Senators Unveil Heritage Third Jersey
Saturday · Oct 1 · 2011 | 3:33 PM PDT
Senators unveil Heritage third jersey / Senators
Today, the Ottawa Senators officially unveiled their new Heritage Jersey, their alternate sweater from here forward. The new look syncs up with the leaks that have trickled out this summer, as the team previously confirmed.
The uniform design is a clever mix between modern aesthetics and the classic sweaters worn by the original Ottawa Senators club a century ago. While those early uniforms had stripes from top to bottom, nowadays, we see that as a rather garish look. So it's been simplified to a black jersey with wide stripes of red and "vintage white" around the chest, sleeves, waist and socks.
Jacob Barrette, the fan who helped develop the jerseyIn the past, I've maligned the overuse of this "retro" shade of white — meant to evoke aging fabric — but in this instance, it works very well. And regarding the question of whether it actually is off white, let me quote the team: "The uniform features the club’s official colours of black red and white, with the heritage jersey using an antique white that reflects uniforms of the past."
Senators Heritage Jersey photo gallery
Possibly the best part about this whole uniform is that it was a fan's concept that got the ball rolling on it.
The Senators not only credit graphic designer Jacob Barrette with helping to develop the uniform, but even included him in their press releases. In paying attention to their fans this way, I think the franchise just made a bunch of new fans here among Icethetics readers.
And I'm one of them. Bravo!
Unlike Barrette's concept, which featured the 2D version of the Senators logo introduced in 2007, the shoulder patches of this jersey are modeled after the "World's Champions" patches that the old Sens would sport after winning one of their many Stanley Cups.
Each patch reads "Ottawa Senators," but while the one on the right shoulder is in English, the one on the left is in French. Would that make this the NHL's first bilingual uniform?
If you haven't seen it yet, I recommend watching the video the Sens produced. It goes into detail about the history of the original uniform and how this one was developed. There's even a shot of Icethetics in it!
They show the third jersey poll we held a couple years ago. (It pops up at the 1:35 mark if you're looking for it.) Unfortunately they've framed out the name of the site. Still, Icethetics gets its first reference on an NHL team's official website, so I'll take it.
Daniel AlfredssonOne last thing. The Sens also released a 13-game schedule for the Heritage Jersey. Several of the dates are quite different from the partial schedule I posted back in August.
- Thurs., Oct. 13 – vs. Colorado Avalanche
- Sun., Oct. 30 – vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
- Fri., Nov. 4 – vs. Montreal Canadiens
- Wed., Dec. 14 – vs. Boston Bruins
- Fri., Dec. 16 – vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
- Tues., Dec. 27 – vs. Montreal Canadiens
- Tues., Feb. 7 – vs. St. Louis Blues
- Sat., Feb. 11 – vs. Edmonton Oilers
- Fri., Mar. 2 – vs. Chicago Blackhawks
- Wed., Mar. 14 – at Montreal Canadiens
- Fri., Mar. 16 – vs. Montreal Canadiens
- Sat., Mar. 17 – vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
With four games on the schedule, it's the Habs who will face this jersey most often. They won't get to see the Sens' standard red at all, in fact. And the only time Ottawa will sport the Heritage look on the road will be in Montreal. So how about that.
Now that you've seen the new alternate uniform in full, has your opinion changed from the first leak of the design? I'm of the opinion this is the best sweater the Sens have ever worn. Am I on my own there?
Reader Comments (56)
Absolutely love it. THIS is how a heritage-themed jersey should be modernized. I just about fell over when I saw those original 1920's unis out... they had one in the HHOF, and I did everything I could just to get a peek at the back of it. Looks like the font, much like the striping scheme, wasn't exactly standarized, either. Either way, great work by the artist and the team.
Absolutely gorgeous. This needs to be made the full-time home sweater. It has the vintage look to it and could rival any one of the original six teams' uniforms. Simple, elegant, and sharp. And this should finally be the one logo that the Senators settle on.
At last there's some continuity between the old and new eras.
That is a fantastic looking jersey.
Finally Ottawa fans have a jersey to be proud of.
These jerseys are really things of beauty. Congratulations on making NHL.com, Icethetics!
Best Jersey in the NHL!
Speaking as a Leafs fan...
THAT is a third jersey a Sens fan can be proud of. Even I like it, and that says a bunch.
The stripes are obviously red, but the other color... is it white? or is it that vintage tan color?
In my opinion, the best looking jersey the Sens have ever had. Here's hoping the old-school logo revives the Senators Dynasty 100 years later!
Fantastic! Love it! Would now be very interested to see a white (antique white?) version... Simply a beautiful uniform.
What a surprise!
Awesome
I've never wanted a Sens jersey before now. This is probably the biggest jersey upgrade in the history of the NHL!
These are just plain terrible. Worst jerseys in the NHL by a mile.
please get rid of the all star game patch on that jersey!
FINALLY !!!!!!!!!! Merci beaucoup Jacob? Thank you Senators for listening. Best Sens sweater ever!
I love it. needs to be the home jersey then make a white one for the road!
Gorgeous! Very happy for you Sens fans. You had to deal with a couple horrid third jerseys over the years, but it is great to see that the management didn't let you down this time around. Probably among my top 5 looks in the NHL now... Bravo!
As was said, the new best Unis in the league. I wish all the teams would tale a cue from the Sens and listen to their fans first and foremost and stick to vintage. Hockey has a long and rich and beautiful history, the uniforms worn on the ice should reflect that truth.
Reminds me alot of what the rangers did with their third. Although the senators never wore these jerseys in their past, like the rangers, its kind of like an old school, retro concept. And just like the rangers thirds, they came out looking good.
Almost nothing negative to say about it. I miss the Senator head being somewhere in some form, but the bilingual "champion shields" are too good to lose.
sick sweaters. dont mind their current set but if they made a red and white of these and made em full time thatd be sick
On the whole, I love it. I couple quibbles though:
I'm not sure about the thick waist stripes. I guess they wanted to keep a bit of the barber pole look, but it seems like a bit much; I wonder if thinner waist stripes or no stripes would look better. But I'll reserve my final judgement until I see them in a game.
I don't like the repeat of the 'O' logo on the pants. It's great as a shoulder patch but it just doesn't look right down there. And with the same thing on the chest it looks redundant.
Now that it's official, this brings me to the obvious question...
When do they unveil the white one to wear full time on the road?
I'm serious. It would be a HUGE upgrade from what they currently wear as their standard home and away uniform set.
Now, if only Pittsburgh would get the memo.....
It truly is awesome to witness seeing this jersey come to life in front of our eyes and onto the players' backs. THIS is the reason why we design concepts in the first place! Well done Jacob and well done Senators! A great look that will last the ages!
They nailed it. Very nice jersey.
It's just worn now for the first time, and it's already iconic-looking. A+++
I love it. It's an awesome design, BUT....all those added patches! The one on the right front (opposite the Captain's patch area), and the two ridiculously over-sized patches on the front of the pants clutter this up. Ugh! It's great, just needs to scale those back.
Also glad to see they didn't use the laces on the front collar. I imagine the temptation to implement those would have been enormous, given the throwback theme.
Still hate the Reebok hem. It's a detriment to this jersey.
Fantastic!! There are literally few words that can describe how wonderful this is! They've gone from one of the worst third jerseys to one of the best overnight.
Pros:
-Everything, Enough Said!
Cons:
-If I had to pick one... That it's not their Home Jersey ;P
Overall: This is a step in the right direction for the Sens. One of the only things that could possibly top this is if they bring back the 2D Senators logo as their primary and ditch their current Home/Away Jersey design.
5 Out of 5!!
dave, they did use laces, they are black.
also, agree on the pants. that O again on the pants looks awful. just a little senators head, or wordmark would be way better.
and yes the hem, which makes the bottom white stripe unequal is also a detriment.
but they did pretty well.
I'd be interested to see what they put on the helmet
I don't hate the Sens that much anymore. This jersey is epic!
bravo jacob
as-tu un site où on peut voir tes créations ?
Those look horrible. Looks like a big Zero on their chests and the bottom of the jersey just looks wrong with the Reebok Edge cut to them.
It looks absolutely fantastic, but I hate that they smacked the All-Star Game patch on it.
The only problem I have with the jersey is the font used for the number and player name.
They way I see it, it's far too "modern" for a vintage-style jersey. All names look cluttered because of tight letter-spacing and the overall thickness (and blockiness) of the font. It's really too bad they didn't go with a font similar to that used on the original '92 jersies
Oh well. The rest of the jersey is top-notch.
They nailed it! absoluley flawless jersey!
I love it, and I'll be buying one! I know a lot of people don't like 'vintage' white, but it is definitely the best choice for this design. Though it wouldn't bother me if they cut out the bottom stripes, used regular white, and made it their regular home jersey (keeping the vintage third, of course!) My only complaint is the All Star patch - get it off!
not too shabby! waaay better than 'sens'
Fantastic! That is one awesome throwback.
My concern is the readability of the number on the back of the jersey. The bottom of the white number number goes over the white stripe. Other than that, great jersey.
What can I say. I have the jersey, the matching scarf and hat, as well as the matching baseball cap. So yes, I love it!
Just grading this against other Senators (er SENS) uniforms these are clearly a winner and a huge improvement. But I'm not feeling the waste/tail stripes on them. Maybe take those off and a contrasting colour on the pants? (Antique white or red maybe?).
Solid overall, but feels like they just missed the mark, but not by much. Given the Senators uniforms from the last decade though, these are a very solid outing.
Brilliant display of much quite under-used horizontal chest stripes. Montreal, retro Chicago, now this as shining examples.
I'd still like to see it with actual white. I just simply do not understand the infatuation with this vintage off-shading.
My thinking is that one would not actually wear a discolored, 80-year-old sweater, and that when said sweater was new, the white was actually, y'know, white. Therefore, making a brand-new, 21st century jersey with the look of a discolored 80-year-old sweater just doesn't compute. What's wrong with having an old-style design that still looks new and clean, instead of dirty and unwashed for half a century?
Can someone make a reasoned argument in favor of the so-called vintage white?
If I buy only one jersey this year, it's this one. Just perfect and it's so nice to see they acknowledged the fan who came up with the original concept, which are usually by policy rejected out of hand.
Looks good.
I am a leafs fan first but these are the beautiful. In my mind the black is used perfectly with the striping pattern, let's just hope that this stays unique to the sens, unlike the round logo's we've seen in recent history.
i would've preferred if there was a tad more red but still, solid jersey
It looks like the numbers will be hard to read...
I think these are pretty nice, although I think the RBK tail flaps kind of throw it off. These would look great with a pre-RBK type of jersey design, but well done overall. I don't know why the NHL is so bent on these tail flaps, there's only a handful of jerseys that don't look stupid with them. Maybe they could have added a black stripe on the bottom to disguise it ... just a thought.