Announcement Teaser

I know I promised an announcement today with regard to the future of the NHL Tournament of Logos, but something came up that prevented me from doing so. Without a doubt, you can expect that announcement to be posted early Sunday. It's nothing earth-shattering despite the hype I've been giving it, but for anyone who's been following along, I'm sure you'll be interested to know. So I'll give you a little preview.

Starting in a couple of weeks, we'll begin a process wherein you will vote for the best logo in the NHL. You shouldn't be surprised. Over 300 people have said they'd vote if I make the site interactive. So I'm going to do just that and tomorrow I'll outline just how that will work. Thanks for reading guys!

Panthers Unveil New Uniforms!

It's finally here everybody! The Florida Panthers unveiled their new Rbk EDGE jerseys tonight at the Year of the Rat Alumni Game. A generous reader pointed this image out to me so I'm posting it to share with everybody.



My initial reaction is very positive. These are sharp-looking uniforms with a great color scheme. I think I almost like the red sleeves better than a red sweater for the home duds, by the way.



These two images give us different views of the uniforms. The one to the left is a little out of focus (hey, better than nothing, right?) but you can get an idea of how they look on the players at least. Like I said, I like them. I think if anything they're an improvement on what they were wearing.

I'm still dying to see what the Lightning will be wearing this fall.

Big thanks to jrzman for pointing us to the original photos! You can find links to the original message board posts below in the comments if you're interested. When the team or the press make official photos available, I'll have them here as well to perhaps offer an even better look. What are your feelings?

UPDATE (11:49 PM): Nothing major, just got home from work and saw the Florida Panthers had a photo up on their web site of Nathan Horton and Stephen Weiss in the new Rbk EDGE jerseys.



They really do look good and that panther on the front is bigger than I've ever seen it. Now we know what dynamic meant.

New Sharks Jersey Design Concept

With San Jose Sharks having just recently unveiled a brand new logo, we've got another fan-made concept design for the uniforms. First off, I'm going to take a wild guess and say this artwork was generated prior to the official unveiling of the new series of logos since it makes no use of the actual new secondary logo but rather a recolored version of the old shoulder patch. For your viewing pleasure.



I think the overall jersey design is pretty cool. I'm curious as to how it would look on a player. The only thing I'm not wild about is the lack of orange in the design. If used right, I think it could be a great and welcome addition to the Sharks' new look.

Fans Design Canucks Concept Logos

I came across this fan-made design on a Vancouver Canucks message board. The artist put a new spin on the flying skate logo and combined it with the traditional blue and green color scheme. What do you think?



That's a skate all right. If you're curious to see what it would look like on a uniform, the designer took the liberty of putting it on the jersey template designed by John Slabyk to go with his logo redesign (which, frankly, I like a lot better).



Incidentally, with all this about the colors being altered for the Canucks logo in the coming season, another fan toyed with the idea of bringing in the green to go along with the blue. He also trades out silver for black. Have a look.



Anyway, that's all I've got for the Canucks today. Comment below if the spirit compels you. (By the way, I apologize for the late posts today. Got a late start due to prior commitments.)

Bruins vs Capitals

	vs
BRUINS		CAPITALS
5-2		4-5

The Aesthetics
If you were keeping track, this is the first time in the tournament where two brand new logos have met. And the letters abound. The new Capitals logo, in my opinion, is definitely a downgrade. I like the colors all right, but then I was one of the few who though the blue and bronze worked really well. Anyway, the Bruins redesign was definitely an upgrade. While the difference may not be noticeable to most people just looking at it quick, it's light years ahead of what they team had been wearing.
Bruins

The Nickname
The headline would read: "Bruins terrorize Capital!"
Bruins

The Analysis
Both logos are made up of letters so we'll have to consider that. I really do like the bear used on the Bruins shoulder logo. That should be the primary. Put the spoked "B" on the shoulder. Speaking of which, does anyone happen to know the significance of the spokes? Or is that just a design element that happen accidentally and has lasted half a century? The hockey stick and puck in the Capitals logo, while more cleverly designed than in the '70s logo, are superfluous on any NHL logo if you ask me. But I think the three stars put it over the Bruins logo for this point. It's at least making a good effort at referencing the region.
Capitals

WINNER

2-1

 

Coyotes vs Ducks

	vs
COYOTES		DUCKS
4-4		1-11

The Aesthetics
The Coyotes logo isn't the greatest, but the Ducks logo is a wordmark. Lesser of two evils, here. Not sure what else there is to say about it.
Coyotes

The Nickname
If motivated, I'm sure a Coyote would eat a Duck.
Coyotes

The Analysis
Where is the duck? I see the coyote but where is the duck? Oh right, there's not one. Yeah, I'm still not getting over that yet. I understand the webbed duck foot "D" will become the primary this season. I guess they just wanted to establish the change of name. But in doing so, they get swept yet again.
Coyotes

WINNER

3-0

 

Senators vs Islanders

	vs
SENATORS		ISLANDERS
4-5		1-11

The Aesthetics
I've been beating it like a drum for weeks, but I don't think wordmarks belong in logos. At least not crests. The logo should serve as a symbol for the team and be so recognizable as to not require the accompaniment of a written out name. Also the hockey stick and puck don't help very much.
Senators

The Nickname
Senators and Islanders? Hand-to-hand combat, my money's on the Islanders.
Islanders

The Analysis
We'll keep this short. I like the outline of Long Island in the background of the Islanders logo and yearn for some reference to Ottawa in the Senators logo. We can't have everything. Incidentally, if there's something I'm missing in the Sens logo, feel free to comment about it.
Islanders

WINNER

2-1

 

Wild vs Blue Jackets

	vs
WILD		BLUE JACKETS
11-1		7-1

The Aesthetics
These are the league's two youngest teams, part of the most recent expansion. As far as aesthetics, this is one of the most difficult matches to judge. This incarnation of the Blue Jackets is simply the best ever devised. At the same time The Wild logo is pretty awesome. Some may not necessarily agree, but they really have to want it to see it. I don't know who to choose. I'm tempted to flip a coin. But since I can't do that, I'm going with the Blue Jackets for reasons unknown.
Blue Jackets

The Nickname
A Blue Jacket should know his way around the Wild, but if he were to face a bear, I don't know that he could necessarily hold his own.
Wild

The Analysis
A clever forest scene of Minnesota versus an Ohio flag wrapped around a silver star. How do you decide? Somebody really knew what they were doing when they designed these. However, while the Wild logo could befit any forest-laden locale, the Blue Jackets logo is very specific to Ohio. My love for the Wild logo will have to be overtaken. I'm sorry to say.
Blue Jackets

WINNER

2-1