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| Mason's mask from the sides. (InGoal Magazine) |
Last season with the Winnipeg Jets, backup goaltender Chris Mason had some pretty awesome equipment that extended beyond the mask. Remember the pads with jets on them? Sweet.
Well this summer he changed addresses, returning to Nashville to back up Pekka Rinne for the Predators. While that means we won't see the gear from Winnipeg any more, it does mean that we get some new gear for Mason to sport.
If you're an Iron Maiden fan like Mason, you'll love his new mask courtesy of Steve Nash (no, not THAT Steve Nash) of EyeCandyAir.
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| The top of Mason's mask. (InGoal Magazine) |
Considering I'm not a big Iron Maiden guy I'll just let InGoal Magazine describe what exactly is going on.
After making the move physically to Nashville over the weekend, Mason is set to debut another amazing mask from EyeCandyAir, and just like his first Jets mask, it borrows from one of his favourite bands by using an Iron Maiden Eddie.
In fact, the Eddie in question is from the Egyptian-themed cover of the band’s Powerslave album, which also produced the single Aces High and corresponding Eddie included on last year’s mask. It’s a theme that works perfectly because the album covers were created originally by artist Derek Riggs, who has inspired the mask’s artist, Steve Nash, throughout his own career.
It also works perfectly because the Egyptian-themed colors pretty much match the colors of the Predators so it doesn't look out of place. Plus it just looks really awesome on top of the mask.
The designs continue onto the back where Mason pays homage to his new hometown with the Nashville city seal added (see here). That goes with the Predators logos near the ears and of course the prominently featured "MASON" on the chin strap across the front of the mask.
We have a whole lot of masks to come in the next few weeks/months. It's one of the highlights of the second half of summer in hockey, at least for me. I love seeing what goalies are going to sport because sometimes the designs are just incredible. The artists like Nash who do these are obviously exceptional.
I'm just curious if we're going to see any more music-themed designs this year. I just hope no goalie out there is willing to admit they love Katy Perry.
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