Does Isles' Black Era End Today?

TV broadcaster says 2011 third jersey is done

Interesting jersey developments came today during the New York Islanders telecast. During the first period of their game against the Blues, play-by-play announcer Howie Rose said this match-up may be the final hurrah for the widely despised black third jersey.

For the video-impaired, here's the transcript:

Howie Rose: It may well be that the fans are getting some good news today. This could be the last time that the Islanders wear these sartorial atrocities known as the black alternate jerseys.

These schmattas might finally go away for good once the Islanders unveil their nifty Stadium Series jersey for the game against the Rangers Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium.

And you know, you can even hear… there's a discernible groan when the Islanders hit the ice either for warm-ups or before the game wearing these things. I know some of the fans have bought them.

Butch Goring: And they don't win either, Howie.

HR: 7-12-4, says Eric Hornick in these things that thankfully may well be consigned to the scrap heap in just a couple of hours.

One thing to note. Rose seems to suggest the Isles' Stadium Series jersey has not been unveiled yet. Of course we know it was back on Nov. 26. But this news jibes with what Chris Botta said recently.

That's now two sources saying the Stadium jersey will replace the black as the Isles' alternate uniform. Botta said by 2015, but Rose made it sound like the change could happen sooner.

Thanks to Layton O'Neil for the Twitter tip!

Update on Saturday · Jan 25 · 2014 | 12:38 PM PST by Chris

But wait! There's more!

Another Twitter tip from Dave C. pointed out that the jersey will be worn for additional regular season games after its Stadium Series debut this week. Coming back from the last commercial break of the first period, Rose talked specifically about the new sweater.

Again, if you can't watch the video, check out the transcript:

HR: Now that is a great looking alternate jersey. The Islanders are going to wear those for the first time at Yankee Stadium this week. And we'll be seeing them — so we understand — a few times throughout the rest of this regular season.

That's a third jersey I think the fans are really going to take to. So [we'll be] seeing a lot more of that.

What do you think? Do you prefer the blue or black? (I think I can probably guess.)

Update on Sunday · Jan 26 · 2014 | 5:35 PM PST by Chris

Another update, this time in the form of a Chris Botta tweet:

NHL exec: #Isles have approval to wear Stadium Series jersey at Coliseum. Will probably wear for 2 games before end of season.

— Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL) January 26, 2014

The more, the merrier, I say.

Big Changes Coming 2/1

Two full weeks is a long time to go between blog posts. The longest in a while, actually. But I wanted to check in with everyone to say I'm hard at work behind the scenes on a major relaunch of Icethetics. The big switch happens on Feb. 1.

This is different from the annual blog refresh I usually implement. It's much more than a redesign. I'm changing a lot about the way Icethetics works. And, of course, it will look completely different as well. (You won't even recognize it!) Don't worry, it's all for the best.

New Features

The biggest change to the content of the site will come in the form of a new weekly feature series. Every weekend I'll be posting in-depth articles on relevant topics. Those stories will be the focus on the new home page. This feature will ensure regular updates to the site as well as giving readers a little something beyond the day-to-day news — especially when it's light.

Speaking of the news, the blog will be getting a bit of an overhaul as well. New blog posts will be very short and to the point and should come more frequently, depending on what's going on. Over the long weekend, I shared on Twitter a sneak peek at how blog posts will appear on the new site.

Icethetics will get more than a facelift in 2014

I've tweaked the Icethetics logo and nav bar, as you can see. And the site will start taking its color cues from the teams in the news. Plus, the background texture just feels right for a site about hockey jerseys.

I also plan to expand IceHL fantasy league coverage with individual team history pages (which will likely replace the annual yearbooks). The jersey galleries will be reimagined (again). And in the coming months, we're returning to our roots with a new NHL Tournament of Logos (and other minor leagues to follow).

Formatted for Mobile

Another feature I'm really excited about is the new responsive design. If you read Icethetics on your smartphone, the site will be specially formatted for the smaller handheld screen. No more zooming and panning around.

What's Not Changing

I suppose just as important as what's changing is what's not changing. The Concepts page will continue to see daily posts and you'll still have access to great Icethetics-exclusive templates.

If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them. Email or comment. Just be sure to mark your calendar for February 1!