St. John's IceCaps Unveil Name, Logo

The worst kept secret in the American Hockey League became official this morning. True North's Manitoba Moose have officially become the St. John's IceCaps. (Note that's one word, not two. And in upper and lowercase, reads like this: St. John's IceCaps.)

As you'd expect, the IceCaps' colors line up with their NHL parent club, the Winnipeg Jets. Two shades of blue and two shades of gray/silver. Only the IceCaps wisely left out the red maple leaf.

The primary logo makes heavy use of the wordmark, but that's not surprising considering the name. And it's not a bad name, it just doesn't lend itself well to imagery the way that, say, "Jets" does.

Perhaps the best thing about this mark is its easter egg. At a glance, it's merely snow cover atop a rugged mountain. But when you really look, there's a sort of stylized "N" and "L" carved out for Newfoundland and Labrador — which also happen to be shaped like the actual map boundaries. That's a very cool feature. (Pun.)

St. John's IceCaps logos / @markdenineIf you're like me, you're satisfied — even pleasantly surprised — by this logo but just hoping they drop the "St. John's" bit at the top when it comes time to slap it on a sweater. Regulars may be a bit surprised to find that I like a logo that's basically a wordmark, but there are always gray areas.

I don't care for the Anaheim Ducks' wordmark because, well, a duck is an easy thing to put into a textless image. IceCaps can be more challenging. You don't want to lose your brand identity trying to create a logo that's too clever for its own good. Especially in the minors.

And you can argue all you want with the name choice, but I can't say I mind it. Yes, it breaks some critical rules by including the word "ice" and running it all together with a capital letter in the middle, but it's just one of those throwback things.

From the press release:

“Caps” not only perfectly complements the name in the literal translation of an icecap, it is also pays tribute to the St. John’s Caps, a Newfoundland Amateur Hockey Association team which played in the former provincial senior hockey league. 

Along with this logo, the IceCaps unveiled a new wordmark, which includes the same elements as the primary — just repositioned. You can see it on the poster used at this morning's unveiling event (above) thanks to Mark Denine, who tweeted this photo for us.

There were no secondary marks revealed today, but I'm sure at least one shoulder of the uniforms will get the new Winnipeg Jets logo. Speaking of jerseys, they were not unveiled today either and will probably come out closer to the start of the season. I'd bet they use the same design as the Jets' jerseys, and we're not expecting to see those until early September. Maybe we see both at the same time.

I'll grant you this logo is no replacement for the Manitoba Moose, but it's certainly not as weak in terms of design as the Jets' new primary. Now it's your turn. Hit or miss by True North?

Trenton Titans Return to ECHL

The ECHL welcomed the Trenton Titans back into the league today, filling the gap left in New Jersey's capital city with the demise of the Trenton Devils.

The team has already launched its new website — which at this point, merely links you to its Facebook and Twitter pages. Today's announcement also confirmed the Titans will be affiliated with the Philadelphia Flyers. And the club's new logo will be the same as the one introduced when they first hit the ice 12 years ago.

ECHL commissioner Brian McKenna at Trenton Titans press conference / Martin Griff, The TimesThe franchise played under the Titans name from 1999 until 2007 — a tenure which included a 2005 Kelly Cup championship — at which point the New Jersey Devils bought the franchise and rebranded it, just as they'd done the year before with the AHL team in Lowell, Mass.

All the Devils' affiliates were called the Devils and basically had the same logo and uniforms for the next few years. Last summer, when the Albany River Rats became the Charlotte Checkers, the Lowell Devils headed to Albany. They then became the Albany Devils.

On July 6, the New Jersey Devils gave up on their ECHL player development plan and shut down the Trenton franchise. It was then bought up by new owners who rebranded it with that familiar Titans moniker. So Trenton hockey fans aren't missing a beat here.

So like the resurrection of the Winnipeg Jets, what's old is new again in hockey this year. And full credit to Chris Creamer over at SportsLogos.net for predicting the return of the Titans more than a month ago! Included in a blog post was the revelation that the ECHL has re-registered the Titans trademark on June 21. He assumed either the ECHL was getting into the retro gear business, or the Titans were staging a comeback.

But wait, there's more...

St. John's AHL Team Unveiling Name & Logo

When True North moved the Atlanta Thrashers to Winnipeg, it caused a ripple effect that impacted several other leagues, including the AHL. The arrival of the Jets displaced True North's Manitoba Moose, who have since found a new home in St. John's, Newfoundland. Now they're getting a name and logos.

The AHL tweeted this morning that the new St. John's franchise will officially unveil its branding identity (meaning name and logo) on Friday morning at 11 AM local time. That's 9:30 AM Eastern and 6:30 AM on the west coast — which is far too early for me. It's widely believed the team will be named the St. John's Ice Caps.

The Ice Caps would obviously be affiliated with the Jets. And because the Moose were previously affiliated with the Canucks. But there's an easy fix. The Thrashers' departure left the Chicago Wolves without an affiliate, so naturally Vancouver is filling that void.

Unrelated to the Jets' move, there was another three-way affiliate swap this summer. The Buffalo Sabres are once again joining forces with the Rochester Americans. Their former affiliate, the Florida Panthers, have hooked up yet again with the San Antonio Rampage. (Didn't I just say what's old is new again?) That left the Portland Pirates and Phoenix Coyotes without partners so they just sort of looked at each other and said, hey why not?

This will all be explained again in graphic form in the Icethetics Season Preview in September.

What about the Jets' jerseys?

With the question of the logos fully answered, what now remains is this: What will the new Winnipeg Jets jerseys look like?

Details have been eking out at a slow pace, but a pace set by the franchise itself, for a change. Icethetics reader Jacob McInnis tweeted what he heard True North chairman Mark Chipman talking about on FAN 590 on Tuesday.

For one thing, Chipman said the only red on the uniforms will be in the maple leaf on the logos. Now that extra shade of blue in the alternate wordmark makes sense. He also said the secondary mark, the wings, will be the shoulder patches.

New Jets in new T-shirts / JetsAs far as when the new sweaters will be unveiled, I still haven't seen anything official, but the expectation is still early September.

One thing worth noting however, are the new Jets T-shirts which you can find in both light blue and dark blue — keeping us guessing about which color the home jersey will be. This photo (right) was tweeted by the team earlier today.

Frankly, the logo looks better on dark blue, but I would love the irony of the Jets using the same color jerseys as the Thrashers did. Though I'm sure Atlanta fans wouldn't find it nearly as funny.

Jacob also said Chipman talked about a desire to honor old Jets jersey numbers, similar to what the Toronto Maple Leafs do. This makes more sense that all out retiring numbers for players who never actually suited up for this particular franchise.

Got any other Jets nuggets I've missed? I'd love some links if these details are in print somewhere.

And there's a reason that this final link is at the end of this post. Lots of folks went nuts-o when they thought this alleged "NHL 12 leak" was the Jets new uniform. I'm not saying it again. But obviously, it isn't. It's a Capitals jersey. That is all.

By the way, I do hope my contempt for these EA video game "leaks" is coming through. I wouldn't want to downplay it at all. Just saying.

Sharks Announce 3rd Jersey Schedule

We're still months away from the start of the season, but the San Jose Sharks have already announced third jersey dates for the 2011-12 season. They'll wear it 15 times, all at home, mostly on Thursday nights.

The black sweater was launched in 2008 under the nickname BlackArmor during a brief sponsorship agreement with Seagate. The Sharks wore it for home games throughout their 2011 Stanley Cup playoff run.

Patrick MarleauHere's the new schedule from the team's official website:

• Thurs., Nov. 3 – vs Pittsburgh Penguins
• Thurs., Nov. 10 – vs. Minnesota Wild
• Thurs., Nov. 17 – vs. Detroit Red Wings
• Thurs., Dec. 1 – vs. Montreal Canadiens
• Thurs., Dec. 8 – vs. Dallas Stars
• Thurs., Dec. 15 – vs. Colorado Avalanche
• Fri., Dec. 23 – vs. Los Angeles Kings
• Thurs., Jan. 5 – vs. Columbus Blue Jackets
• Thurs., Jan. 19 – vs. Ottawa Senators
• Thurs., Feb. 2 – vs. Dallas Stars
• Fri., Feb. 10 – vs. Chicago Blackhawks
• Thurs., Mar. 1 – vs. Buffalo Sabres
• Thurs., Mar. 15 – vs. Nashville Predators
• Thurs., Mar. 22 – vs. Boston Bruins
• Sat., Apr. 7 – vs. Los Angeles Kings

The Kings and Stars will each face the Sharks in black for two of their three visits to San Jose. Five of the 15 games are against Eastern Conference foes.

Of course, as the team's website notes, the above schedule is subject to change. And not that you care, but in the odd case that you wanted a quick link back to the Sharks' 2010-11 third jersey schedule, here it is.

Boy, Was I Wrong About the Jets

It happens to the best of us. Bloggers, I mean. We get stuff wrong. This afternoon I tweeted what may indeed live on as my most infamous tweet ever. In case you missed it, at 12:56 PM Pacific time I wrote:

Literally, within six minutes of that tweet, at 1:02 PM Pacific time, the Winnipeg Jets tweeted this:

It was precisely at that moment I realized my previous tweet would be nullified. Why would the Jets scramble to unveil their logo — perhaps the most highly-anticipated ever — with less than an hour's notice? That is, unless it had been truly leaked. And as promised, at 4 PM Central time the Jets' new logos were posted on their website.

It's at this point you might accuse me of trusting lousy sources. Let me be clear. I had no sources whatsoever. This is all on me. I had only my years of experience in studying and writing a blog about professional sports branding and marketing at my back. Did it fail me? Or did the Jets? Well, I can't answer that without bias.

Honestly, when I first saw the leaked photo, I instantly thought, "there's no way." This is an ownership group who's been so meticulous in its branding strategy. Certainly, they wouldn't be satisfied with marketing their franchise under such a bland mark. And let me say this in the clearest terms possible: Boy, was I wrong!

The title of this post has a double meaning. First, I was wrong to tweet what I did. I should've indicated that it was my opinion rather than making it sound like a fact. Second, I was wrong to think that this team would blow us away with its branding effort. I do stand by one comment in that tweet. What a joke.

Winnipeg logos unveiled / JetsAt this point, another paragraph of expressing my disappointment could easily devolve this post into an irritating rant. And that's not really my thing. So now that you know my opinion, I'll try to handle the rest of my review a little more matter-of-factly. I'll have to start with a direct quote from True North.

"True North Sports & Entertainment felt it was important for the new Winnipeg Jets to develop a strong new identity," said Mark Chipman, Chairman & Governor of True North Sports & Entertainment. "We felt it was important to authenticate the name Jets and we believe the new logo does that through its connection to (Canada's) remarkable Air Force heritage, including the rich history and relationship that our city and province have enjoyed with the Canadian Forces." 

If they felt it was important to develop a strong new identity, then why didn't they? Shoot. Caught myself doing it again. Be objective, Chris. The logo has a silver jet aligned (to the north) with a red maple leaf all set within a blue circle. And the central element meant to draw your eye is muted and fails to do so. It looks like a secondary mark.

Speaking of which, the actual secondary mark is a lot better — for a secondary mark, anyway. It has all the elements you expect from a secondary mark. I like the wings and the hockey sticks. Unfortunately, it looks like the Molson maple leaf is here to stay with the Jets' new identity. Bummer.

To be quite honest, the wordmarks, like the rest of the identity, look rushed. True North took control of this franchise just 52 days ago and only officially decided on the name less than a month ago. So I guess it's to be expected.

I'm also perplexed by the addition of a different shade of blue for the "alternate wordmark." Perhaps a third jersey with a wordmark? Wouldn't put it past these guys at this point. Speaking of which, no date has been set for the jersey reveal, but I'm not holding my breath.

However... I'm sure most Winnipeggers will love it. And that's the important thing. A lot of folks dislike the new Lightning identity but I love it and I'm a fan. That's what matters.

I figured I should address one last thing. Many tweeters have questioned whether my disapproval of the new primary logo wasn't more about my being scooped (or wrong about the leak). I think it goes without saying, but I'm saying it just in case... of course not. This idea that Icethetics has to be first with this sort of news is a concoction of its readers.

I appreciate you all and your loyalty very much, but sometimes you set this blog on a pedestal it doesn't deserve. I'm often not first with this type of news and frankly, I don't feel I need to be. All I do is share what's already out there to a wider audience. (Plus, today was an especially busy day at work so I've only just now found time in my day to update the site. Some of you tend to forget I have that day job.)

Vote: NHL Uniform Ranking, Part 4

Icethetics has been conducting a series of polls asking readers to rate the uniforms worn during the 2010-11 NHL season. The purpose? To create a fan-determined ranking. We've completed 18 teams and are moving on to the next group of six.

This set of polls includes Buffalo, Chicago, Columbus, Detroit, Minnesota and Pittsburgh. You can rate each jersey individually with a 10, 5 or 1. (Basically, you can love it, hate it, or fall somewhere int he middle. Keeps things simple.)

After all the votes have been cast, an average rating will be calculated. These polls will remain open for two weeks, ending Sun., July 31. When we've voted on all the teams, I'll assemble a complete league ranking of every 2010-11 uniform. Happy voting!

Sorry, no comments on this post. Just vote!