In the absence of Jack Hughes, the savior of the New Jersey Devils’ season might be the unlikeliest of all: a virtual chocolate chip cookie named Mrs. Fields. After losing the first 30 Dessert Races at the Prudential Center, she finally broke through with a win on Mar. 11 against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Devils fans went ballistic and social media jokingly ran with the narrative that Mrs. Fields would save the season.
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On Mar. 13 against the Edmonton Oilers, it became less joke, more reality. The Devils were down 2-1 in the third, but Mrs. Fields won again, and they instantly responded with two quick goals to steal a crucial victory. By the final horn, “Mrs. Fields” was the #24 trending term on ‘X’ in the entire United States.
“Mrs. Fields carries us through,” quipped Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe.
SHE DID IT AGAIN OMG pic.twitter.com/SlWLVnxrGt
— Daniel Amoia (@daniel_amoia) March 14, 2025
Enter Robert Anthony Franco, a 33-year-old Devils fan who took social media by storm after wearing a homemade chocolate chip cookie costume to the game. When the Devils surged back, the ESPN broadcast continued to show Franco, who was sitting on the glass and noticeable from almost anywhere in the arena. ESPN reporter Emily Kaplan dubbed him “Mr. Fields”.
The Man Behind the Cookie
After Mrs. Fields’ first win, Franco saw some chatter on social media revolving around the idea of showing up to games dressed as cookies. He took matters into his own hands, quite literally. “I looked on Amazon first, but it wouldn’t arrive on time, so I went to Michael’s and got fabric, felt, googly eyes, and industrial craft glue,” he said. ”I fashioned it together from 10 PM to about 1 AM on March 12-13.”
His Devils fandom dates back to his childhood. “Being from New Jersey, we went to Continental Arena for Cub Scouts, and once I saw Scott Gomez get smashed into the glass, I always wanted seats like that again,” Franco told The Hockey Writers. “They went to the playoffs 13 years in a row and outshined the Rangers. I also think if you’re born and raised in New Jersey, you should support them,” he said.
Franco lived in his grandparents’ house as a child, who happened to be neighbors with Ken Daneyko. He recalled the immense overflow of cars whenever Daneyko would host a party. He also went to Mount Olive Middle School with former Devil, Kenny Agostino.
Prior to becoming the Devils’ unofficial cookie mascot, he had quite the journey. He graduated from Hunter College in New York City with a creative writing degree in poetry, worked various jobs from DJing to teaching English in Taiwan…and even served four years in the U.S. Coast Guard, where he participated in drug interdiction missions and hurricane relief efforts. He is currently back in New Jersey while working towards a master’s degree in data science from Eastern University (online).
The Birth of Mr. Fields
In his downtime this season, he attended multiple games and took a unique interest in the struggles of Mrs. Fields. “I’ve been watching the unfair treatment of Mrs. Fields. I feel like the ice cream and pretzel are in cahoots to trip her up more than the Devils players fall,” he joked.
He initially planned to sit in the upper bowl for the game against the Oilers, but changed course last minute when prices for resale glass seats were slashed in half. Generously, he gave his original ticket away on ‘X’. It’s safe to say good karma followed in the form of some newfound fame.
In addition to his costume, he showed up with a “McDavid < Mrs. Fields” sign that was shown on the broadcast. He was shown a few more times sporadically, but his airtime skyrocketed after the Mrs. Fields victory-fueled comeback. For the latter half of the third period, he had as much screen time as nearly every player on the ice.
“My phone was blowing up a little—I told two friends, my parents, and my sister. They sent me screenshots of the commercial break shot of me at warmups, but they actually went to bed before the madness of the third period. I didn’t realize how much ESPN kept showing me until I posted about it on Reddit and people told me. I even went back and rewatched the entire game,” he said.
Walking through the concourse, he was serenaded with chants of “Cookie Man!” and was stopped countless times for pictures, high fives and fist bumps. Even exiting the arena, the interactions continued all the way until he got to his car. “It chipped away a little of my ice block of a heart,” he joked. “It was surreal…I knew it could be a possibility depending on how many cookies showed up, but more importantly how the game unfolded. It could not have been more perfect.”
Mr. Fields’ Future
It’s safe to say that he won’t be the only cookie at future games. If it’s anything like the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB) when they dubbed Grimace as their hero, hundreds of fans will jump on the trend. But Franco will always be able to say he was the original.
The more cookies the better! https://t.co/octpJNe15l
— Cookie Man (GoDevils) 🇮🇹🇺🇦🇦🇶 (@guy666_6) March 14, 2025
He plans to keep attending games, though he admits he’ll likely opt for upper-deck seats moving forward. “I may lie to myself and spend more anyway,” he said.
And while he’s embraced the “Mr. Fields” nickname, he wants one thing to be clear: “I want it on record that I did not have relations with that cookie.”
In the Mrs. Fields Era, the Devils’ playoff odds have rocketed from ~80% to 95.6%, according to MoneyPuck. In just a few days, the vibes around the entire season, post Jack Hughes injury, have completely flipped for the better.
There’s no telling if, or when, the Mrs. Fields magic will run out. But most fans seem to be living in the moment and appreciating greatness while it’s happening.
