The mascot and a player from the NHL’s Seattle Kraken were doing a promotional shoot in an Alaskan river recently when a grizzly bear ran toward them, prompting them to flee.

The mascot, a troll named Buoy, recently posted a video of the encounter on social media.

First, people saw the bear, causing Buoy, Kraken forward John Hayden and others to move. The grizzly then charged further into the river toward Buoy before stopping. No one was injured.

“I want to blame it on Buoy. They were pretty interested in his whole look. We got out of it OK, but it was a close call,” Mr. Hayden said in the video.

The bear encounter took place in Katmai National Park, according to The Associated Press. The Alaska Peninsula location is nationally known for its grizzlies and the annual social media sensation “Fat Bear Week.”

“Bears are everywhere at Brooks Falls and, like, this is their territory. They’re also super used to seeing humans. So I wasn’t scared,” Kraken Partnership Marketing Director Melissa O’Brochta, who also got footage of the bear while standing on the riverbank, told AP.

Members of the Kraken were around Anchorage in June as part of community outreach. The team goes up to promote youth hockey in Alaska each year, according to ESPN. The closest NHL teams to the Alaska market are the Kraken and Canada’s Vancouver Canucks.

Buoy and Hayden were out fishing and filming the video in partnership with the Bristol Bay Native Corp., according to Anchorage’s KTUU-TV. The company is owned by Alaskan Native shareholders.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.