New Looks for a New Season

As a long summer starts winding down, we're now less than a month away from training camps across the NHL getting underway. But before that, I wanted to do a quick run-through of all the new jerseys we'll be seeing this fall. And believe it or not, I have a few surprises in store.

Edmonton Oilers

Fans have been begging for it for years, and the Oilers have responded. This new road jersey pays tribute to the original white sweater the Oilers wore from their NHL inception in 1979 to 1996.

Florida Panthers

Like the Oilers, the Panthers are fixing their uniforms as well by returning to their roots with a red home uniform. The chest and sleeve piping as also been removed from both the home and road sweaters.

Though the red sweater was unveiled at the draft, the road jersey design below is still unofficial. We know the blue piping is going away but it's not clear if the jersey will see any other changes.

Los Angeles Kings

The Kings are undergoing an identity overhaul in 2011, though they're only adding one "new" jersey. The white road sweater is based on the black alternate which launched in 2008.

Nashville Predators

The Predators are also making sweeping changes by introducing new home and road jerseys.

New York Islanders

We got our first glimpse at the Isles' new third jersey when a prototype design was leaked recently by a former team employee. But I've recently been made aware of some new details and can confirm report this is what the final version looks like. (Accidentally broke one of my own rules there. I can't "confirm" anything. That's for the team to do. However, this is an accurate representation of the final design.)

Ottawa Senators

We've known for some time that the Senators have had a Heritage Jersey in the works, meant to pay tribute to the original Senators from the 1930s for their own 20th anniversary season. You got your first look at a photocopy of the design earlier this month. This is what it looks like in color.

The shoulder patches have been the source of much of the speculation surrounding this jersey since the team itself offered up a sneak peek back in March. I can report that there are two of them, both in the shape of a shield. One reads Ottawa Senators, the other is in French: Sénateurs d'Ottawa.

Pittsburgh Penguins

The Pens will be promoting their 2011 Winter Classic jersey to alternate status this season. It replaces the light blue third which debuted at the 2008 Winter Classic.

Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning unveiled their new branding back in January but the jerseys still aren't available in stores. Here's a refresher of what they'll look like.

Toronto Maple Leafs

And finally, one of the worst kept secrets of the summer has been the Leafs' new third jersey. It pays tribute to the 1967 design which was only used for a few seasons. Take note of the silver inner-outline of the throwback leaf crest. Other than that, it's practically identical to the old jersey.

Obviously, the odd man out on this post are those elusive Winnipeg Jets jerseys. Plenty of you have emailed and tweeted to tell me the counterfeiters already have them. I refer you to my earlier post about phony leaks. Everyone's favorite thieves are simply manufacturing jerseys based on concept art. As I've said before, this would not be the first time. And it surely won't be the last. Be patient; don't waste your money.

For what it's worth, I can't say how close the fakes will be to the real thing as I haven't seen the final designs yet. They could be close or miles away. But since the Jets haven't scrambled to assemble a press conference on short notice, I'm guessing it's the latter. 

I also expect to have another edition of JerseyWatch posted before the end of August, but aside from one busy week, there hasn't been a lot of news this month. Hopefully this will hold you over until then.

Update on Friday · Sep 16 · 2011 | 10:40 AM PDT by Chris

Winnipeg Jets

The Jets finally unveiled their new home and road uniforms 10 days ago. Here's another look at them.

Washington Capitals

The Caps announced they will bring back their retro Winter Classic jersey for 16 road games this season.

The new season is shaping up to look pretty nice. And I don't think there will be any other new jerseys to add to this list for the 2011-12 season. You've now seen everything there is to see.

Worth a Thousand Words

The Icethetics-related news really tends to dry up this time of year, but I hate to let the blog dry up with it. So I'm declaring today Picture Day. Later this week, I'm planning an update to NHL JerseyWatch 2011. But for now, I'm just offering some things to look at. Feel free to add your comments at the end.

Canucks sport new practice threads at SuperSkills / Vancouver Canucks

For those that missed the Facebook post, over the weekend the Vancouver Canucks were wearing special practice jerseys at their SuperSkills competition, featuring the updated Johnny Canuck logo. It was Team Blue vs. Team Green and these sweaters made it clear that logo doesn't belong on the front. Maybe the shoulders. But definitely the helmet, where it already is on the alternate uniform.

2011 NHL Winter Classic / Pittsburgh Penguins

It's a shame I haven't posted pictures from any of the outdoor games yet. Way back on New Year's Day, we all saw the Washington Capitals defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins on their home turf. (Haha, turf.) If you've been following along with the Jersey Gallery updates, you've seen the Caps' uniform, but I haven't gotten around to the Penguins yet.

I'm torn on it, by the way. Dark blue just doesn't work for the Pens. I think I like the '08 version better. Still...

Dan Bylsma coaching at the 2011 Winter Classic / Pittsburgh Penguins

Nobody rocks a hat like Dan Bylsma. 

2011 Heritage Classic / Calgary Flames

You know what, I'm only all right with this because it was one game. But let's not do this anymore, Calgary. Let's not look like a skating advertisement for a Big Mac. It wasn't a good look a century ago and it isn't now. Even more disappointing than what the Flames wore was what Montreal wore. They're the Habs and they're classic but they've got an entire arsenal of throwback jerseys from a hundred years ago. Why not?

Miikka Kiprusoff in a cloud of snow / Calgary Flames

So many thoughts on this one: Is there supposed to be a goalie hiding in there? ... This is what I imagine to be the Canadian version of walking around with a raincloud over your head. ... If any player could just manifest a cloud of snow around himself, it would make cherry-picking a lot easier. ... Goalies are not born; they simply appear after a snowstorm. ... Should I stop now? ... Abominable goalie? ... Yes, stop? Okay.

WHL's outdoor game / Dylan Lynch

The WHL's Calgary Hitmen and Regina Pats borrowed the temporary ice rink at McMahon Stadium just prior to the Heritage Classic. And like their NHL counterparts, they sported retro-style sweaters. They're pretty much the same jerseys, just in different colors. Spooky.

Canucks' hall of sweaters / Vancouver Canucks

And we'll finish where we started — Vancouver. I'm sure Canucks fans are well aware of the sweaters hanging outside the team's locker room, so you can ignore this. For everyone else, how cool is this? From the Vancouver Millionaires on through to the orange third jersey from the '90s, they have a very rich and very colorful uniform history and it's nice to see they don't bury it and pretend it never happened.

That's all. If you've got any pictures you'd like to share, shoot me an email.

Penguins Unveil WC Jersey!

Pittsburgh Penguins reveal 2011 Winter Classic sweater

The Pittsburgh Penguins officially unveiled their 2011 Winter Classic sweater today, according to the team's website.

Evgeni Malkin shows off new sweaterThey've posted a photo gallery featuring a few different shots of the new uniform, including the one above. As rumored, the sweater is a hybrid of past Pens jerseys. It's similar in design to the team's inaugural uniform from 1967 with the powder blue and navy inverted. The main difference being the addition of the original logo which was never before used on a jersey.

The design should be no surprise to Icethetics readers. It's almost exactly what I posted here earlier this month. It doesn't replace the the Penguins' first Winter Classic or the Blackhawks' WC/third jersey atop my personal favorites list, but I'm still a big fan.

It's a sharp look and almost has the feel of an "old-timey" wool hockey sweater. Don't be deceived, though, it's still a Reebok Edge jersey. But it's one of the better ones we've seen.

My only issue is the massive size of the waist stripes. Definitely think that could've been toned down a little. Way too close to the numbers on the back.

Otherwise a solid design effort and Pens fans should be pleased. It's a great new look and I hope they keep it around a while. The Penguins announced the jersey will also be worn later in the season after the Winter Classic, on Feb. 10 vs Los Angeles and Mar. 12 vs Montreal.

Now, your thoughts on the new threads?

Pens at Winter Classic Revisited

A little web surfing has turned up more evidence that we're on the right track for the design of the Pittsburgh Penguins' 2011 Winter Classic jersey.

After yesterday's leak of the Anaheim Ducks' new third jersey, I thought I'd peruse a few other online retailers. A few readers also had the same idea. Interestingly, the site that yielded the best information was the NHL's own shop.nhl.com.

Penguins knit hat / shop.nhl.comAmong other things, the search turned up this knit hat (right), which is dark blue and features the powder blue/vintage white stripes, a look that evokes the team's original 1967 uniforms.

In case you didn't believe me before, what more proof could you want outside of seeing the actual jersey. This certainly seems to be the creative direction the Penguins are taking for this Winter Classic.

But wait, there's more. However, this next item is no longer appearing on the website (that I could find, at least). Luckily I nabbed the image yesterday before it disappeared — though it'll likely be back online before long.

Penguins t-shirt / shop.nhl.comThis t-shirt (left) perhaps provides a little more proof that the rounded numbers from that original jersey are to be used on the new dark blue sweater.

It's a dead ringer for the rendering posted here on the blog a couple weeks ago. Colors and everything. Even the captain's C is set in the same Helvetica-like type as the numbers. Those original jerseys never had nameplates so it seems Pittsburgh will carry the style over from their current uniforms.

I hope this is the final blog post on this subject before the official unveiling — which is apparently happening before the end of the month. They have 11 days.

So what's your take? Is the dark blue a good direction for an alternate Penguins uniform? Should Mario and Co. have gone back to the black and gold days of the '80s and '90s?

Blue on the Schedule

The Pittsburgh Penguins will unveil their 2011 Winter Classic sweater later this month and plan to wear it more than once this season.

Yesterday, the Penguins also released a third jersey schedule for 2010-11. The powder blue duds will hit the ice 10 times this season, including tonight's debut, while the yet unreleased Winter Classic sweater will see action twice beyond New Year's Day.

Here's how the schedule shakes out for the third jersey:

• Fri., Oct. 15 - vs NY Islanders
• Sat., Oct. 30 - @ Carolina
• Wed., Nov. 17 - vs Vancouver
• Sat., Nov. 27 - vs Calgary
• Mon., Dec. 6 - vs New Jersey
• Sun., Dec. 26 - @ Ottawa
• Sat., Jan. 8 - vs Minnesota
• Sat., Jan. 22 - vs Carolina
• Wed., Feb. 23 - vs San Jose
• Sun., Mar. 27 - vs Florida

Note that the powder blue sweater will be worn twice on the road against Carolina and Ottawa. Both of these teams have black thirds and red homes. Think we could see a night or two without white sweaters? That would be a treat.

Additionally, the release tells us the Penguins will unveil their new Winter Classic threads later this month, but doesn't cite a specific date. Icethetics has it on good authority they will be dark blue.

• Sat., Jan. 1 - vs Washington
• Thu., Feb. 10 - vs Los Angeles
• Sat. Mar. 12 - vs Montreal

This new sweater will see action at least twice after the outdoor game at Heinz Field. And more than likely, it will be the Pens' new third jersey in 2011-12.

Panthers Promoting Throwback Nights

The Florida Panthers will be holding three Throwback Nights this season, according to the team's season ticket packages.

Panthers season ticket holder Brian E. wrote in yesterday to let us know about about the events, which haven't yet been explained by the team. But we can only hope it means the red jersey will make a brief but welcome comeback.

Panthers celebrating Throwback NightsHere are the dates:

• Tue., Dec. 7 - vs Colorado
• Sat., Jan. 15 - vs New Jersey
• Thu., Mar. 17 - vs Toronto

The Dec. 7th game against the Avalanche has been dubbed "Throwback to 1996," referencing the only season in which the Panthers made it to the Stanley Cup Final. Unfortunately, they were swept by the Avs, but making it that far is pretty respectable in itself.

It seems obvious that the Panthers would use the old red sweaters based on the photos used on the tickets. Plus, it's the only thing they could "throw back" to after only 17 years of existence. However, "Throwback Night" may not necessarily refer to the uniforms. It's entirely possible it could just be an in-arena promotional thing with special appearances by former players and such.

We'll have to just wait and see, but how great would it be to see the Cats back in red?