This is Paul MacLean. He’s the coach of the Ottawa Senators, who took on the Florida Panthers at home on Monday night.

This looks like Paul MacLean. But it’s not Paul MacLean. It’s a creepy doppelganger that is sitting behind him during the Panthers game. AND IT’S FREAKING THE [EXPLETIVE] OUT OF US.

No seriously, it’s creepy.

You still don’t believe us?

Perhaps some moving pictures would help.

Maybe we're not making ourselves clear.

YES IT’S THAT CREEPY.

We’ll update when some intrepid Ottawa reporter finds out what the heck is going on here. It’s either a fan playing a wondrous prank on the coach, or maybe someone related to Paul MacLean, or the plot of the alien pod people has finally been revealed to the world, or Eugene Melnyk has been so impressed with the Sens’ turnaround he’s cloned an army of Paul MacLeans.

One of those four.

UPDATE: Graham Creech, a producer for Team 1200 in Ottawa, has a theory. "[I'm] 99% sure MacLean's stache twin is his brother, Jerome. Grew up on his street, buddies with his son. Hilarious move to show up like that."

But Ian Mendes offers another theory, via Sportsnet: "So the Paul MacLean stunt double isn't trying to spoof the Sens head coach. Those are just where his company's season seats are located." He reported the fan's name is Mike Watson.

UPDATE 2: Get this -- Fox Sports picked up video of Fake Paul MacLean potentially being kicked out of his seats by an usher. That's no way to treat a man who looks like another man! (Unless, of course, he was just being led away to do an interview with Sportsnet. Which is entirely possible, since he did.)

s/t Andrew DeWitt for the video.

Images via Shannon McKarney; Kastrol; Lorne Goldenberg; and ary. ‏