New Wild Wing Is Slimmer Version

Conspicuous by his absence during the exhibition season: Wild Wing, the accident-prone mascot.

A revamped version of Wild Wing will debut tonight at the home-opener against Philadelphia. The ruse is that the old mascot--the one who tripped into a wall of fire last season--reported to camp overweight and was immediately suspended.

“He was a fat, out of shape, feathery piece of lard,” said assistant coach Walt Kyle.

The new Wild Wing is a more muscular version based on the character in Disney’s new animated series, “Mighty Ducks.”

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Paul Kariya remains in Vancouver, rehabilitating from an abdominal injury with a personal trainer.

“I’m not going to bother him,” Coach Ron Wilson said. “He’ll know when he’s ready.”

Defenseman Bobby Dollas continues to wear the captain’s “C” in Kariya’s absence.

“It’s not sewn on. It’s on there with Velcro,” Dollas said. “When the little guy comes back, he gets it.”

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Defenseman Milos Holan, whose leukemia is in remission following a bone marrow transplant last February, looks forward to attending a game this season.

“I’m not ready yet,” Holan said. “But I follow every game, on television or radio.”