New Caps Tradition? Fan Throws Crab On The Ice During Stanley Cup Finals

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WASHINGTON, D.C. (WJZ) -- Washington may be creating a new tradition of throwing crabs on the ice.

And Baltimore's own Jimmy' Seafood has added some more incentive to the challenge.

A 15-year-old from Bethesda threw a steamed crab out on the ice Saturday after the Washington Capital's win in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals.

According to The Washington Post, Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School sophomore Jack Merritt bought a $6 Old Bay-covered crab from Bethesda Crab House Saturday afternoon and brought it into Capital One Arena through security in his underwear. He had stored the crab in a Ziploc bag.

Merritt's grandmother surprised the teen hockey player with tickets last week and he immediately started brainstorming ways to localize the tradition of fans throwing objects on the ice.

"I was thinking seafood, because in Detroit and Nashville they throw the octopi and catfish," Merritt told The Post. "I thought a crab was perfect to represent our area."

He snuck down to the 100 section during the last minutes of Game 3 on Saturday, and tossed the crab over the glass.

Players were too busy celebrating the win to notice the crab, now missing a claw, but the Capitals later tweeted about it early Sunday.

Merritt created a Twitter account @capscrab to celebrate the moment:

Merritt doesn't have tickets for Game 4, but fans might see the crab toss again, as Jimmy's Seafood just upped the ante.

Jimmy's tweeted that anyone who throws a crab onto the ice during Game 4 Monday night will receive eight free crab cakes. That's a challenge most Marylanders would take!

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• NHL