St. Patrick’s Day is so celebrated in Boston that my church – an historic Orthodox cathedral over a century old – shuts down during the St. Patrick’s Day parade on the Sunday surrounding the Irish holiday. Yes, there is no service on a Sunday because the Irish and wanna-be Irish line South Broadway to get inebriated and celebrate the start of spring and the land of Ireland. And our church, full of Albanians, Greeks and Russians, says, “You know what? Go do that, totally fine, we’re just going to stay home and pray inside.”
It floored me the first time I heard about it. Only in Boston would churches decide not to have Sunday service in deference to…well, a religious celebration that has turned very un-religious.
That tale told, it should not be surprising that the Boston Bruins have a large collection of St. Patrick’s Day related wear. Both the NHL Shop (with 28 items) and Faceoff Fanatics (with 13 items) have been advertising their St. Patrick’s Day Bruins wares in a hope that some of their gear will make it down to South Broadway for the parade – and it’s more than just shirts.
Faceoff Fanatics' Boston Bruins PJ pants for St. Patrick's Day
Faceoff Fanatics are now featuring pajama pants with Irish style and Bruins love. Perfect for that parade morning brunch on your overpriced Southie apartment’s porch – if the weather allows for it.
Old Time Hockey's Colleen St. Patrick's Day Bruins shirt (shop.nhl.com)
In one of my favorite St. Patrick’s Day offerings so far, NHL Shop offers the Old Time Hockey V-Neck women’s “Colleen” shirt. Trying to marry a traditional Irish design with a more identifiable shamrock and a nice, not corny, script font, this shirt seems more flattering than most women’s offerings of late. (It is also available for other teams.)