Hockey: A bird of a funky feather

By day, Joe Simoens is a mild-mannered manager in the IT division at First Data.

By hockey nights, Simoens sprouts feathers, a beak and skates before he begins dodging zambonis, tossing footballs to the crowd and making an entrance onto the Civic Auditorium ice on a four-wheeler.

Simoens has been the man inside Blades the Chicken costume at Omaha Lancers games since the mascot debuted during the 1991-92 season.

Not only is it a good way for the 44-year-old former hockey player and Omaha Gross graduate to get some ice time, but being Blades has always been about supporting the Lancers and spending time with his family.

“My dad also played hockey, and I would go to the old Knights games with him occasionally,” Simoens said. “I was with my wife and dad at one of the Lancers games when we saw the first time the chicken appeared.”

They all knew there had to be a better way for the mascot to get the crowd involved. Simoens recalled that it was someone in a make-shift egg who broke out of its shell, then walked off the ice.

“Dad thought they needed to put somebody in skates, and they both looked at me and said, ‘Why don’t you do that?’” said Simoens, who prefers not to be photographed when he isn’t in his chicken get-up.

“So I called them, and they told me they were looking for someone who was interested. I told them I played hockey most of my life, so we set up a meeting at Ak-Sar-Ben.”

So, at least in this case, the egg came before the chicken. Simoens went to Ak, put on the costume, skated around a bit and was told the job was his.

He kept the gig even after the time he crashed into the boards and popped out the plexiglass, creating a brief delay while it was replaced.

That moment caused former Lancers coach Mike Guentzel to nickname him the “idiotic chicken.”

As the seasons have passed, Simoens has come up with more ideas and skating moves to get the crowd involved. One of the favorites is playing catch with the fans with a football, an idea that came from the mascot of a former Omaha professional sports team.

“I have to give credit for the football to Roady the Race Horse from the Omaha Racers CBA team,” Simoens said. “They also played a lot of their games at Ak-Sar-Ben, and he would throw the football to the crowd during timeouts. I tried it at a hockey game and it worked.”

Coming onto the ice at the second intermission on a four-wheeler was a tradition that started in 2003, when the Lancers played at the Mid-America Center. Simoens said a motorcycle company in Council Bluffs asked if he’d like to use one, and he quickly said yes.

Simoens said he only hit the boards once at the MAC and has had 23 flawless rides on the Civic Auditorium ice so far this season.

“That was one of the scariest things, because I was doing cookies with it and got it going too fast,” Simoens said. “I flipped it over, but I knew it was going before I could get off the gas. I got away from it before it tipped.”

Simoens has to stay alert, especially during his skating routines, for the zamboni machines. He’s been honked at a couple of times but never hit.

“It’s tougher now at the Civic because they have two zambonis going,” Simoens said. “You have to time it right, especially with the footballs.”

Only a few times has Simoens skated at events as Blades other than at Lancers games. One of those was last month’s UNO-Michigan game during “Hockey Night in Omaha,” where his performance drew rave reviews from Mavericks fans.

If UNO called to have him appear regularly, he said he’d politely decline. The Lancers always have and always will be first in Simoens’ heart.

“The great thing about being a volunteer is I have some freedom to choose what I want to do,” Simoens said. “It’s a thrill going over there once or twice a year to do my thing, but I’m already busy enough with the Lancers.”

Contact the writer:

444-1201, alexsdad@mail.com

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