Just To Freak You Out, Part 5 of 5

I know you'll all be sad to see it go, but today I'm wrapping up my week-long series of whacked-out and crazy images. So let's get this final show on the road. Our first stop is Pittsb— er, Kansas City. Or, well, I don't really know. You figure it out.



I know we've seen a lot of crazy shit, but wow. A Kansas City Scouts Rbk EDGE jersey with Sidney Crosby's name and number. I'm sure this design was concocted in the days when the Pens' future was largely uncertain. With KC looking like a predator ready to pounce, you never know. Just, wow. I don't really have any other words. Maybe you guys can find some.

Over in Philly, there's a consortium that can't tell the logo forms a "P" unless it's cockeyed.



My neck hurts from looking at that. My eyes hurt after looking at this.



Ha ha. Now your eyes hurt too. I promise I won't do that anymore.



Oops, gotcha! You guys are easy. Anyone want to see a black coyote?



Probably not anymore, huh? Seriously, though. Charlie, from SabresNotSlugs.com really needs to see this. It could be the new logo for his site.



Somebody didn't like the slug. Showed it what a sabre is. Then gutted it. Sad story, really. But you guys haven't seen the half of it yet. Remember the amazing composite logo Pfizer created for the Canucks. He dropped the Sabres logos into the same blender. It produced this.



Maybe that should be your new logo, Charlie. Sometimes we just don't recognize how good we have it.

I hope I've been successful this week in freaking you all out a little bit. My goal is to show you that what you have, despite what some of you think, isn't that bad. We all like to moan and complain about changes but just remember, they could've done so much worse. And then where would we be?

I'm going to leave you one last little nugget, though. On Tuesday I posted a crazy concept for the Tampa Bay Lightning. I also asked if someone might be able to show me what it would look like on a player. As I close out this series, let me leave you with that image. Let me burn it into your soul.



Big time thanks to Russ for that one!

Flyers Jersey Leaked?

Flyers fans, you've been asking for it. I finally have potentially credible evidence of the new Rbk EDGE home jersey of the Philadelphia Flyers thanks to Adam. Behold!



I know we all just love those grainy cell phone pictures, but this is what I've got. Take it for what it's worth. If it is real, it's pretty sharp. You guys could do a lot worse. Comment away!

Southeast Concept Designs

I know a lot of people — Tampa Bay Lightning fans included — aren't in love with the new logo and uniforms. Speaking as one of the biggest Bolts fans out there, I can say I love the designs. It's miles better than what we had even if it's not perfect yet. You have to admit that much. And hell, I already pre-ordered my black jersey. I can't wait until mid-September.

Anyway, on to the subject at hand. I've got concept art from across the Southeast Division today (except for the Stinkin' Panthers). And I'm starting with the Lightning.

Like I said, I like the new logo but I'm open to new ideas as well. This logo is cool in that it forms a lightning bolt out of the letters "TB." That sort of thing is why I wake up in the morning.

Unfortunately, as drawbacks go, there sure is a lot of negative space in that design. Maybe we don't need such a large circle. Let the bolt overlap the bounds of the circle sort of like the new logo does. And the muted colors don't market well. And whether we want to think so or not, that is an important element.

So let's see what that logo looks like on a jersey.



I like the lettering style but it doesn't really seem to go with the jaggedness of the logo. Loving the bolt on the bottom of the back. And the black sleeves with a blue body is pretty cool. Another one I'd be curious to see on a player. Overall, it's not horrible, but it could still use some touching up.

We talk a lot about simplicity in logos. Check this out.



You can find these designs and many others in the Concepts Gallery. I highly recommend a look through what's there.

Moving on now northward to the Atlanta Thrashers. I got emailed a couple of cool Reebok-style concepts worth a look.



The design above is very sharp. You'll notice the all-star logo on the shoulders which was a nice touch. Also this concept does away with the overhead Thrasher logo, opting instead for the head from the primary logo on the shoulder. Overall, Atlanta could do worse. Personally, however, I'm partial to the design on the left.

I think the red sides are very nice. I think that is a very smart accent color and there's no reason to do away with it. However, it seems the red pushed out most of the gold. I think it could use a little more. But my favorite thing about both designs is the retention of the sky blue used for the home sweaters. I think that was a great move by the Thrashers and I wouldn't want to see it go away.

How do you Thrasher fans feel about it?

Continuing up the east coast, we have some Carolina Hurricanes fan art. Check out this guy.



How about that logo?

This design here to the left is a rendering of the 'Canes unis based off of what we've seen from EA Sports in NHL 08. The black jersey is merely a suggestion at what could be done in the future for an alternate. I like the black and the hurricane flag is growing on me as a crest. I wasn't a fan at first.

Anyway, what really matters is what Carolina fans like. Any feelings on the matter, guys?



We'll wrap up our Southeast Division tour with the Washington Capitals. I agree with the above design almost whole-heartedly. That "W" eagle should definitely be the new primary. The wordmark "logo" should be relegated to the shoulders if you ask me. The stars on the shoulders are nice, but stolen from the Columbus Blue Jackets and that's not acceptable.

But this design fascinates me. That's a very nice use of the Capitol dome. Very impressive. I also like the black, silver and red jerseys. The blue being used sparingly works in its favor, I think. I'd like a better look at the shoulder logos to see what's going on there. Too small in this graphic.

Any Capitals fans out there to share an opinion? Because we know I'm certainly not one.

That does it for the Southeast today. Apologies for the long post. I know that irks some of you. If someone's holding a water gun to your head forcing you to read this blog, let me know and I'll see what I can do to shorten them.

Danger Looming For Rangers?

That headline was a little dramatic, but it got you to read right? A reader named Nick recently sent me an email I thought might be worth sharing with the rest of the class.

Hey Chris. Let me first say that you are doing a wonderful job over at your blog and i check it every day for updates. Great idea for the tournament as well. I'm sure you are getting a lot more traffic than you thought. Way to go.

Just kidding. I can gloat if I want. Here's what he was really writing about.

I'm a huge Rangers fan and when the "new" jersey came out I noticed that it didn't look right. The word R-A-N-G-E-R-S is much steeper than the original uniform (most likely to fit on the specific fabric section, I'll call it the "body")

Notice how the R is way over to the right, next to the ties whereas on the old uniform the R started way over on the shoulder almost. Same goes for the S. The S is all the way down and to the right (won't be able to see it when skating, might be under the pants even) whereas the old one it was up higher and more visible.

I doubt these jerseys will stretch enough in the "body" to compensate for that weird angle.

But here's the kicker. What happens when you put an A or a C on the body area for the captains?

That's a petrifying thought, isn't it?

Personally, I don't think it will be that bad. I wonder if there's a reason why the "C" or "A" couldn't be sewn onto the stretchy material on the shoulder. The idea of sewing anything onto stretchy material may be a non sequitur but maybe the trick is you sew it on while it's stretched out. I'm not a tailor, though.

Anyway, don't freak out yet. It's just a thought somebody had. It's not necessarily the way things will be (as far as we know). What do you think?

Mailbag: Retailers Talk Leafs

I've gotten about a dozen emails with a link to yesterday's post by Howard Berger of HockeyBuzz.com. The post is about speculation on the new Toronto Maple Leafs Rbk EDGE uniforms. By all means, it's worth a quick read. But I'll sum up here.

The Leafs will stay pretty much the same. While the design of the jersey will be slightly altered, the club will not tinker with its blue and white color scheme. Nor will the Leafs dip into their last Stanley Cup dynasty for the uniform's primary logo. It will remain as it's been since Harold Ballard re-worked the crest in 1970. The nine-point emblem (with "TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS" printed in a straight-line font) will not be replaced by the more stylish "stem" (or 35-point) logo of the 1960s ("TORONTO" being displayed in a dome-like curvature) — a time when the Maple Leafs were frequently winning championships. The stem logo had been re-introduced on the club's third jersey of recent years: the predominantly white uniform with blue shoulder piping that was a virtual copy of the jersey the Leafs wore in road games from 1963-64 to the end of the 1966-67 regular season.

He doesn't specify a source, but I'm led to believe it's a loose-lipped retailer with the scoop. Today, he added an update quoting another store owner.

"Exact same shirt as last year, minus, TML shoulder patches, bottom stripes are gone, (sleeves stripes remain). Silver twill is gone. Number font is the same as last year, block style, basically Marlies lettering — blue, white blue, and white blue white. Names remain one colour as per last year. Very, very plain."

For a visual aid to what we're talking about here, Jeff writes in: "From what I heard from a store owner, this is what the jersey should look like..."



I should also point out that the unveiling date of September 13 I have in the sidebar countdown comes from a reader citing a retail source. It all remains to be seen however and the speculation shall continue until we have official word from the Leafs.

Wild Leak Jersey To Season Ticket Holders; Season Ticket Holders Leak Jersey To Us

Minnesota Wild season ticket holders were treated to a photo of the brand new home Rbk EDGE uniforms when they received their ticket books. The image was featured on a coupon for the new sweater. Look!



Pretty much what we've expected. Basically the third jersey from last year. One would expect them to use this same template for the road whites. We'll find out when the Wild will officially unveil both uniforms a week from today.

Thanks to all of you who emailed in images, by the way. You're the reason this blog is so successful!

Poll: Blues vs Coyotes

	vs
St. Louis BLUES		Phoenix COYOTES

Place your vote and then feel free to leave a comment as to how you came to your decision. Tell all your friends to drop in and vote! The more voices heard, the more accurate the results!

Poll opening date Aug 31 @ 4:28 AM

Poll closing date Sep 7 @ 11:59 PM

07CHTRN | #W2C | STLvPHX

Result: Kings vs Red Wings

Detroit
RED WINGS
67% 9,019 votes

Los Angeles
KINGS
33% 4,391 votes


13,410 total votes

Detroit Red Wings
Advancing to Quarterfinals to face Sharks or Canucks

Los Angeles Kings
Eliminated

Click here to see the original poll

Poll opening date Aug 23 @ 4:27 AM

Poll closing date Aug 30 @ 11:59 PM

07CHTRN | #W1F | LAKvDET