Let’s remake some NHL Jerseys before Adidas does!

As we’ve discussed earlier, Sportslogos.net figured out that over half the league would be changing their look, including the Bruins.

While a bunch of these have likely already been announced, a number of them are still up in the air as to what each will be taking on. Naturally, we didn’t want to lose out on the fun (and I can go a little bit back to my roots) of speculating on what these would look like, so I took a shot at what these might look like come the 2017-18 season, and maybe fix the sins of Reebok while we’re here!

Ones we already know so we’re not gonna bother:

• Hey! Did you get eyesores watching Edmonton’s brutal Orange sweaters in the playoffs? Well too bad, because they’re going to Orange full time! The Edmonton Oilers! Keeping Cornea repair surgeons in work since 1972!
• If the Devils make significant changes in any way I think Newark will burn to the ground (assuming it hasn’t already)
• The Stars are getting a 25 year anniversary patch on their sweaters that looks like the state of Texas. Other than that I doubt they’re changing much of anything.

The Home Team:

What we hope is that Gold makes a full-time return to the Boston Bruins, even as just a third jersey, that’d be awesome. (Based on the 1957 look would be an ENORMOUS plus)

In reality, they’re not likely to change much at all. The Organization has gotten very protective of their identity for the first time...well...ever. It’s unlikely Boston changes much of anything anymore.

Edit: lmao guess that’s not happening then

The New Guy on the Block:

Man, Las Vegas is entering the league with the weirdest color combos I think i’ve ever seen. All of it is super awkward looking together.

So with that in mind, I’m gonna take what little we know about their setup and make a guess-timate. It’s not perfect and will likely look much better (or worse) than this.

“Turn Back The Clock” and obvious fixes:

• Buffalo

No gray, no silly piping, no crappy just good ol’ 1970’s simplicity.

To be honest...it’s kind of amazing that it’d even take this long for fans and the organization to return to this look.

• Calgary

I labored on whether or not they’d buckle on the whole “the color black” thing they introduced in the 1990’s, but I decided Calgary fans have had enough of ridiculous gimmicks to their sweaters and should just go back to the look of their first few years out in Alberta. Their current thirds can stay, I think those look good.

• Colorado

Colorado recently has suffered at the hands of Reebok and in life and in most things regarding the sport lately. Piping all over, an inconsistent identity, and a complete inability to recognize who or what they really are and what made them so special in the first place. Well no more.

Back to the 90’s look, cleaned up so Burgundy, Blue, and white are the only real colors we need to see. Includes silly blue sweater because they’ve been trying to make that a thing for years and it’s the closest attempt I can make without making it look like something they’ve already done.

• Kanata, Ontario, Canada

Y’know Ottawa has had a revamped version of their original logo as part of their set for years and has never once used it on a sweater? And that it looks a lot better than the one they’re currently using? Well we’re gonna fix that. Also we’re gonna take that great looking alternate and promote its template to full time use.

Pure Speculation:

• Minnesota

I am one of the few human beings alive who hate the Minnesota Wild...’s uniforms. Individually? They’re fine. Together? Utter garbage with no visual cohesion between them. Especially the “home”, which looks like a Halifax Mooseheads jersey. For all their bluster about being the “State of hockey”, Minnesota can’t seem to get more uniform cohesion than a QMJHL team? That’s just silly, and we’re nipping that in the bud right now.

All one setup based on their (admittedly very strong) third and away, no more gimmicky looks.

• Columbus

The Blue Jackets’ identity has always been one that has primarily been...alright.

Strong pair of primary and secondary logos, can’t lose colors and...super templated sweaters. They’ve been carrying Reebok’s designs for the past decade and have abandoned waist stripes on their home and aways their uniform’s detriment, and they’re usually rated as just kinda...meh. It doesn’t help that they were another team that actively believed copperplate bold was an acceptable font for hockey, taking it from the Sens before developing their own spin on it. We’re giving them a more conventional design make them look less...I dunno, “Expansion team-y?” The Wild had similar designs before they nixed those so it wouldn’t be a bad idea in my opinion for Columbus to do the same.

• Nashville

Nashville almost rocks an okay look. They finally look like a team with an honest to god identity instead of a glorified minor league team, have two strongly contrasting colors, but it’s extremely uneven, being almost entirely Gold on their homes and having none of it on their aways, on top of a ridiculous pair of blue/yellow patches on the collarbone as a result of the RBK Edge design needing that particular area filled. Add in the typical 2006-era Edge piping that took over the whole damn league that year and you can see what looks like a pretty decent sweater fighting to get out of a bad one. Our solution? No piping, add a shoulder yoke and waist stripes, “loosely” based on the original Predators uniforms.

Wishful thinking:

• LA Kings

Since Adidas is taking over full time, I’d love to see the LA Kings finally drop the stupid piping on their sweaters, relegate their home base logo to secondary, and return purple to their uniforms full time. Is that so much to ask?

• Anaheim

Dear Ducks: if you won’t renege on the Orange and black thing, at the very least...Retire the Webbed-Foot-D, bring back your old logo, and more or less the old sweaters so we’re not constantly pining for them? It’ll make it a lot easier for people to like you.

• Carolina

While their old uniforms were nothing to write home about, they had character and especially a waist stripe that was by far their most unique and interesting feature.

Now? I’m perhaps in the minority that their uniform revamp really got it wrong, losing everything that made them interesting and now looking like a WJC sweater for Canada. And I think I know what kept the uniforms back: Gray. Gray sucks as a color in hockey. It’s dull, used in bad ways, and Carolina’s uniforms have been historically damaged by the over-inclusion of gray. No more. Red Black and White are their setup and they’re gonna be bringing back their waist stripes.

And with that, we await with bated breath as Adidas takes center stage...Hopefully they do this league right.