A close up look at the jersey that the Prince Albert Raiders will sport on Friday night. (Prince Albert Raiders/X)

By Nolan Kowal

Different look

Hisss: The story behind the ‘Cobra Chickens’ and what they represent for P.A. Raiders

Jan 26, 2024 | 8:00 AM

The Prince Albert Raiders will have a drastically different look Friday night when they suit up to take on the rival Saskatoon Blades at the Art Hauser Centre.

The Raiders have rebranded as the Prince Albert Cobra Chickens for one game and will be wearing special jerseys to mark the occasion.

“It’s something that you see a lot of in minor league baseball and it’s something that we thought was a fun idea,” said Raiders Business Manager Mike Scissons, adding that other teams in the WHL have done similar initiatives in the past including Swift Current and Saskatoon.

“Talking to Swift Current last year and the success they had and the amount of excitement the community had around the rebrand was something that we were hoping that we could recreate, and I would say not only did we recreate it we maybe even trumped theirs. So it’s been exciting to be a part of.”

Scissons said the Cobra Chicken name and idea were inspired by a bird that most Canadians will be familiar with, as he noticed some videos on social media.

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“Up came a couple videos of Canadian geese and how terrifying they can be, and that tongue and the hiss that they have,” he said. “They were just commonly known as cobra chickens. And the more you looked into cobra chickens online the more and more you saw some of these funny videos of people being chased by a goose on a lakefront or on a golf course or on a jog.”

“We thought it would be something that would be fun to go with.”

Scissons added that the new look has been well-received by fans ever since the merchandise arrived in Hockeytown North.

“It was incredible the moment we put the actual logo out on social media and the website and the reaction we were getting,” he said, adding that there’s been a demand not only in Saskatchewan but across North America and as far away as Europe.

“I was helping process some of the online orders and shipping them out, and the places that we were shipping the merchandise to…it was unbelievable. This thing has taken off probably larger than what we expected.”

Scissons added that the game-worn jerseys are being auctioned off online until Saturday. There are no replica jerseys, but there are other memorabilia available in the Raiders team store.

He hinted that the Cobra Chicken rebrand could resurface again in 2024-2025.

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nolan.kowal@pattisonmedia.com