Sunday, September 23, 2007

Possible Vintage Logo Tournament

There are still 9 days left to vote, but yesterday I showed you what the next logo tournament might look like if the present results stand. At the moment, the Third Jersey Logos are in the lead, followed by the Vintage Logos. If Vintage ends up being the subject of the next Tournament of Logos, here are the 16 logos that would be used.






I'll determine the bracket randomly but that wouldn't be posted until the voting is over, anyway. Personally, I hope we get to do this tournament at some point in the future. I'm very curious to see what the results would be. I think it would be a very close competition.

Later this week I'll show you what the a secondary logo tournament would look like.

Avalanche, Here's How You Fix It

The introduction of Reebok's new EDGE Uniform System has left a lot of people stratching their heads. If you're among those questioning some of the design choices made here, then this series is for you.

Yesterday we contemplated fixes for the new Vancouver Canucks uniforms. Today we're going to look at the Colorado Avalanche.

Among the complaints for the Avs' new threads was the lack of the zig-zagged, mountain-range like stripes we're used to seeing. In fact, the sleeves even go from blue to burgundy on the home sweaters without so much as a stripe in between. One designer came up with a solution in this rough sketch.



Voila! But Reebok would have us believe such a design is incompatible with the cut of their uniforms. Well, Atlanta and Buffalo seemed to have gotten away with it all right.

No matter. Check out this design.



Personally, I've found that the Blues' new uniform is one of the best of the new crop and even in Avalanche colors it's still pretty damn nice.

When you come right down to it, I think the Avs still escaped with a relatively nice jersey. Seeing Joe Sakic's "C" overlap a big stripe on his shoulder will take some getting used to, but all told it could've been worse.

Any thoughts on improvements to the Avs or any other team's new threads? Email me at nhllogos@gmail.com.

Up next: Atlanta Thrashers.

Rbk EDGE Makes Pens Wet

First off, sorry about the headline, but sometimes when these things come to me I can't resist.

Anyway, Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote an article about flaws players are finding with the new sweaters' wick away material. I mean, we all knew this stuff was coming. It's a new technology.

You can read his story here or see excerpts below.

Right winger Mark Recchi, for one, understands what the league was trying to accomplish by adopting a sweater that does not absorb fluids, but does not think the designers took into account the moisture — to wit, perspiration — generated under a player's uniform.

"[The sweaters] don't soak anything in, which I guess is what they wanted," Recchi said. "But the problem is, it goes through all of your equipment. It goes into your gloves, goes into your skates."

And eventually saturates the leather in both, leaving the players feeling as if their hands and feet are immersed in liquid. Perhaps because, at least in some cases, they are.

"They do what they were designed to do, as far as repelling the water," defenseman Mark Eaton said. "But we've found, the last three or four days of wearing them, that, when the water's repelled, it has nowhere to go but into your skates and gloves.

"By the end of the second [period] or the start of the third, your skates are sloshing around and you have to change your gloves because they're [soaked]."


So, that's probably not a good thing. But it goes on.

"It's very good that the water doesn't stick on it, but the sweat all goes into our gear," goalie Marc-Andre Fleury said. "Sometimes, it gets really wet."

Veteran left winger Gary Roberts, who was to make his preseason debut when the Penguins faced Detroit at Mellon Arena last night, said he planned to withhold judgment until after wearing the new items in a game, but wasn't pleased with what he experienced during practice.

"My hands are soaked, my feet are soaked," he said. "I feel like it's May, in the playoffs, I'm sweating so much. That seems to be a complaint with a lot of guys."


So then there's the NHL's response.

Frank Brown, the NHL's vice president of media relations, said in an e-mail interview that "every equipment system requires a period of adjustment," and that the sweaters, which are made of four materials, are part of a uniform "upgrade" intended to "help optimize performance and protection."


Naturally.

So while we're at it, here's what else Mark Recchi says doesn't work.

While other elements of the equipment system also have gotten negative reviews — some players have mentioned that the socks that cover their shin pads are so taut that they are more prone to tearing than the looser-fitting ones worn in the past — the sweaters have received most of the attention.

Recchi suggested that, although some complications caused by the new sweaters will be evident immediately — like how some players will have to alter their in-game routines to deal with unduly wet equipment — others might not be apparent for a while.

"My gloves never got soaked like [they do now]," he said. "They're literally drenched by the end of an hour[-long] practice.

"I'm going to have to have two pairs of gloves ready [for games]. I've never done that. I've always used one pair a game. Some guys are used to that, but that's going to be different. Maybe I'll have to change my socks between periods, which I don't like doing. You start sloshing.

"I think you'll see skates break down quicker because of it; they'll absorb more [perspiration], because it's all going down into your skate and your socks."

Whether the league and Reebok will consider altering the material that goes into the sweaters to make them less moisture-repellent isn't clear — "They have a great feel, but I just think they have to find a way to maybe have some absorbency," Recchi said — so it's hard to say how long the current ones will stay in use.

At least a few players, though, would prefer to see the league go back to the uniforms players used to wear, although they realize that probably is not a viable option.

Deterioration Of An "A"

I don't want to step on the toes of the folks at UniWatch blog, but in going through pictures of last night's Rangers-Flyers game, I noticed something funny happen to Scott Gomez's uniform. This is why you don't iron things on an NHL jersey.



Early on, everything's fine. Gomez is looking all right in his new #19 uniform after losing a coin toss over the summer to Chris Drury. (Drury is wearing the #23 sweater.)



But after a while, that iron-on "A" on his shoulder is starting to have some problems. But, no, it couldn't fall off. This is the NHL, right?



Oh, oops. Let's hope that doesn't happen during the regular season.



For what it's worth, Drury's "A" didn't seem to suffer the same fate.

Just thought that was a bit funny.

Poll: Oilers Logo History


1979
1996


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
Sep 23 @ 8:34 AM
Poll closing date
Sep 30 @ 11:59 PM


07BONLH | LHEDM

Result: Penguins Logo History

BEST ALL-TIME
1971

33% 2,411 votes



7,348 total votes



2000
29% 2,109 votes


1992
28% 2,075 votes


1967
10% 753 votes




Poll opening date
Sep 15 @ 8:41 AM
Poll closing date
Sep 22 @ 11:59 PM


07BONLH | LHPIT