So much for sparing employees the bad news at Christmas. The Toronto Maple Leafs will retire mascot Carlton the Bear in mid-December, ending two decades of silent service.

The ubiquitous white bear with the No. 60 jersey was hired back in the 1990s when Cliff Fletcher took over the team. The name and number of Carlton derived from the street address of the old Maple Leaf Gardens.

The Maple Leafs play Saturday home games on December 12 and one week later on the 19th. It is likely that any kind of ceremony will take place at one of those games, but no official announcement has been made.



Neeeeeeeee!:sir: