"Seinfeld" has been off the air for over two decades at this point, but one of its more infamous bit characters continues to support the team. Patrick Warburton -- the actor who played David Puddy on the sitcom -- was the guest of honor at Tuesday night's Devils game in New Jersey and, yes, he painted his face for the occasion.
Not only was Puddy invited to drop the ceremonial first puck at center ice before the Devils played the Pittsburgh Penguins, but he also got his own bobblehead. The first 9,000 fans to enter the Prudential Center on Tuesday got this awesome souvenir:
Before the pregame ceremony, Puddy greeted Devils players at the tunnel with some top-notch enthusiasm.
But it wasn't until he got on the ice that it truly became a Puddy spectacle. Not only did he drop the puck, but he also ripped off his jersey to reveal a painted 'D' on his chest. (Sadly, the E-V-I-L-S guys couldn't make it, apparently.)
Things were going off without a hitch; Puddy got to drink from the fountain of relevance and effectively fired up the crowd to get them ready for the game. It was an impeccable performance.
However, his exit from the stage was not impeccable.
We'll have to assume that wasn't acting but, to Warburton's credit, he handled it quite well and took a bow for good measure.
This isn't the first time that Puddy has re-emerged at Devils games in the post-Seinfeld era. In fact, it was just last April that he was on-hand to help get the crowd going during the Devils' playoff series against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Thanks to syndication, "Seinfeld" has remained a prominent pop culture force well after its final episode in 1998 and many of the show's bit characters continue to embrace and thrive off their role in the show. Considering the fact that Puddy is still one of the strongest pop culture references that the NHL has, it seems that the Devils don't want to let him go.
And why should they? Somehow, it's still funny after all these years.
