Best Detroit Red Wings Pop Culture References

Mar 6, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Colorado Avalanche goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere (35) makes a save in front of Detroit Red Wings left wing Drew Miller (20) on a shot by center Joakim Andersson (18) in the first period at Joe Louis Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

South Park:

Springfield isn’t the only animated town that the Detroit Red Wings have visited. The team has also made a couple of cameos out west in the insane Colorado mountain-town of South Park. You can’t mention hockey in Colorado without bringing up the Red Wings at some point.

Detroit’s most famous appearance in South Park came in 2006 during the episode “Stanley’s Cup”. The episode was a parody of the The Mighty Ducks movie. In the episode one of the show’s main characters, Stan Marsh, ends up doing community service in the form of coaching a fledgling pee-wee hockey team à la Gordon Bombay.

To make a hilariously long story short, Stan’s team is invited to play a game against a more-skilled pee-wee club during the intermission of an NHL game between the Colorado Avalanche and the Detroit Red Wings. The other pee-wee team ends up not showing for the game, so the Avalanche, out of the kindness of their hearts, let Stan and his ragtag group of pee-wee players finish the rest of their game against the Red Wings.

Needless to say the last-minute and a half of the episode finds the Red Wings hilariously showing no mercy on the young hockey players. The Wings physically assault the five-year old children by mercilessly checking them into the boards, firing slap-shots at the goalie and even punching them in the face. The Wings win the game 32-2 and celebrate Stanley Cup style to the tune of “We Are The Champions” by Queen.

In another episode titled “Broadway Bro Down”, the Red Wings’ jersey makes an appearance on a very unlikely character, Elton John. In the episode famous Broadway composers such as Stephen Sondheim, Stephen Schwartz, Andrew Lloyd Weber and the aforementioned Elton John are all satirically portrayed as beer-loving, macho, sports fans who hang out at Hooters in their favorite team’s jerseys.

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