Professional Concepts Revealed

It's a rare but always welcome treat when we get a peek at the hidden process of branding NHL teams. For whatever reason, we all have a unique interest in this aspect of marketing, and naturally, we usually only see what they want us to. Every once in a while, though, we do get a look behind the curtain.

Kings logo evolution / The Royal HalfThis morning, Los Angeles Kings fan blog The Royal Half posted some required reading for any Icethetics regular.

Chris Kontos interviewed Dan Simon, the creative director behind one of the most memorable third jerseys in NHL history. He had a lot of fascinating revelations about the process, including why he wanted to distance himself from the project.

Other cool tidbits: Why the beard was never meant to be purple. Why the sweater featured horrible gradients. Plus, see some video from the alternate jersey's debut, 15 years ago today — against the even more memorable Mighty Ducks third.

Anyway, it's a very fun read and I highly recommend it. It also provides the perfect opportunity to post some items I've been hanging on to for a little while.

Original Blue Jackets logo / Ken LohThe designer of the above Kings logo, Ken Loh, was also the mind behind the Columbus Blue Jackets original insect logo.

Mercifully, this logo was replaced by Loh's secondary mark in time for the uniforms to be designed. The little bug head, however, still took a place on the shoulders.

And for what it's worth, I always liked the electric green because it made the team stand out. Guess it was just too revolutionary to survive. But if you think you've seen it all, prepare yourself for this.

Blue Jackets mascot / Ken LohAccording to Loh's portfolio, this was going to be the full-body version of the bug — not that we ever needed to see that. And let me be clear here. Ken Loh is obviously a talented artist. I just don't think an electric green insect necessarily has a place in the National Hockey League.

His online portfolio also contains colorful concept logos and uniforms for the Carolina Hurricanes (rust/purple/gray) and Philadelphia Flyers (orange/teal). You might be surprised by what you see there.

And while we're on the subject of the Blue Jackets, the team took it upon themselves to show off some of the concepts considered for the new third jersey, launched in November.

Alternate logo concepts / Blue JacketsThis video on the club's website explains what was involved in designing the new sweater. But most notably, it gives us a glimpse at some of the initial logo designs that were shown to focus groups.

We're now familiar with the cannon logo they ultimately chose, but it's interesting to see some of the other options they thought about, including the crossed cannon, the simple CBJ mark, and — taken right out of the Wild/Penguins playbook — the primary mark encircled by the club's name.

It seems they had their minds made up about a circular logo pretty early on in the process. And notice that in each of this displays, there's an option without red — bringing back the steel blue from that original 2000 insect logo.

And there last thing I wanted to leave with is what terrible manner of thing could've happened to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim back in the early '90s. I think this image was originally posted at Uni Watch but later showed up in my email.

Update on Thursday · Jan 27 · 2011 | 5:23 PM PST by Chris

For those of you having trouble accessing Ken Loh's portfolio in the link I provided earlier, I'm adding a couple of images from his site to this post just so you can see his work.

First, here's what he has on display for the Philadelphia Flyers.

Flyers logo and uniform concept / Ken Loh

Whether you like it or not, there's no denying that it would not have been out of the realm of possibility in the mid-90s the way it would be today. Even with the non-traditional teal in the mix.

The other can't miss element of Loh's portfolio was designed with the Carolina Hurricanes in mind.

Hurricanes uniform concept / Ken LohAgain, he's a very talented artist but this certainly does not fit within the branding standards of the NHL. And those colors are definitely one of a kind. Instead, the Canes just look like the Devils.

It's not clear on Loh's site whether these are just concepts he toyed with or actual artwork submitted to and considered by the league and aforementioned teams.

I just have to ask Flyers fans... could you imagine your team wearing that half-teal/half-black jersey up there? Take yourself back to that era when you think about it. Remember the Kings and Ducks, and that the Lightning were wearing rain and lightning bolts down their sleeves.

What a time that was. I'm sure it'll all come back again some day.

Going to the Next Level

Those who have been avid readers of Icethetics from the beginning — I'm talking back in the NHLToL days — will no doubt recognize the logos above, and just as equally the unusual cyber-moniker of the artist that created them. GhettoFarmBoy, known in the real world as Matt Kauzlarich, partnered up with NHLToL to showcase some of the best concept art that has ever graced these pages.

“It was undoubtedly the most popular concept art series Icethetics has ever hosted.”He launched a series we called Rebranding the NHL, in which he would redesign the logos and uniforms of teams he felt were in need of a new look. It was undoubtedly the most popular concept art series Icethetics has ever hosted.

It all began in August 2007 when I posted Matt's Thrashers concept on NHLToL. It continued that week with the Islanders, Senators and Bruins. Before long, readers were begging for more. Matt rebranded the Ducks, Devils, Sharks, Capitals and Panthers before we officially joined forces in May 2008.

Under the partnership, all of Matt's new rebrands would make their world premiere here. His Lightning rebrand was first out of the gate. In the next few months, he also reworked the Sabres and, finally, the Stars on August 6, 2008. The year flew by but it was one of the most memorable for NHLToL/Icethetics readers.

Unfortunately, the blockbuster partnership was short-lived as Matt's work was getting noticed. Despite starting work on a highly-anticipated St. Louis Blues rebrand, Matt has never gotten around to finishing it. But that's because he's been busy selling his talents to pro teams — right where they belong.

I'm disappointed to say that I have not had much contact with him in the last two years, but by chance the other day I came across his portfolio. I was thrilled to discover that he was the artist behind what I consider one of the best-looking teams in minor pro hockey.

Last summer, when the Quad City Mallards unveiled their new logos and uniforms, I marveled at the artist's ability to make a mallard duck look intimidating. No other IHL team looked this good. Quietly, though, I was struck by how familiar the new look seemed, as though I'd somehow seen it before. It must've been my subconscious connecting the dots. The design has Matt's fingerprints all over it.

You know, it seems the only logo-related news on the blog lately has dealt with the dark side of logo design — infringement. It's refreshing to be able to share a success story with you guys — an Icethetics concept artist who's gone on to much bigger and much better things.

I'd love to be able to offer details of Matt's sports design journey in his own words, but sadly he has yet to reply to my emails. Busy guy, I'm sure. Hopefully we'll hear from him soon. And maybe even one day we'll satisfy that Blues rebrand curiosity.

A History of Logo Larceny

Take a good look. On the left is a logo created by Mike Ivall and first posted to the Icethetics blog on July 8, 2008. It has a habit of stirring up controversy in the form of infringement because, on right is the new logo of the NAHL's Port Huron Fighting Falcons, who will have an unveiling event for it on Wednesday.

There is no question where this Fighting Falcons logo came from. Too many distinct elements just copied outright without much else altered. What is perhaps most disturbing is that this team isn't even bothering to credit the logo's original creator and, in fact, crediting someone else entirely. Someone named Larry Smith of Tag Sports Graphics gets the nod on the team's website.

Mike tells me he emailed the team over the weekend and is waiting to hear back. I also have an email into the them seeking comment on the situation. I'll let you know if they reply.

This isn't the first time Mike's logo has been used without his permission. Most recently, he worked out a deal with the Maplesoft Hawks, a AAA organization based in Ottawa, had been using his exact logo on team merchandise.

However, a rather shady company called Chi-City Tees, presumably based in Chicago, is selling t-shirts featuring Mike's design — without his permission. They list no physical address on their website. Another company called MNM Hockey, is using a slightly altered version of the logo to promote its site. To my knowledge, neither organization has worked out a deal with Mike.

That just makes them thieves.

Update on Friday · Jul 16 · 2010 | 9:25 PM PDT by Chris

The situation regarding the logo seems to have sputtered out this week. The Fighting Falcons will apparently go back to the drawing board on this one. Times Herald writer Paul Costanzo spoke with president/GM Ernie Hicke at Wednesday's press conference:

On the logo: I talked briefly to Hicke about it, and basically the team is looking for a new one. Mike Ivall had created a logo very similar to the Fighting Falcons (not the same) and had contacted the team. Nobody wanted to get into a legal dispute over it, so the team is just going to create a new logo.

Sounds like that wraps things up. I'll keep an eye out for the new logo and share it here on the blog when the team does unveil it. The season begins Sept. 10, so we should see it before then.

Friday Variety

I'm normally not one to complain, but if you guys knew the week I've had in terms of technology fails, you'd sit down on the floor and cry. I mean grown men. On the floor. Sobbing. It's been that bad.

Only now do I finally have my new wireless router cooperating with my new MacBook Pro — and I say that with fingers crossed. Without going into boring details, the bigger problem with all of this was that every time something stopped working, it meant spending what little free time I had fixing it.

But I'll be back this weekend making loads of updates across the site. A lot has been going ignored while I was troubleshooting — concept art, logo news, and yes, the IceHL.

Live Chat Returns This Weekend

The first thing I want to mention is that I'm bringing back the Live Chat! We haven't done one of those since last November. It's well overdue. I don't have an exact time, but I'll let you know when I do. It'll probably be Saturday afternoon. I'll post a reminder in the sidebar as well as make an announcement on Twitter.

We can talk about whatever you guys want. I'm also going to use it as a platform to unveil the IceHL's New York Guardians logo. It was a tight race. Drop by if you want to hang out and chat. I'll also answer any questions you may have.

Twitter Mailbag Moves

This week only I'm moving the Twitter Mailbag to Saturday. There were a lot of great questions and mentions this week that I want to talk about, but I want to get to some other stuff today. So if you'd like to tweet any questions, now is your chance. Be sure to include @icethetics.

Wolf Packs Wants Your Jersey Designs

In case you missed it, the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack are holding a fan jersey design contest.

After a very successful first year, the Wolf Pack Specialty Jersey Design Contest is back! We had hundreds of great entries last year and had a blast choosing the winner. Be creative and have fun because we loved all the different ideas that fans had. The winner of this year’s contest will receive a personalized jersey of their design along with tickets to see them worn by the team! During the TBA game, the jerseys will be auctioned right off the player’s backs! This year’s auction raised over $10,000, which benefited the March of Dimes organization.

On their web site, the Wolf Pack has a jersey template you can download and the email address you need to send your artwork to. Fans have until September 1 to get their entries in.And if you want instant gratification, send your design to Icethetics at the same time and it may just show up on the site.

Following Up on the Ice Flyers

The SPHL's newest member, the Pensacola Ice Flyers, unveiled their coma-inducing logo two weeks ago at a fan event in north Florida. I had some comments.

Now we have "official" word from the team on why they went with the logo with the fewest votes in an online poll — the worst one. Via Twitter, Icethetics reader Mike posed the following question to the minor league club.

mburmy @PcolaIceFlyers I know the poll was for 'entertainment only,' but WHY did you HAVE to use the LAST-place entry?"

To which the Ice Flyers' Twittermaster replied:

PcolaIceFlyers @mburmy Thanks for the comments... there were some copyright concerns and it was the best logo to modify and adapt for our use.

I buy the first part. Copyright issues are always a concern when you ask fans to design things. However, it was "the best logo to adapt for our use"? Seriously? I think I should just not talk about it anymore. At least now we have some closure on the subject.

Concept Art

My inbox tells me you guys have been longing for the return of concept art to the site. I had hoped the IceHL would fill that void. Yet all of that is artwork that's been floating around for months. So I am aiming to bring the occasional concept post back to the site via the Concepts section, accessible at the top of the page.

Until I can make time for that, I'll give you something here. When USA Hockey announced it would be unveiling new Olympic jerseys later this month, I asked you guys to send in your own concepts. Here is one by Mike Ivall.

I've also got a bunch more Ducks third jersey concepts. I'll either make a new post on the Concepts blog with all of them or I'll start posting them on Twitter — which is easier for me. Which do you guys prefer?

Anyway, I think I've taken up enough of your time with this post. Got any questions or comments? You know where they go.