Denver Cutthroats Unveil Logo
Thursday · May 17 · 2012 | 9:36 AM PDT
After losing the Colorado Eagles to the ECHL last season, the Central Hockey League is expanding back into the Centennial State in 2012 with the addition of the Denver Cutthroats.
The CHL made the announcement about an expansion team in Denver last month, but the team officially unveiled its name, colors and logo today. Interestingly, the new look was created by Denver-based Adrenalin, the same agency also responsible for the Colorado Avalanche and Phoenix Coyotes logos in the NHL.
So it's troubling to see them really miss the mark on this logo. But let's face it, this is a CHL team so I'm assuming they didn't exactly put their "best people" on it. They probably have bigger fish.
So it's a trout in a D with mountains and river rapids. Not a bad idea, but for some reason it ended up looking like it was drawn by an amateur for a logo contest you might find here on Icethetics.
That critique may have been a little harsh, so I'll balance it out. I love the color scheme. Nobody in hockey really uses that shade of green and I don't understand why not. I like that the blue is muted but not necessarily navy. And together with those two colors, the red accent really pops off the screen.
Here's some extra stuff from the team's press release:
“We wanted to be sure the logo included elements and colors that depict the state of Colorado and the city of Denver,” said Adrenalin President Dan Price. “The trout maintains a position between white mountain peaks and river rapids, and breaks through a forward moving ‘D’ — representative of Denver's progressive population.”
The Cutthroat Trout was named Colorado's state fish in 1994.
Jersey designs will probably be unveiled later this summer, but no specific mention was made in the press release.
For more about the team, check out their Facebook page, Twitter feed and official website.
Meantime, what do you think of the logo? Am I being too critical or does it deserve to be fileted? (Sorry, that was the last pun.)
Reader Comments (25)
I don't think its terrible. Definitely not the best, but what are you going to do with a team named after a fish?
I do like how it integrates the Colorado culture. Nice color choices. Green is verry underused. Hopefully they add plenty of blue in the jersey so it doesn't end up looking like a Minnesota Wild Christmas jersey.
I agree with this. The logo is pretty "blah", but I really like the color scheme. Reminds me of the old Houston Aeros colors before the Minnesota Wild took 'em over.
I think the reason it looks a little amateur is it's lacking "outline" around the fish head. I think a thin black/blue line would give it more pop and give it that extra touch. For example it looks much better in the Icethetics "patch" you created with the black outline around the whole logo.
Never apologize for a pun. This world always needs more puns!
The way you described it is exactly what I first thought. The colors are fine, but the logo is disappointing. Also, as for minor league hockey teams, the Evansville IceMen and 2012 CHL Champion Fort Wayne Komets are holding press conferences today to announce they are leaving the CHL and will join the ECHL.
I think the larger problem is the name in that it didn't really leave the designers with a lot to work with. Unless there is a connection I don't know about how to do you get trout from Cutthroats? Name the team Trouts and then be more free with what can be done with logo.
The trout coming out of the D just feels like they were trying to force a D into the logo. Not really uncommon in the CHL, look at the Missouri Mavericks logo where and outline of the state of Missouri is crammed on to the back of the logo and is just unneeded.
I really think you are being too critical on this one. I like it. This logo reminds me of absolutely no other logo that I can think of and they didn't do the typical minor-league move of incorporating a hockey stich, puck or a net into the logo. And the colours are fantastic. I can't wait to see the jerseys they come up with.
Cool name. Terrible logo! The mountains make me think Coors beer. The fish looks like a bait and tackle shop. Neither look like a hockey team logo.
I like all of it except for the fish head. I think that could have been drawn better and with a little more life in it. The red accent is great though.
I kind of actually like - as long as the wordmark is not used on the chest below the fish. And the jerseys have to use the same scheme - green and blue with the red highlight, even if its just a red trim down the shorts.
And listen to Ryan H., never apologize for a pun.
For those of you who are wondering, the Cutthroat is the state fish of Colorado. So it's not just a randomly selected trout. It's a cool way to associate the team with the state wildlife. I just wish they could have named them for something other than a fish.
I like the logo.
Plus... What did you expect from a team named after a fish?
I kind of like the logo. It's eye catching, for sure, and I had a feeling they were going outside of the box with this when they chose the name 'Cutthroats'. It's not the best logo I've ever seen, but certainly not the worst.
I agree, it looks unfinished. Maybe a black outline here or there and it's golden. The mountains are okay, but since they're used in so many CO related companies and logos and the fact that this is a fish, it just feels forced.
BTW, in case you didn't notice, the cutthroat is so named due to the red accent it has behind the head making it look like it has a cut throat.
I agree with ME, there are so many better names they could have picked.
Kind of reminiscent of the Broncos old "D" and horse. I really like the mountain and water reference. But what's up with the font? The D and C have the serifs but the rest of the wordmark is not consistent.
I kinda like it, definitely a simple look.
Lets hope they don't drop the ball and put it on a blue jersey instead of green.
I understand the name, but logo just looks lazy. A letter D with some clip art coming out of it ... whoop-tee-doo.
Not related to this post, but do we know what the stanley cup patch on the cup finalist jerseys are going to be?
I am jacked to get a kings one!!
The logo looks better in the little shaded hexagon thing you do for all the logos. :)
Good color scheme/decent type. The main mark just bugs the hell out of me. Looks amateurish and is not up the norm for most sports logos. Good concept, lacklustre execution.
1 new team in (Denver Cutthroats) while 4 teams are out of the Central Hockey League (Fort Wayne Komets, Evansville Icemen, Laredo Bucks, and Dayton Gems). With the 4 departures, that makes a total of 12 teams that have left the league since 2010. Not good!
Which Coyotes livery did they design? The Coyote in full gear or the howling head?
That's kind of a flop of a logo. I was looking for something with a green fish, but maybe with a curved back tail making it look swift or something. The fish head in a D is not very attractive. What a bummer man.
Never mind; I saw the portfolio so I know which one they did.
Good colors, but for a minor league hockey team, it looks very AAA baseball.