The Return of the Jersey Galleries

Redesigned jersey galleriesI recently started to revamp one of the site's signature features — the Jersey Galleries project. I've been noting updates via Twitter and Facebook, but if you aren't involved on those sites, you may have overlooked it. You can find easy access via the Jerseys tab above.

The Galleries were a feature launched just over a year ago, featuring primarily alternate and specialty uniforms. Each gallery features game photos as a sort of historical record. The old section was laid out in a way that didn't really provide any context.

The new look rectifies those problems by incorporating home and road uniforms as well as the logos used on them. You can also find trivial details like the unveiling and debut dates and other information.

There are already seven galleries online and I'm hoping to have all 30 NHL teams done within a couple of months. For now, I'm cataloging only uniforms currently in use, but after that, we'll expand to as far back as I can find photos.

I'm not limiting the project to only the NHL. I'd like to tackle the AHL and ECHL this year but finding photos will be more of a challenge. It may require making friends with some team photographers. Same with the Canadian Hockey League, which has some of the best uniforms in all of hockey.

• More about the galleries

One question I get a lot I will answer right now. The order of the teams is being determined by you guys. On a recent Facebook post, I asked readers to make recommendations. I'm going in the order they were asked. If you have any others questions about the galleries, you can ask them in the comments.

Gallery Updates

In case you haven't been making regular trips to the Jerseys tab lately, I thought I'd point out some recent updates to a handful of the galleries.

First, we now have a gallery for the Buffalo Sabres third jersey. They really do look sharp. In addition, I've added more photos to the Chicago Blackhawks' 2008 and 2009 alternate sweater galleries. The St. Louis Blues' too. Plus, the Detroit Red Wings' Winter Classic jersey gallery had been lacking for a while. That's been seen to as well.

One thing I'd like to attack this season is home/road jersey galleries. I'm just struggling with the best way to structure it all considering there will be 30 each — not to mention, a handful of former third jerseys are now home jerseys. Do I leave them there and start anew or move them over? Still working it all out.

By the way, if you're new to Icethetics, here's my reasoning for the Jersey Galleries.

And when that's all said and done, I'm eager to start looking at some of the minor leagues for mini-galleries. There are sites out there that do a great job of archiving renderings of minor league jerseys, SportsLogos.net to be specific, but I'm still convinced there's no better way to appreciate a jersey than to see it in action. The trouble is tracking down AHL/ECHL/CHL game photos for every team. May need some help if anyone's interested.

Speaking of the AHL, I've got a photo-filled update coming soon.

Jersey Galleries Expanding

The new Jersey Gallery section of the site is one of the things I'm most proud of here on Icethetics. It really is a unique way of presenting an NHL uniform design database. And it just keeps expanding.

Today I added a third category under the Jerseys tab at the top of the page: Specialty Jerseys. They're not quite considered third jerseys since they aren't worn often enough and usually have a limited lifespan. A perfect example is the first entry, the Calgary Flames vintage sweater being worn five times this year against Canadian rivals.

Specialty Jersey section screenshot

Of course that's not the only new thing in Jerseys since the last time I mentioned here on the blog — at which point we had only four third jersey galleries. Today, we have 21 different galleries — and more are on the way!

Among the 16 alternate jersey galleries are the Wild, Pens, Blues, Bolts, Kings, Sabres, Sharks, Sens, Canes, Coyotes, Bruins and two for the Hawks! There are also four Winter Classic galleries from the last two outdoor games — though there's still a lot of work to do on the Hawks and Wings.

The cool thing about these galleries is that just like anything we do here on Icethetics, it's interactive. Readers are able to rate jerseys from 1 to 5 stars. And based on the number of votes received so far, I'd say this is a very popular addition to the site.

I'm still very hard at work on this project and I just wanted to keep you updated on the status of it. In the coming weeks and months I'll be adding dozens of new galleries. And once we get past all of the alternate/specialty jerseys, it's on to home and road. But there's still a lot to do.

If you feel like helping out, I'm always in search of a great game photo gallery!

Jerseys Gallery Launched!

Icethetics just keeps on giving this Christmas. As promised, today marks the launch of a brand new feature. It's located in a tab at the top of the page simply called Jerseys.

Right now it consists of only one jersey gallery. In time, there will be galleries for every NHL uniform — not just the alternates. But I figured I'd begin with the league's newest sweater — the Florida Panthers' third.

Screen shot of the first Icethetics Jersey Gallery

Better Than 2D Displays

There are a couple of great sites out there that serve as a "database" of NHL jerseys. The best is NHL Uniforms.com but SportsLogos.net is also building a decent catalog. I'm not about to take on those guys. My intention is to go in a different direction.

They've got the two-dimensional aspect down. It's great for a top-to-bottom look at the overall design of a sweater. But how often do we really see hockey jerseys laid out flat that way? Most of the time we see jerseys on actual players in game action. That's how we remember them.

So I say it's time for a gallery that celebrates the jersey in its most awe-inspiring state — on the ice! Each jersey gallery will feature photos of all players (or as many as is practicably possible) who have worn it. That's the goal. It will likely be a work in progress for a long time to come.

The Presentation

I think you'll be pleased by the presentation of the photos. Clicking on one of the galleries takes you to a page full of thumbnails. From there, click one to see it enlarged. Then cycle through the rest using the navigation arrows on the left and right side of the window.

As for the photos themselves, they've been cropped to the same dimensions to avoid jarring transitions. Most important is the environment of the jersey. While it is the basis of these galleries, it can also be distracting. I've desaturated everything in the frame but for the player who is the focus of the shot. I believe this best helps the jersey and the player wearing it stand out in the image.

The caption includes the player's number and name and photos are arranged in numerical order. As time goes by and players come and go, numbers will be duplicated. I have no plans to list the year(s) a player played for the given team as that is available on sites such as NHL.com or HockeyDB.com.

New Updates One at a Time

I'll be adding new galleries one-by-one as I'm able to create all the graphics for it. Within a few weeks, I hope to have all current third jerseys. Within several months, all current home and road jerseys as well. As I post new galleries, I will make mention of it via Twitter — which can be seen in the sidebar.

Beyond that, we'll start diving into the past. I doubt we'll really get past the mid-90s as good pictures will be hard to come by, but that gets us into the days of the original third jerseys as the very least.

So there you have it. I hope you guys do enjoy the new Jersey Gallery feature. (And I apologize for all this text, I just figured I should explain myself.)

Update on Friday · Dec 25 · 2009 | 6:21 PM PST by Chris

I'm feeling generous. I just added the Colorado Avalanche's third jersey to the brand new Jersey Gallery feature.

Update on Saturday · Dec 26 · 2009 | 9:27 AM PST by Chris

Just added the Nashville Predators' third to the Gallery.

Update on Saturday · Dec 26 · 2009 | 9:39 AM PST by Chris

Ratings

When viewing the new Jersey Galleries, you can now rate each jersey on a scale of 1 to 5 stars. This will give us a look at what Icethetics readers as a group think of them. Enjoy!

Update on Saturday · Dec 26 · 2009 | 4:41 PM PST by Chris

Added a fourth alternate jersey Gallery for the Chicago Blackhawks. Thought I'd take a break from all the dark blue sweaters. By the way, don't get too used to the high frequency of new galleries being posted. I've been working on this for a little while so I've had several ready to go.