VOORHEES — Finally the Flyers have done something for the first time since the mid-1970s.

No, not a Stanley Cup. A mascot.

It’s a seven-foot, “fuzzy creature” that can skate, has “hockey abilities,” eats snow from the Zamboni, its father was a “bully” and no, it does not play goalie. The Flyers were one of few sports franchises without a mascot. The last one they had was short-lived in 1976, named Slapshot.

So when players came off the ice Monday morning, they were interested to see what the final product was.

“That’s….that’s tough,” Carsen Twarynski said.

Close. It’s Gritty.

The orange, googly-eyed, bearded creature did not go over well on social media with the fans on a first impression. Twitter reactions poured in from “sadistic Cookie Monster” to “orange Oscar the Grouch,” to wondering how many cousins removed it is from Jake Voracek.

“It’s not my mascot,” Wayne Simmonds said. “I’ve never seen that thing before in my life.”

He will, starting Monday night with the Flyers’ preseason game against the Boston Bruins.

Gritty is just the newest hire in the organization that has made a couple moves recently away from the ice to drum up interest.

The team hired Fred Gambino in 2016 as a director of strategy and analytics, but it’s not advanced statistics that he’s there for. He’s part of the ticket sales department, building the strategy of filling seats at Wells Fargo Center. The team also hired Joanna Levy this summer to work in the same department, but neither Levy nor Gambino were involved in the emergence of the mascot itself.

“First and foremost, the Flyers adding a mascot to our fan engagement program is specifically for our young fans,” chief operating officer Shawn Tilger said in a press release, “and we’re excited to add value to their experience both at games and in their communities.”

Gritty was “found” during the construction this summer for renovations at Wells Fargo Center. No word on if the bright orange eyes glowed in the dark as he was finally unearthed, downing expired hot dogs. Multiple Flyers mentioned those piercing eyes were enough to give a young child nightmares. Perhaps Gritty gets color-changing contact lenses if he misses a step waddling through the upper-level of the concourse.

As high-priced free agents and opponents can attest, Flyers fans can be a rough crowd. The new mascot’s first game Monday night could be interesting.

Or, as Oskar Lindblom put it, “We’ll see how Gritty he is.”

Dave Isaac; @davegisaac; 856-486-2479; disaac@gannett.com