Despite Fiery Flop, Ducks Won’t Turn Down Heat : Entertainment: Mascot Wild Wing fine after pratfall at Pond, Disney assures worried callers. Team officials vow not to let mishap take edge off elaborate pregame shows.

ANAHEIM — Disney officials had the ultimate selling job to do after the Mighty Ducks’ mascot, Wild Wing, did a head-first flop into a wall of flames before Wednesday’s game at The Pond.

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Their message: Despite Wild Wing’s fiery landing, don’t expect the Ducks to water down their pregame entertainment.

“We’re taking a lot of calls today, parents and children asking, ‘Is Wild Wing OK?’ ” said Bill Robertson, the team’s director of media relations. “Mostly parents, and some kids too, calling. I took about 10 calls while I was there, and I’m sure there were more.”

So Mighty Duck officials assured fans who called their offices Thursday that Wild Wing was unhurt and would return for another extravaganza tonight before the Mighty Ducks face the Philadelphia Flyers. And Disney, which has made elaborate pregame shows a staple of hockey at The Pond of Anaheim, insisted that the close call hasn’t made the organization nervous about its entertainment.

“He suffered some bumps and bruises, but he came back like a trooper,” Robertson said. “It probably looked a lot worse that it was. He will be performing before the Philadelphia game.”

Another pyrotechnic display?

“We never tell what his acts are going to be,” Robertson said. “We keep that spontaneous.”

It was spontaneous Wednesday. It was also nearly combustible.

Wild Wing tried to bounce off a trampoline through a wall of flames before the Mighty Ducks’ game against the Vancouver Canucks, their first regular-season game at The Pond this year. Instead, his foot stuck in the trampoline and he fell into the flames.

But officials said the mascot was never in any real trouble.

Anaheim Fire Marshal Gary Wilder said the mascot’s costume was flame resistant and a skater standing nearby had a hand on a button to extinguish the flame.

“All the safety measures worked,” Wilder said. “They check the outfit every so often and bring it in when it needs more treatment.

“We approve all their shows that involve fire. We went out and watched the rehearsal and approved it. Everything went as planned at the game, except Wild Wing tripped.”

Wild Wing’s routines are planned and approved by “the company,” Robertson said. And such pregame shows are now commonplace for home openers in the National Hockey League, according to league official Andy McGowan.

Wednesday’s show at The Pond included fireworks and a laser show.

“Disney is one of the best,” McGowan said.

Even Wednesday?

“From what I saw, the guy fell, but wasn’t hurt,” McGowan said. “Accidents happen.”

Future pregame shows will include pyrotechnic routines, Robertson said.

“What happens on the ice is the most important thing, but what happens off the ice is also important,” he said.

Said fan Bob Mytkowicz, a season-ticketholder who watched Wednesday: “They’ve had a laser show in the past. They’ve done fireworks before. But they haven’t had a duck get stuck in a trampoline. That was new.”