Seriously.
For those from out of town, this is a big whale-blimp that comes down from the rafters between periods to drop gift certificates on the fans at Canucks hockey games. I actually know why he’s wearing a shirt. Do you?
Every time I go to a game, I joke that the blimp is like some kind of angry whale demi-god dropping mana on his tiny worshipers. “Naslund has scored! Will the whale also bestow good fortune on us, in the form of gift certificates for Gwen Stefani’s new album?”
UPDATE: The whale is wearing a shirt because he’s a holdover from when the Canucks shared the arena with the NBA’s Vancouver Grizzlies. They changed his shirt to that ugly-ass Grizzlies uniform so that the whale could promote the bears by dropping stuff on the humans.
DarrenBarefoot.com 
The Whale does have a lot of totemic properties. It gets really creepy when you think of Fin, his representative on the ground, walking about and winning him converts.
I went to a game for the first time. I resent the whale-blimp only because those of us who sit at the top never seem to get bestowed with gifts.
I don’t believe the blimp wears a shirt every time, does it?
Does he wear the shirt so he won’t catch cold?
Reminds me of the 1994 Commonwealth Games mascot from Victoria (“Klee-Wyck,” or “The Laughing One”), which was an orca whale represented playing various sports involved in the Games.
One of the images, which showed up on sugar packets (on BC Ferries, as I recall), was a drawing of the smiling Klee-Wyck holding a rifle, for the target-shooting sports. Creeped me out.
“Save the whales, eh?” he seemed to be saying. “*I’ll* show you how to save the frickin’ whales!”
I think he used to wear a Grizzlies jersey too when they were here.
This reminds me of a post on Vancouver Canucks Op Ed that featured a couple “blimps” from around the league including the giant floating burrito in Colorado – too funny.
Miss604: That’s correct. He could change his shirt for Grizzlies games. Which is weird, considering we’re talking about a flying whale promoting some bears, but never mind.
So, Darren, why the heck IS he wearing a shirt?
And while gift certificates for Gwen Stefani’s new album may not be the greatest prize ever, it beats the free White Spot burgers they give out in the third period at Vancouver Giants games (read: burgers that they haven’t sold).