JerseyWatch 2010: Expanded

I have a ton of updates to make to NHL JerseyWatch 2010. Basically, the way this works is each time I have an update I'll be copying everything from the previous JerseyWatch post and adding in the new information (highlighted). This way you don't have to search around for past posts. Everything is in one place.

Everything is rumor until it becomes official. That being said, the following information is believed to be as accurate as possible. Teams are listed alphabetically. Highlighted text represents updated information.

Anaheim Ducks

New alternate jersey According to the information I have from Reebok, the Ducks will be adding an alternate jersey this season. Their home and road sweaters will remain unchanged.

By the way, the list I have does not detail any design elements so all we'd have is speculation at this point. And I'm going to try to avoid a lot of blind guessing in this post. You guys should feel free to add your speculation in the comments.

Boston Bruins

Speculation only The Boston Bruins are not among the teams noted by Reebok as changing their uniforms for the 2010-11 season. That includes the third jersey.

However, the Bruins have worn their gold Winter Classic jerseys three times since the big event. This has led to speculation that the Bs could be pushing toward making it a new alternate in the near future.

Buffalo Sabres

New home, road & alternate jerseys The Sabres will be undergoing big changes to celebrate their 40th anniversary season. Their current third jersey — a throwback with some modern updates — will take over as the home jersey, as has long been rumored.

Reebok lists the Sabres' road sweater as TBD, but it will most likely be a white version of the current alternates. I also understand they'll be adding an entirely new third jersey, but I'm told it may be only for the 40th anniversary season.

Sabres 2010 third jersey conceptIt will be royal blue with BUFFALO in a white script across the front, containing the vintage logo with the player's number underneath. The concept here to the right is my own rough rendering of the description I've been given. I've added the traditional striping and colors.

Obviously this jersey design isn't exact. But based on what I've been told, it's probably a good estimation. We'll have to wait until this summer to find out for sure.

Calgary Flames

New alternate jersey As the Flames have already announced, they will be bringing back the red retro jersey that was worn for a handful of games this season. The major difference is that it will be adapted to the Reebok Edge cut. The striping will remain as is. The home and road sweaters will not change.

The rumored black jersey that was previously in the works has likely either been tabled for a few years or scrapped entirely. We may never know. Unless Ken King gets chatty.

Columbus Blue Jackets

New alternate jersey The Blue Jackets have not made an official announcement, but theColumbus Dispatch confirmed earlier this month that a new third jersey is in development and will be used in the 2010-11 campaign. This is corroborated by Reebok.

According to the newspaper, a cannon will be the central feature of the crest on the new uniform. The jersey will be publicly unveiled in November 2010.

Dallas Stars

Road & alternate jerseys swapped Reebok confirms that the Stars will officially switch their road and alternate jerseys next season. Both jerseys are white. Currently, the third is a white version of the home jersey, which features DALLAS arched above the sweater number.

As of the fall, the white DALLAS jersey will become the primary road sweater. The one crested with the Stars' primary logo will become the alternate.

Nashville Predators

New home & road; no alternate jersey The indication from Reebok is that the Predators will turn the alternate jersey they launched this season into their new home sweater. The road sweater is listed as TBD but a safe assumption is that it will be a light version of the new dark jersey.

Because of these major changes, the Preds will not wear an alternate next season.

The new home jersey (third, currently) features the same primary logo the team has used since its inception in 1998 but with a simplified color scheme — now navy, steel blue, silver and black. The gold and orange have been removed.

New York Islanders

New home & road jerseys According to Reebok, the Islanders are changing only their road jersey. However, Isles blogger Chris Botta also said last year that the current retro thirds would become the new home sweater and a white road variant was in the works.

Now a source with the Islanders is confirming to Icethetics that the throwback royal blues will in fact be next year's home sweater and a white version will be adopted on the road. Fans in Bridgeport can already see them in action in the AHL.

No word yet on whether the current navy blue home jersey will be switched to alternate status or if it will go away entirely, leaving the Isles without a third uniform.

New York Rangers

New alternate jersey Reebok verifies the news we've all been dying to hear. The Rangers will wear an alternate jersey next season. But will it be the Lady Liberty logo make her glorious return?

Possible Rangers third?Reebok doesn't specify, however, Rangers blogger Greg Caggiano recently claimed to have the inside track on the new thirds. He says he's been told they'll be nearly identical to the current home jersey with NEW YORK replacing RANGERS across the front.

Caggiano doesn't specify a source so it could just be guessing. I think it would disappoint a lot of Rangers fans and Icethetics readers. The Rangers arguably had the best third jersey of the '90s with that Statue of Liberty logo emblazoned on the front.

Those navy blue sweaters were so popular that in 1998 the Rangers even added a white version for a short time. They were used up until 2007 when Reebok took over the league.

The Rangers previously wore a blue jersey with NEW YORK on the front from 1978 to 1987. The team's home and road sweaters will not change next season.

Ottawa Senators

Speculation only According to Reebok, as of February, the Senators had no plans of making any uniform changes. In addition, multiple retail sources confirm the team will in fact be keeping all three of their current jerseys going into 2010-11.

However, rumors have circulated since August regarding the possibility of a new vintage jersey being added to Ottawa's arsenal. It all started when Jacob Barrette's Heritage sweater concept began showing up in artist renderings of the new O Store at Scotiabank Place.

Another rumor was based on markdown sales, which could be more about meeting quotas than selling off existing stock to launch a new product. We'll have to wait and see what news the summer brings.

Philadelphia Flyers

New road jersey The Flyers will don new road threads for the 2010-11 campaign. While Reebok doesn't say so specifically, it is widely assumed they will wear the retro white jersey that debuted at the 2010 Winter Classic in Boston.

The Flyers have worn the jersey on at least one occasion in front of the home crowd since the outdoor game at Fenway Park. Their home and alternate jerseys will remain unchanged.

Pittsburgh Penguins

New alternate jersey It's been widely rumored and now Reebok is confirming that the Penguins will ditch their powder blue thirds in favor of a new alternate uniform for 2010-11. Once again, the manufacturer hasn't released any details of the design.

However, Tribune-Review beat writer Rob Rossi said in December that blue would be returning in some fashion to the new third jersey. It's probably a safe bet that the Pens will dig into their past once again for this sweater — likely going with one of the darker blue options.

The home and road jerseys will stay the same.

Toronto Maple Leafs

New home & road jerseys This may be a tad misleading. Reebok says the Maple Leafs will redesign their home and road sweaters for next year. Technically, this is accurate, but it won't be a major overhaul. At least not according to Howard Berger.

He claims to have seen all of the 2010 jersey changes and says that the white stripes, once around the base of the team's jerseys before Reebok got involved, will finally be returning. He also says the jerseys will have a new shoulder patch, noting that the previous one was a TML logo which debuted in 2000. He doesn't say what the new one will look like.

Toronto Star columnist Damien Cox has since confirmed with the Leafs that there will be minor changes made that have already been approved by the NHL.

The retro alternate jersey will remain intact. However, this could be the last season for it, according to the National Post. Leafs COO Tom Anselmi says it could be ditched as early as 2011 in favor of a redesigned third jersey, based on another era in Toronto's hockey past. He says the team has been working with Reebok on changes but wouldn't give up any specifics.

Vancouver Canucks

Speculation only Last month, word from Reebok was the Canucks had no plans of changing their uniforms for their 40th anniversary. Now retail sources are reporting plans are in development for a special vintage sweater.

It's been suggested the Canucks would follow in the footsteps of the Flames, wearing a special throwback sweater for a handful of games during the regular season. This jersey would likely be a replica of the one worn in 1970, the team's debut season, with the vintage stick-in-the-rink logo.

Reebok says...

As of February, Reebok listed the following teams as making no changes to any of their uniforms in 2010-11. They are: Atlanta, Boston, Carolina, Chicago, Colorado, Edmonton, Florida, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Ottawa, Phoenix, San Jose, St. Louis, Tampa Bay and Vancouver. In addition, Detroit, Montreal, New Jersey and Washington are the only four teams that do not have third jerseys and do not plan on adding or changing anything.

This information is subject to change over the course of the summer.

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That's the latest JerseyWatch 2010 update. This post will continue to be updated throughout the summer as new details emerge. And if you haven't seen it yet, I recommend checking out yesterday's JerseyWatch concept post as it provides a visual representation of some of the changes coming next season.

Minor League Notes, No Joke

I have a big JerseyWatch update coming tomorrow. Not posting it today for obvious reasons. No one would believe me. Instead, just a few minor minor league notes. First, a new logo was unveiled yesterday!

The AHL's Syracuse Crunch officially unveiled their new colors just a week after announcing a new affiliation agreement with the Anaheim Ducks. The Crunch's tweaked logo now matches their new parent club.

The revised logo features the club’s classic moniker depicting the face of an ice gorilla biting through a hockey stick with the word ‘CRUNCH’ emblazoned in ice block letters above him and showcases the new team colors of black, ice blue, metallic gold and burnt orange.

In addition, the Crunch will unveil a brand new uniform design that includes the new team colors in the upcoming weeks.

What the team doesn't mention in that release is the color in the gloves of the ice gorilla, which are neither metallic gold nor burnt orange. Looks to be some kind of brownish gray.

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When the ECHL's Johnstown Chiefs franchise makes the move to Greenville, S.C. this summer, the team will allow fans to pick the new name.

Team owner and GM Neil Smith said the Chiefs name will be staying in Johnstown and a name-the-team contest will be held, according to the Greenville News. The newspaper also said "the horrendous moniker Grrrowl will not be back." We can all breathe easy now.

Greenville is hopeful that hockey will be a success again as it once was. After all, they've seen the Kelly Cup in that town. And everybody likes a winner.

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Finally, Icethetics reader Chip pointed me toward Dan Krieger's Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report at OurSportsCentral. Krieger keeps tabs on all the goings-on with the often on-the-move minor league clubs. A couple of things stood out in his reports from the last couple of weeks.

With the Albany River Rats moving to Charlotte at the end of the season, it looks as if the Lowell Devils could replace them — returning the New Jersey Devils-owned affiliate to New York's capital city.

Krieger had the following in his report:

Now that the AHL's Portland Pirates have ended negotiations about a move to Albany (NY) for next season, Albany is reported to be negotiating with the Lowell (MA) Devils, the AHL affiliate of the New Jersey Devils in the National Hockey League.

The Devils had their AHL affiliate in Albany operating as the River Rats for 13 seasons before moving it to Lowell and purchasing the Lock Monsters for the 2006-07 season. The Albany River Rats have been affiliated with the Carolina Hurricanes since 2006, but Carolina is moving its AHL affiliate to Charlotte next season.

If that happens, the name would likely change to Albany Devils. However, I'm not sure if they'd bother changing the logo, despite the fairly obvious L it forms. We'll have to wait and see how it all pans out.

Krieger also reported that one group was attempting to bring back the ECHL's Charlotte Checkers franchise as the San Diego Gulls for the 2010-11 season. Evidently, those plans have fallen through.

The Checkers' name and logo will be appropriated to the AHL's River Rats when they move to Charlotte next season. That means the ECHL team will likely be disbanded this summer.

The Gulls played one season in the ECHL after it merged with the West Coast Hockey League.

Chiefs Relocating & Other Notes

The ECHL's Johnstown Chiefs will be moving to Greenville, South Carolina beginning in the 2010-11 season. This must've slipped past our collective radar when it was announced and approved by the league last month. But I just read an interesting article yesterday on ESPN.

Basically, the Chiefs, named by fans after the iconic team from the film Slap Shot — which was shot locally — have been on their last legs. Nobody is going to games and the team is piling up losses in more than just the standings.

Now the club will head to a former ECHL city which lost its original team, the Greenville Grrrowl (yes, that's three Rs in Grrrowl), when it folded in 2006. Not sure why hockey's expected to be a better draw four years later, but that's not a question for me to ask.

The reason this is relevant to Icethetics is it means we'll be following the rebranding of a franchise. Former Chiefs minority owner Ned Nakles is retaining the name and logo which means the ECHL will add a new team name and logo next season. (Hoping it's not Grrrowl.)

Chiefs' Marine jerseyAnd finally, the Chiefs wore what will probably be their last specialty sweater over this past weekend.

The jerseys are a tribute to the U.S. Marine Corps and the design is based on their dress uniforms. The Chiefs first wore them on Friday, grabbing their first W in two weeks with a 7-4 victory of the Toledo Walleye.

Unfortunately I can't seem to track down any photos of the jersey in action. Seems the Chiefs' web guys have pretty much given up this season too. They're just recycling photos in their game recaps.

Anyway, I noticed the numbers come straight from their NHL affiliate's white jerseys — the Minnesota Wild. Anyone know if the Wild will retain their affiliation agreement with the new Greenville team?

Rivermen Revert to the Past

Rivermen dress as PrancersThe AHL's Peoria Rivermen pranced out in Peoria Prancers jerseys over the weekend, paying tribute to the 1980s.

The Prancers were founded in the International Hockey League in 1982 and became the Peoria Rivermen two years later. Then in 1996, the franchise moved to San Antonio, Texas and were renamed the Dragons.

That same year an ECHL franchise was created with the Peoria Rivermen name. No one would've noticed except that all the players and management would've changed. Same logo and colors otherwise.

Then in 2005, that team went away and the AHL's Worcester IceCats moved to Peoria — becoming the third franchise to use that Rivermen moniker. I only offer the history lesson to point out that this isn't a tribute to franchise's past so much as the town's hockey past.

Looking at this jersey, I can't imagine why they ever changed their name in 1984. If you can't get enough of it either, Central Illinois Sports Photography has posted a huge gallery from the game — which Peoria won 4-1 (video included).

Thanks to Joe for the tip on this story.

Heated Tirade

Usually my hobby (hockey blogger) and my job (TV promotions producer) never intersect. I work at a news station in Florida and hockey isn't a popular topic here for obvious reasons. But last night was the exception.

Every night, I write/produce/edit a :30 promo for our 11 PM newscast to run during primetime. And in last night's newscast, our producer included video of Jim Playfair's freak-out behind the Abbotsford Heat bench over the weekend. Naturally I had to include it in the promo. And I thought I'd share it with you guys too.

Caps vs. Pens for 2011 Winter Classic?

Canada's National Post is reporting that the Pittsburgh Penguins will host the Washington Capitals for the next Winter Classic in 2011. Word is they would use Heinz Field — home of the NFL's Steelers. But the Post doesn't cite a source for the report.

The NHL has yet to make an official statement on which teams will be involved in the next outdoor game. The Pens participated in the inaugural event in 2008 at Ralph Wilson Stadium against the Buffalo Sabres.