Gritty Surprises 7-Year-Old Fan With a Custom Gritty Prosthetic Leg

Philadelphia Flyers mascot, the terrifyingly lovable Gritty, surprised a young fan at the Philadelphia Shriners Hospital for Children. 7-year-old Caiden O’Rourke not only received a custom Gritty prosthetic leg but the mascot made the moment even more memorable with a special appearance.
The look on this 7-year-old’s face is priceless.
He just received a custom Gritty prosthetic leg, and then this happened… ❤️
(via @6abcJeannette)pic.twitter.com/mXtKdEGKYG
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) June 25, 2019
When he was first introduced in 2018 Gritty wasn’t universally loved in the City of Brotherly Love – he was dragged on social media and on late night comedy shows. But Philly fans have since embraced him, turning him into a social media phenomenon among mascots (he has almost 300k followers). And it’s easy to see how beloved he is among young Flyers fans like O’Rourke, who also received a custom jersey.
— Jeannette Reyes (@6abcJeannette) June 25, 2019
Perhaps the biggest sign of his turn-around with fans was when he was voted the NHL’s top mascot at the end of the season.
The people have spoken! @GrittyNHL, you are officially the fans’ favorite mascot in the League. ???? #NHLFanChoice
VIEW WINNERS ➡️ https://t.co/nyeIMquo6y pic.twitter.com/K7a4bjhexe
— NHL (@NHL) June 20, 2019
Gritty has even won a Webby award for “People’s Voice Award for Social: Athletes and Sports Teams”. And despite his perplexing face, we officially got on the Gritty train when he endorsed the dad bod.
To the dad bods! pic.twitter.com/zaqSEm85ag
— Gritty (@GrittyNHL) June 16, 2019