Sound Tigers Honor Sandy Hook

Bridgeport, Conn. AHL club holds touching tribute

The AHL's Bridgeport Sound Tigers had the youngest victims of last week's school shooting on their mind when they hit the ice yesterday against the Adirondack Phantoms. Twenty children and six adults were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. on Dec. 14.

There's no one who doesn't already know the story. But what you may not know is the Sound Tigers' close connection to the school.

“Sandy Hook Elementary School has been a part of our family, supporting the Sound Tigers at games and community events since the team began calling Bridgeport home, 12 years ago,” Sound Tigers president Howard Saffan said. “We are honored to recognize the victims of the heartbreaking events that happened less than 20 miles up the road.”

Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images via Sound Tigers (official Facebook)

Players wearing names of young victims in place of their own

From Thursday's Sound Tigers press release:

In place of each player’s last name, every jersey worn at home beginning on Sat., Dec. 22 when the Sound Tigers take on the Adirondack Phantoms, will have the name of one of the 20 students whose life was lost on Dec. 14 in Newtown, Conn. The names of the six adult victims will appear on the center hung digital scoreboard throughout the entire game.

The Sound Tigers will wear their black alternate jerseys for these games. The month-long tribute concludes on Jan. 20 when the team hosts the Springfield Falcons.

During that game, the Sound Tigers will honor the Newtown community, as members or representatives from each family will be invited to take home their jerseys off the players’ backs at the conclusion of the contest.

The Sound Tigers will hold a number of promotions and auctions over the next few weeks, the proceeds of which will go to Sandy Hook Elementary.

Sound Tigers tribute will continue through rest of season

The tribute to the Sandy Hook victims doesn't end on Jan. 20.

Earlier this week, the team announced that they will wear commemorative ribbon patches on the jerseys and stickers on their helmets for the remainder of the 2012-13 American Hockey League season, and a graphic with the initials “S.H.E.S.” and the date “12.14.12” will be painted into the ice behind each net at Webster Bank Arena.

For more pictures of the black jerseys worn during last night's game, The AHL's Official Facebook page has a great photo album you can check out.

23 AHL Theme Jerseys for 2012-13

The lack of any NHL action so far this season has a lot of us turning to the American Hockey League for our hockey fix. And the variety of specialty sweaters that pop up in the minors is fascinating. I've been covering them a lot lately here on the blog.

Today I decided to check up on all 30 AHL clubs and compile a list of theme jerseys in the pipeline. Turns out, there are quite a few. But be aware that this list is not comprehensive as I'm relying on promotional calendars posted to the individual team websites. They may or may not be complete.

December

• 12/15: Peoria Rivermen, Jersey Auction
  Rivermen will wear winning jersey from a fan design contest held over the summer.
• 12/22: Connecticut Whale, Military Night, Teddy Bear Toss & Jersey Auction
  Jersey theme for Whale is unclear but an auction suggests a special design.
• Milwaukee's retro jersey12/22: Lake Erie Monsters, Cleveland Lumberjacks Night
  Throwback to old IHL team that played in Cleveland, 1992—2001.
• 12/27–28: Milwaukee Admirals, Retro Jersey Auction
  Commemorating 35 years of pro hockey with retro jersey from 1979-80.
  Auction proceeds to benefit Power Play Foundation.
• 12/31: Grand Rapids Griffins, New Year's Eve Celebration
  Traditionally, the Griffins wear something special on the last night of the year. This year is no different.

January

• 1/16, 18, 19: Chicago Wolves, Military Appreciation Jersey Auction
  Jersey auction and raffle to be held over three nights.
• 1/19: Rockford IceHogs, Pink in the Rink Night
  IceHogs will wear special pink jerseys to be auctioned off after the game.
• 1/26: Lake Erie Monsters, Hawaiian Beach Party Night (special jersey)
  Does this mean a Hawaiian-style jersey? It's also Boy Scout Night at this game.

February

• 2/1: Oklahoma City Barons, Special Olympics Night
  Theme night includes post-game jersey auction.
• 2/2: Worcester Sharks, Pink in the Rink
  Sharks will wear a special pink jersey. Post-game auction proceeds to benefit Cup Crusaders.
• Monarchs' pink jersey2/9: Charlotte Checkers, Pink in the Rink
  Checkers join the pink jersey party on the same night they welcome the Girl Scouts. Coincidence? 
• 2/9: Manchester Monarchs, Pink in the Rink Night
  Monarchs will wear pink and purple on this night. 
• 2/23: Lake Erie Monsters, Cleveland Browns Night
  Could this concept actually become a reality?!
• 2/23: Worcester Sharks, Specialty Jersey Night
  No word on the jersey design but post-game auction proceeds will benefit Autism Resource Center of Central Massachuetts.

March

• Wolves' St. Patrick's Day jersey3/9, 10, 17: Chicago Wolves, St. Patrick's Day Jersey Auction
  Wolves will wear commemorative green jerseys for three home games in March.
  Auction proceeds to benefit Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago and Chicago Wolves Charities.
• 3/16: Binghamton Senators, St. Patrick's Day Celebration
  Senators will wear special St. Patrick's Day jersey. Post-game auction to follow.
• 3/17: Hershey Bears, St. Patrick's Day Jersey Auction
  Bears will presumably be wearing green prior to the auction.
• 3/17: Lake Erie Monsters, Monsters Celebrate St. Patrick's Day (special jersey)
  Probably safe to assume the Monsters will be sporting green.
• 3/17: Peoria Rivermen,  St. Patrick's Day with the Rivermen
  Rivermen will wear special [green] jerseys to be auctioned off after the game. 
• 3/30: Norfolk Admirals, MDA Jersey Auction Night
  No word on jersey design, but if there's an auction it's probably something special.
  Auction proceeds to benefit Muscular Dystrophy Association. 

April

• 4/6: Peoria Rivermen, Blues Specialty Jersey Night
  Rivermen will wear special Blues jerseys to be auctioned off after the game.
• 4/13: Lake Erie Monsters, Autism Awareness Night
  Monsters will wear special blue jerseys for this game. 

If there are any other jersey nights I missed, drop me a line and I'll be sure to add them.

Update on Tuesday · Dec 11 · 2012 | 10:51 PM PST by Chris

Just updated this list based on what you guys let me know about. Thanks for that! We're now at 25 so the headline is no longer accurate. Whoops.

ECHL Unveils 2013 All-Star Jerseys

ECHL's 2013 All-Star Game jerseys unveiled Nov. 21

Last Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving in the U.S., the ECHL unveiled the uniforms that will be worn at the 2013 ECHL All-Star Game. The jerseys were revealed at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, Colo. — home of the host Colorado Eagles — during the first intermission of their game against the Florida Everblades.

Game features Colorado Eagles vs. ECHL All-Stars

The ECHL is continuing with a new format introduced at the last All-Star event in 2011 (the ECHL did not hold one in 2012), where the host team faces off against the top players from across the league. If that seems a little one-sided, you're not wrong.

The Bakersfield Condors lost to the All-Stars 9-3 in 2011. Currently, the Eagles are third in their division (of four teams) with a record of 8-7-1-2 — which is to say they're mediocre. So it's not like the league's best team is taking on the all-star roster. That said, it's easier to sell All-Star Game tickets in Loveland when the locals can cheer on their own team.

Photo by John Babitz

Four jerseys designed for All-Star Week events

Reebok has designed a total of four different sweaters for the ECHL's All-Star Week festivities, one set for the big game and another for the Skills Competition. The Eagles, who normally wear black, will sport a blue jersey with a few stars around the waist. The All-Stars will wear white with the event logo on the front. All jerseys will have the ECHL's 25th anniversary logo on one shoulder.

For the Skills Competition, the Eagles jersey will have the team name written diagonally down the front. The All-Stars will wear the same white jersey but with their own team's crest on the front. And if all these jerseys feel reminiscent of the NHL's old Colorado Rockies, that's sort of the point.

Uniform designs an homage to NHL's old Colorado Rockies

From the Eagles' press release:

With the strong Colorado theme, it made sense for the jerseys to also pay homage to Colorado's rich hockey history. As such, the jerseys worn by both teams will include the main colors from the state's flag (red, blue and yellow) and are strikingly similar to the jerseys worn by the National Hockey League's former Colorado Rockies franchise, which played in Denver from 1976 through 1982 (before moving to New Jersey as the current day Devils). The ECHL's championship trophy, the Kelly Cup, was named after Patrick Kelly, who coached the Colorado Rockies in 1977-78.

If you want to get your hands on one of the jerseys, here's how:

Replicas of each, except the All-Star team Skills event jerseys, will be available exclusively at the Eagles' holiday store in the Foothills Mall in Ft. Collins, Colo. through Dec. 30. After the new year, the aforementioned jerseys will be available online. Game-worn jerseys from both events will be available via auction from The MeiGray Group; details will be announced in January.

This news came just two days before the NHL announced the cancellation of its 2013 All-Star Game in Columbus. Seeing the unique format the ECHL uses, what do you think of the NHL doing something similar in the future? What sort of format would you like to see?

Dallas Stars Owner Wants New Look

If you're a regular reader, you know that Icethetics has been closely following the Dallas Stars rebrand slated for 2013. We got another little nugget yesterday straight from team owner Tom Gagliardi. And it's safe to say this new look is definitely happening.

Gagliardi spoke with Norm Hitzges on The Ticket 1310 AM in Dallas. He expressed his dislike of the team's current uniforms and logos. You can listen to the full interview on the Stars' website. Or read an excerpt here:

NH: There are rumors about the Stars might be designing a new uniform. True?

TG: It's true, yes.

NH: Any tips?

TG: Yeah, I think that it's been speculated that we're doing that. We've been an interesting team because I guess we've changed our jerseys quite often. And we end up in a place now with our current jerseys, which I quite like. I think they're very simple and attractive and modern.

But a couple things bother me. And one is the fact that we're the only team of 30 teams* that don't wear their primary logo on their chest. So I don't like that. I'm a bit of a hockey purist. And so that would be the one criticism I have of our current jersey. And I think a bit of a lack of color with our current kit. So we're looking at all those things up to and including whether we want to modify our primary logo as well.

Everything's in play right now. It's not something that's around the corner in terms of a solution or where we're going. And the earliest that you might see something is in the '13-14 season. So we might get something done for then or we might not, but it's a process that actually the franchise was going through before I even came. And so we're visiting with that right now.

But I'm a purist as I say and I'd like to see us with really a timeless, classic jersey. With timeless, classic colors. And again, that may feature a logo that's different from our current logo today. That's all in play right now, but those are my preferences for where I'd like to see the team end up. Doesn't mean that's where we're going to end up. We've got some nice history here in Dallas with some of the older jerseys that I think are really quite attractive. So we're visiting with all that stuff and our roots and trying to figure out what the best thing is for our franchise going forward.

* He's forgetting the New York Rangers, who haven't worn their logo on their chest since 1978. And even then, that was only for a few years.

It's nice to finally here the Stars talking like this somewhat officially. I know he kept hedging in that interview by saying it may or may not happen, but I can't see them pouring a bunch of money into research and development only to throw it all away in the end. I think it's safe to say the Dallas Stars will look completely different in 2013.

By the way, next year will be the club's 20th anniversary in Dallas. Can you believe it's been 20 years since the North Stars left Minnesota? How time flies.

On Tuesday, Stars Inside Edge blogger Mark Stepneski tweeted that the team was looking at new designs.

Dallas Stars team officials saw mockups of possible new uniforms in Frisco today. The specifics of the uniforms are top secret, so don't ask

— Mark Stepneski (@StarsInsideEdge) November 6, 2012

If you're curious what some Icethetics readers think the Stars should look like, check out our Concept Archive (and scroll down because the first two are Freak Out Friday posts). Also, be sure to check back on the Concepts page this coming Monday for a brand new Dallas Stars concept that involves a play on the team's own history.

Rivermen to Sport Fan-Made 3rd Jersey

The AHL will very likely benefit from an influx of temporary new fans this season if this NHL lockout business keeps up. But the Peoria Rivermen are already benefitting from their existing fans in the form of a newly designed third jersey.

On August 27, the team unveiled this creation — the winner of a jersey design contest held over the summer. It beat out three other submissions with about 40% of some 1,400 votes cast over a three-week span.

The jerseys will be worn by the Rivermen in their game on Dec. 15 at Carver Arena against the Milwaukee Admirals. The jerseys will be auctioned off to the public following the game.

“I would like to say thank you to the Peoria Rivermen staff for creating such a unique opportunity,” said [winning designer Ryan] Malaschak. “Being a graphic artist and a passionate hockey fan my entire life, it has been a dream of mine to create a game-worn jersey at a professional level.”

The contest was opened on July 1 and these four finalists were revealed a month later.

It seems to me they were all great options. But I was partial to this one by Erik Kuhre.

Think you can do better? Submit your concept to icethetics@gmail.com and it may just show up on Concepts page someday soon.