The Windsor man who tossed the first octopus onto the ice at Little Caesars Arena has not been banned for life from the building, like he had claimed, the Detroit Red Wings said.

Nick Horvath of Windsor was ejected from the arena during Thursday's season opener against the Minnesota Wild for throwing an octopus onto the ice, a Detroit tradition since 1952. He claimed he was told never to return.

"The crowd was going nuts," Horvath told CBC News. "As they were escorting me out people were booing them, 'Let him go!' People were high-fiving me, giving me spanks on the butt, slaps on the butt ... everyone loved it."

Not everyone. Arena security escorted Horvath to police and he was charged with a misdemeanor.

"The two supervisors of security told me I'm done," Horvath said. "I think it's very stiff. If they want to fine me I understand, if they wanted to ban me for a year ... I can deal with that, but to get banned forever? That can't happen."

It hasn't, the Red Wings said.

Team spokesman Kyle Kujawa confirmed that the fan was not banned. He was ticketed and then released. The club said the same policy was in effect at Joe Louis Arena.

"It's the NHL's rule that nothing be thrown onto the playing surface, and anyone caught doing so may be issued a ticket by the Detroit Police Department," Kujawa said.

The octopus tossing tradition began in 1952 at Olympia Stadium. The animal's eight legs represented the number of playoff victories needed to win the Stanley Cup. Countless octopi have hit the ice in Detroit since then.

PETA, prior to last season's final game at JLA, sent a letter asking the team to prohibit the practice.

"Octopuses are intelligent, sensitive animals who feel pain, and it's no more acceptable to kill one for such a disrespectful, frivolous, and stupid purpose than it is to throw dead bear cubs onto the ice during a Bruins game," PETA President Ingrid Newkirk said at the time in a statement.

Horvath noted the octopi are already dead.