captioned the short 35-second clip.
In the video, a man dressed in a blue t-shirt can be seen grabbing the mascot and attempting to yank his team jersey off, before shoving the furry rat into a glass divider in front of several onlookers. The fan then grabs the mascot, puts him in a chokehold, and begins shouting.
Fans took to the comments section to express their concern at the now-viral incident, with one user commenting on how staff members chose not to get involved. "i'm actually livid watching this. this tampa fan is acting 5 years old and physically assaulting a MASCOT. do u feel like a big man?? lol and also why are there 3 members of arena staff standing around and not doing anything to stop this. if i was there i'd definitely intervene," one person wrote.
Someone else agreed, adding: "This is where we are at as a society - I've seen things like this happen at Walmart and Target where people assault others and security has been told not to do anything because these assaulters will sue."
A further user hit out at the arena staff, tweeting: "yo you guys just let this happen? Absolutely unacceptable! Please take steps to ensure this behavior is properly addressed in the future. People will always be wild, but that doesn't mean your staff needs to just stand there and watch it happen."
Other users speculated whether the fight was staged, especially given that no one appeared to intervene. However, Fox Sports reporter Andy Slater revealed on Twitter that a Panthers spokesperson stated they're investigating the altercation, though nothing has been done so far.
"Florida Panthers spokesperson tells me this was not staged and they are investigating it. Sunrise Police tells me they have seen the video but were not contacted by the Panthers, so they have done nothing," Slater wrote.
"Viktor E. Rat would have to file a complaint with police for charges to be pressed against this Lightning fan," he added in a separate tweet. "A mascot source tells me that Viktor E's normal handler was off that night. The replacement didn't seem to intervene much, nor did the usher."
