Did NHL14 Leak New Flames Third?
Saturday · Oct 5 · 2013 | 4:31 PM PDT
Photos from Matthew Mahoney
Video game appears to show never-before-seen jersey
Regular readers know how I feel about using video games as a legitimate source for news. It's not that EA's NHL franchise is typically inaccurate — it's not — but the frequency of errors is still a little high for my liking. (For example, they incorrectly listed the Minnesota Wild's green jersey as their home uniform this season.)
That being said, one reader stumbled upon something I'm comfortable posting here. Apparently, the Calgary Flames' new alternate sweater has been spotted in NHL14, according to Matthew Mahoney. I'll explain in a moment why I'm not immediately dismissing this. But first, another look.
Photo from Matthew Mahoney
Check out the squared off shoulder yoke. It's one of the new styles Reebok unleashed on the NHL this year. We saw it on the new road jerseys for the Wild and Hurricanes. Makes sense that one of the new thirds would feature it.
Photo from Matthew MahoneyThe crest feels a bit inspired by the Buffalo Sabres' recently retired third jersey — the royal blue one. But it's the shoulder patch that throw me a bit.
This is an artistic style outside the scope of anything we've seen from the Flames in recent years. Perhaps it shows they're moving in a new direction?
Remember five years ago?
You may recall that in September 2008, Flames president Ken King spilled to a reporter some vague details about a new third jersey in the works.
He specifically mentioned working on a new shoulder patch. Could this be a remnant from that process? The jersey discussed in that report never saw the light of day as the Flames opted instead for a throwback sweater a year later.
It's very possible that this and other elements from the design developed five years ago carried through to this new look.
They kept the secret pretty well
One thing worth noting is that the Flames didn't breathe a word about a new sweater all summer. It only showed up in the JerseyWatch series because Reebok told retailers to be ready for it last January.
It then, of course, showed up "locked" in NHL14 when the game was released last month. So I have to assume that if it's showing up at this point, it's either a legitimate leak or it's fake.
These shots from Mahoney of the game are clearly photos taken of a screen as opposed to straight screen shots which could be more easily manipulated.
But given the sweater's appearance on the jersey selection screen and within the game itself, I'm comfortable saying I'm convinced it's the real deal. But you might be wondering how it appeared for Mahoney when most users are seeing a greyed-out jersey. Here's what he told me via Twitter earlier today.
@icethetics it was. I downloaded a roster file off the net and there it was in game.
— Matthew D. Mahoney (@MatthewDMahoney) October 5, 2013
If it's true, what do you think? Did the Flames make the right call by dropping the long-rumored black option? Is this a good look to add to the NHL?
Share your thoughts while we wait for something official from the Flames. My hunch is that the wait could be a while. Teams that don't release a new third jersey in the summer tend to hold off until right before Thanksgiving so as to maximize holiday sales. Think there will be a lot of these under Christmas trees in Calgary this year?
Reader Comments (60)
I would like it a lot better if they had made a retro version of the away jersey and made their current alternate their home jerseys--that way they would have the retro set and this as their third.
I remember when the new rbk set came out and they had the flags as shoulder crests that they specifically said that they were placeholders and would only be used for one season. Five years later and they're still there.
Having said that, they're alright. I'm a big fan of the squared shoulders, which is why I hate seeing so many new jerseys coming out with them. They're unique, but once everybody jumps on board, they're no longer unique--just like laces and vintage white.
The logo is blah--it's basically a direct copy of Buffalo's. It'd be okay if Buffalo didn't do it first.
That jersey would have looked so much better without the "Calgary" wordmark. If the "C" crest were in the middle like the other jerseys then it would have been a perfect jersey.
Could some typography experts confirm for me that this is Calgary script on the new thirds? I've been hearing rumblings that they'd go with script, but I didn't think they'd actually use Calgary script on it. Seems cliché to me, but oh well. No judgements on the uniforms yet; still have to see them in real life.
Terrible. Why must teams continue to put large wordmarks on the front of jerseys? Honestly, remove that on the front, that ugly shoulder logo and start over on what to replace them with. The blank template and striping is fine though. But I swear I'm looking at a New Jersey Devils jersey with the added gold thin stripe to make it minimally different from them. If the Flames put the black flaming C as they have on their current home jersey onto this one, that's better than this thing. So imaginative. I would give this a D+ at best in creativity at the very least.
like it. that is all.
@Nick N: No, what you're talking about is a very different typeface.
I concur with Paul on the shoulders - the first thing I thought when I saw the squared black shoulders on the red jersey is "Devils knockoff". That the jersey appears to use black-outlined white numbers really doesn't help distinguish it from NJ's.
I agree with so many others that had hoped the Flames would have followed the Oilers' example over the past few years, and go full retro.
That shoulder patch looks a tad weird IMO. But a decent looking alternate overall.
Minus the script word mark it's a solid 3rd jersey. Interested in a real photo of the shoulder patch.
Are those yellow stripes on the shoulder patch just lines, or could that be wheat?
I love the shoulder patch - it's almost a bit art deco. Overall I think the jersey's solid, but for goodness' sake, ditch either the logo or the wordmark on the front. Having both looks terrible.
lol they dropped the retro red for this? hideous! eff you ken king
but upon second look, at least the shoulder patch looks much better than their current ones (def not Canada's team, and def not Alberta's team, plus the blue alberta coat of arms looks terrible on the red). this jersey still reeks but the shoulder patch is somewhat of an upgrade. this team needs to lose the black C. fire is never black! should have just gone with the 80's and 90's jersey as their permanent home and away and came up with something a little bit more unique than this for their new 3rd. its a complete ripoff of the blue buffalo from last year. trying to copy the green wild one as well.
Looks alright, but looks...off...I was personally hoping for something that looked like these, or even a black third, but whatever; I'm not too crazy about this one. The significance to the recent Buffalo third is pretty interesting, but I think that should just be a merchandise trend and not go on the jerseys. The shoulder patch is off-putting, and it's nothing special.
I like the square yokes, I could deal with seeing more of those. Overall, this is a suitable third, but some of it doesn't feel like the Flames. I believe this is legitimate, but we'll have to see.
Also, what do the numbers look like? We didn't get a good shot of the back.
The Flames should have just followed the Oilers' lead by going retro all the way. Their 80s and early 90s uniforms were their best set ever. Colourful but clean and simple. The pre-Edge red uniform with the black Flaming C could still be used as an alternate.
I'm not crazy about the squared off shoulder yokes. I know that seems to be the trend now (CAR, MIN, now CGY), but it just doesn't look right. It's okay on NJ's uniforms but there's something different about theirs. Like it's not perfectly square.
Really, it seems like they tried too hard to make it "modern" when all they needed to do is get some simple, common striping (like what VAN has) but in black/yellow/white and put the black "C" logo on the front and there you go. None of these extra bells and whistles.
Not to mention that they took something that was previously used by a Sabres third jersey, and let's be honest, that's not a smart way to go.
This is the first time I've ever laughed at a jersey. It reminds me of a logo of a cartoon, like Dragon Ball Z. But the shoulder patches are awesome.
It looks good overall, but that wordmark just kills it for me.
I really like it, it's going in a bit of a different direction and I give calgary credit for that.
The shoulder patches are very cool, and the colour pallet and striping patterns stay faithful to what calgary has always used.
Whilst I do lament the loss of the current flames third, generally I'm happy that the league has one less retro jerseys. Don't get me wrong, retro jerseys are cool, but I feel that their influence has resulted in some pretty boring unveiling a this summer.
Oh boy here we go again with ze leaks. Ay yi yi.
Just replaced the wordmark with the Flaming C, ditch the yokes, and it could replace the current home jersey.
awful jersey. looks like a long sleeve baseball jersey. go back to the black jersey with the horse head with flames coming out of the nostrils
not a fan of the design, far too similar to other new jerseys we've seen this year and really dont like the script / wordmark, its too much of an easy option for designers who cant think of anything new or different to do instead. whatever the unused black jersey option was, it couldn't be any worse than this......
I don't get the fuss over the wordmark, I personally like it.
The template of the jersey I dig it, but I don't like them using both wordmark and the Calgary "C" logo at the same time on the chest like that. Pick one and I think it could be better, or use that script to say "Flames," or have the flame tails coming off the C in the wordmark and it'd be fine IMO.
Color me shocked that the general response is "more rehashes please".
That being said, while this third is fine, I don't really get its function, since it more or less just looks like the current home sweater at a glance. The retro third was an obvious change, which is what thirds are (IMO) supposed to provide.
Not a bad jersey, though the shoulder patch reminds me more of the old Rockies than the Flames. Still looks cool though; if they put the main C in place of the script it would make an awesome primary.
Should mention that they fixed the Wild's home jersey issue when they unlocked the Wild & Sharks' new jerseys in a roster update.
I guess they removed the roster update with this jersey unlocked, 'cause I couldn't find it. Maybe that has something to do with Matt Mahoney's Twitter account being private now?
Much better than a black jersey, and i don't even mind the wordmark. Still too much black though. They look like the Devils. Wish there was more yellow in the striping.
It looks very amateurish, like something you'd see for sale in Sears 30 years ago. At least it's not black and it appears to have white numbers, unlike what the Flames currently have on their red jerseys which you (or at least I) can't decipher on TV. I still don't like the idea of third jerseys - it's just a fad to rake in more money. You have a home uniform, you have a road uniform, that's all you need. Those are the only two places you play games.
That would be so cool to have that be the way they reveal their jersey, through the game. Definitely different, also I personally love it. I didn't like this style with buffalo for some reason but it just works with the Flames.
Awful. It looks like one of those wal-mart cheapy 'jerseys'. Wouldn't have been so bad if not for that crest... I own every Flames jersey thats come out, but I can't see buying this one... nice job KK
Anyone notice that the SJ jersey in the photo in question is the new uni that is also locked in the game as well?
Huge Flames fan, own 14 jerseys, and this is easily the biggest pile of garbage they've ever released, if true. Their officially licensed Walmart ball hockey sweaters are legitimately better looking. I will never own this. It was a waste of everyone's time and money, and will no doubt be discontinued in a short few years. Flames already have one of the sharper designs in the league. The name and colour scheme gives them infinite possibilities. And a full switch to vintage would be just as popular.
This? This is a nightmare. Reworking the black with modern stripes, or even playing 5 times a year with an adapted heritage classic sweater would've been 1000 time better than this thing.
They replaced the retro Flames alternate with this. Ridiculous and embarrassing.
Why is he the only one that got this " Roster update " ? Cause i didnt get it and no one els that i know did and we live in the same province so im pretty sure we would get the update at the same time , It would be nice if someone would explain IF its still even there or if EA took down the update and if they didnt how do i get this roster update usually its automatic and you dont even download it from the " net " ......
The first thing to come to mind after looking at the shoulder patch, specifically, the 'C' in the middle, is the old Colorado Rockies logo. The square shoulders don't really match with the rest of the uniform, but otherwise, I like the overall look.
They had perfect sweaters in the 80's/early 90's. That one and their current sweaters are terrible.
This thing is hideous and will embarrass Flames fans. Please say it ain't so, Ken King.
@JORDANB I believe EA accidentally unlocked all jerseys when they ment to unlock the new jerseys that have already been worn, but they caught their mistake very fast, however Mahoney was lucky enough to download the first update. Hopefully he saved that roster so we can get a look at the back!
Game updates glitch sometimes. Before the last batch of models were released in Fall of Cybertron, I randomly found I had them all in my game after some minor update (though they were all locked for use), and all of the color choices in the customizer were screwed up. I don't doubt that part of this story at all.
3rd uni would look much better if the black was gold instead. Same for the the regular unis. Give it some "pop"and more flame-like so no more black!
I personally wouldn't buy it...but it's not horrible.
That's the best I can do for these...trying to be positive.
It looks like one of those knockoff jerseys they sell when they don't want to have to pay for the rights. It's red with a flaming C on the front. Why bother? We already have one like that.
Of all the tough-luck-little-success teams out there, the fans of the Calgary Flames DO NOT need a reminder of which city they live in or which team to cheer for. The Flaming "C" is nothing short of a religious symbol here in Calgary. NO team in Canada ever needs to sell a jersey that says "look, we are a hockey team, you might have never heard of us, but we play in the city of Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Winnipeg....etc, etc, etc" Vancouver did because it became a neat souvenir for all the international travellers coming to Van in 2010 for the Olympics. And that by the way is ancient history, so Vancouver is due for their traditional 5 year jersey switch in a year or two.
Perhaps I'm a victim of expectations set too high, but their secrecy and hush hush for this new 3rd was/is far too impeccable for such a dud. I hope this is fake. Remove the script, and we'll talk. Until then, absolutely not.
Invert the black and red (throughout the jersey) and this would be a bold, striking jersey. As it stands now it lacks unique identity. The base/yoke combo is, as many others have mentioned, is evocative of New Jersey, but what team in the NHL has a black base with a red yoke? The script combined with logo isn't awful, but I have to echo the frustrations of those who think the name "Calgary" combined with the 'C' lettermark are redundant. Realllllly dig the CF shoulder patch, and I think it'd be cool if this uniform was primarily black, secondarily red, and the lettermark and shoulder patches switched places.
so if calgary's new third jersey has been leaked in this game, does that mean the new outdoor game jerseys are in there somewhere as well??
Flames currently have the worst jerseys in the league. They went overboard with the striping, the flags on the shoulder are hideous, and I can't stand the lace-up collars anymore... Not to mention the old Atlanta Flames logo for the assistant-captains. This third does not improve their set. Go full retro and the Flames, suddenly have one of the best set in the league. That flaming "C" is such a great logo, they should build around that with a simple jersey design with no black whatsoever.
i like it. I really like the secondary logo
They're definitely a knockoff of the old Buffalo thirds' style. They're a less good version of those jerseys, but still not bad. I don't like the squared-off shoulder yoke.
So, if I had to rank them among Calgary's current jerseys, I'd say they're better than both their home and aways (because that terrible vertical side striping and piping) but not as good as their current throwback thirds.
Why is this team so afraid of red + yellow?