Odd Art, Part II

First off, if you missed Part I then click here. Now that you know what's going on, let's dive right in. You know you like the weird stuff I post here.

We'll get things going with some imaginative Original Six designs.

Let me begin by saying the new Bruins jersey is not something you'd be wanting to mess around with. Trust me. It's that awesome. Now, as far as this concept goes, history has taught me that logos like this were probably not originated by the creator of the jersey design itself. If anyone would like to explain from where this particular Bruins logo is derived, leave a comment.

The Rangers jersey is interesting because there's actually a logo on it. A novel concept, not exactly, but it's something I feel the Rangers have struggled with. The 1970s taught us that this might not be the best use of the logo. I'm also concerned about the whole Broadway Blueshirts thing. For those of you lacking the ability to tell one color from another, that is red.

I will say this though, I am a huge proponent of the Lady Liberty logo and those jerseys. They've used a blue one and a white one and both looked better than anything the Rangers have ever worn. I might even go so far as to say it's the best any team has ever worn. But my suggestion to the Rangers is go with the NYR logo full time, and save the current sweater as a third jersey — beginning next season of course.

But who would want to listen to me anyway?

I haven't yet been able to fully grasp what's going on here but near as I can figure, we're looking at a couple of concepts for the Dallas Stars/Minnesota North Stars franchise. I get the shooting star thing in the one on the left, but I really can't work out what's going on in the one on the right. If you have any ideas I'd be happy to hear them. Comment away.

But that's not all. I'll leave you with one more today.

I understand what the designer is trying to do here, but I don't think the "P" in the real logo is that difficult to see. It doesn't jump out at you, but it shouldn't. Logos are meant to be looked at over and over again, so they're more effective when you discover something new every time you see it.

I know a lot of folks would disagree with me on that, but I think it's the reason the Minnesota Wild's logo is so spectacular.

But back to this. The striping is not great and the logo doesn't really need a change. But I feel like an ass for having nothing good to say about it. It's not like it's the worst thing in the world, I'm only thinking that Philly fans would revolt.

But that's all just my opinion. Feel free to share yours below.

And if you or someone you know has been afflicted by the concept art disease and would like help with public dissemination, you know how to reach me. Send an email to nhllogos@gmail.com.

Some Unusually Familiar Concepts

I got a funny email yesterday. Check out these. See if you notice a pattern.

I don't feel a need to explain or comment on them really. They sort of speak for themselves. Pretty clever, if you ask me. What do you think of them?

Jersey Concept Art Galore

Busy day today. Shame I'm only getting to my first post at 5 PM, but some days, that's the way it goes.

Always gotta kick things off with some good concepts. So let's dive in with the Boston Bruins.

I like these logos much better on a yellow jersey than the old bear head. Although, I say that now but to be fair, when it came out I thought it was pretty damn cool.

I also like the striping patterns on both jerseys. When the third jersey program is reinstated next fall, I hope the Bruins consider something like this. It's very sharp.

Then, one thing a lot of people have been contemplating is what the Atlanta Thrashers would look like if the road jersey matched the home jersey.

Perhaps it would look like this. That's really nice, if you ask me. I really love the asymmetry of that light blue jersey. The city down the arm looks great and it's so unique to this team. I'm really impressed and I only wish the Lightning had thought of it first.

One reader also emailed me a handful of concept designs. I wish I had larger images, but this is what was sent.

My favorite in that set is the Kings but I think the red Blue Jackets sweater is ironic and very sharp. Not a fan of the black Wings jersey and the blue Isles jersey reminds me of the Lightning's old black sweaters with the white along the shoulders.

Now it's time for your input. Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Rbk EDGE Review: Bruins

Part 1 of 30. All 30 NHL clubs have unveiled new jerseys under the new Rbk EDGE Uniform System for the 2007-08 season. Here at the NHLToL, we're going to review every one of them. Read up and then rate the new sweaters. We'll do a full ranking after completing all of the reviews.

Rbk EDGE Uniform System

Boston Bruins

New Uniforms

Old Uniforms

The Unveiling
Thursday, June 21, 2007. The Bruins unveiled their new logo and uniforms to fans at an event the day before the NHL Draft.

Home vs. Road
Home: Black. Road: White. Both sweaters feature the same crest and secondary logo patches on each shoulder. The primary colors are black, yellow and white.

The black home jerseys feature yellow-white-yellow spaced stripes around the elbows. The same pattern is found around the waist. The yellow shoulder yoke features white stripes beneath that extend from the laced collar almost to the shoulder.

The white road jerseys feature yellow-black-yellow spaced stripes around the elbows. The same pattern is found around the waist. A black cuff extends up the sleeve to the elbow stripes. The black shoulder yoke features yellow stripes beneath that extend from the laced collar almost to the shoulder.

In The Details
The shoulder patches are different for the home and road sweaters. On the home jersey, the word "Bruins" is arched above a bear with the word "Boston" underneath. The words are swapped on the road jersey.

New & Old
The biggest uniform alteration, aside from the new logos, is seen along the shoulders and sleeves. The vertical stripe down the arms are gone and the horizontal elbow stripes have been wrapped completely around the arm. In addition, the stripe colors around the waist have been swapped on the home jersey.

Standard FAQ
Numbers on the front? No.
Laces at the collar? Yes.

NHLToL Editorial by Chris
By all accounts, the Boston Bruins by far have one of the best uniforms in the new crop. Classic and dignified. The essence of a hockey jersey. From the stripes to the shoulder bars to the collar laces, the style is top-notch. Even the upgrade to the primary and secondary logos is simply stunning. Boston's was the first jersey unveiled this summer and it gave hope to everyone dreading the "new-fangled" style being introduced by Reebok and the NHL. It's a shame this style didn't permeate more teams. 5/5

View the photo gallery

Buy your new Bruins jersey!

Just To Freak You Out VII

I've decided to make the Freak Out series into a weekly feature to be posted on Fridays from now on as long as crazy artwork keeps landing in my inbox. And man, do I have some stuff for you this week.

We'll begin with our friend Pfizer who's created mish-mash logos for the likes of the Vancouver Canucks, Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders (check out the Freak Out series for those if you haven't yet). Now comes another shot at logo merging for the Los Angeles Kings.

For my money, it's not his best effort, but it makes me laugh no less. I'm a little disappointed he couldn't find a way to work in the current crown logo. But then it does feel a little thrown together. You have to admit, though, that king face is a great logo. Don't mess with that son of a bitch.

Meanwhile, I've got some completely new takes on a couple of team logos and uniforms. Imagine the Boston Bruins swapping out the yellow for red. Then imagine a cartoon bruin the likes of which might be owed money by Yogi Bear.

He's come to collect. Then imagine the Colorado Avalanche adopting a yeti for their primary mark. Might it frighteningly go a little something like this?

We should hope not. Lest ye bear the brunt of the abominable snowman's ever-clenched fist. And what's up with the upside-down feet on the shoulders?

Speaking of what-ifs, let's say the Kansas City Scouts were to make their glorious return to the NHL. Let's also say their return was marked by the uprooting of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Yes, this design was made in the days when the Pens' future was uncertain. I point that out merely to explain its color usage.

If you enlarge the image, you can read the designer's explanations of the three logos, so I'll spare you the details here. What I will say is that I like Patch 2. I'm a big fan of city skylines in logos, though you don't see that a whole lot. What's cool about this one is the new Sprint Center being placed to look like a puck. Clever.

The horse's eyes are freaking me out, by the way.

This next image is probably best viewed while high. I don't condone drug use, but chances of one having an "experience" are rather great. See for yourself.

Someone with a good deal of free time and an inability (or not) to cure boredom came up with this. He basically recolored the Montreal Canadiens' logo in the colors of various teams around the league. Conspicuous is the absence of the Tampa Bay Lightning's colors. But I guess not everything is about the Lightning.

Now I want to show you some of the scariest things of all — because they're real! Okay zombies aren't real, but movies are real. A reader emailed me a production still from the new Resident Evil movie. One of the zombies appears to be wearing an old Nashville Predators sweater.

Talk about foreshadowing. That's not even right.

And finally, a reason for all those NHL fans out there bemoaning the arrival of the new Rbk EDGE jerseys to quiet themselves. It could have been so much worse. A fact proven by the AHL's Philadelphia Phantoms.

AHL fans, continue your bemoaning. It's perfectly warranted.

Freak.

Out.

Result: Bruins Logo History

BEST ALL-TIME
2007
44% 3,625 votes

8,239 total votes

1995
16% 1,345 votes

1924
16% 1,292 votes

1948
15% 1,249 votes

1932
9% 728 votes

Click here to see the original poll

Poll opening date Sep 11 @ 4:24 AM

Poll closing date Sep 18 @ 11:59 PM

07BONLH | LHBOS

Poll: Bruins Logo History

1924	1932	1948

1995	2007

Place your vote and then feel free to leave a comment as to how you came to your decision. Tell all your friends to drop in and vote! The more voices heard, the more accurate the results!

Poll opening date Sep 11 @ 4:24 AM

Poll closing date Sep 18 @ 11:59 PM

07BONLH | LHBOS

Just To Freak You Out... Some More!

Yes, you read that title right. Back by popular demand, I'm going to get your weekend off to a kicking start. I have the weird and crazy; a whole slew of new and wacky concept designs just meant to freak you out. So buckle in, it's going to be a long one.

I'm going to have a theme of red and black tonight. You'll see what I mean, but first I need to show you this.

From the brilliant creator of the Sabres and Canucks mish-mash logos comes this gem. True art in its rawest form. I dare anyone to attempt to improve upon that.

But since you can't, we'll move along. Do you like the color combination of red and black? Sure, if you're a Devils, Hurricanes, Senators or Coyotes fan. But what about Sabres, Predators and Canadiens fans? What about Leafs fans? Look on if you're brave enough.

It's a little blinding, isn't it? You might be surprised to discover that these designs all came from different people. Bad enough to have one disturbed mind out there Devil-ifying all these jerseys. There are at least four.

This Canadiens concept just scares me so I want to stop looking at it. The Sabres one just looks like a bloody slug (I knew that comment was coming so I wanted to head it off). And the Predators... well that doesn't look half bad if you ask me.

But imagine what kind of disturbed mind I must be to posting this stuff.

Wait. You need to catch your breath before you see this. Maple Leafs fans, ready your eyeballs for this one.

Wow, you're still here. I'm impressed.

All right, now I'm going to ease off a little bit. These designs are not so much horrifying as funny.

Dude, you spilled some oil on your— oh, wait... I see... yikes. Yeah. Oilers fans, I'm genuinely interested to know how you feel about this particular concept. I know it's been floating around a little, but it's just so... out there.

So what if the Rangers did this?

We probably ought not think about it.

Someone spent at least 30 seconds making this.

A missed opportunity, I say.

As a tribute (or not so much) to what I'm going to start calling the "VANCOUVER Incident," someone had some fun with other jerseys.

Similar work on the Sens, Isles and Jackets can be found in the Concepts Gallery. Now I'm going to wrap up where I began — Long Island. Imagine if Reebok decided the NHL should go the way of basketball.

Check out that outline of the island in place of a horizontal stripe. All is well.

Just remember, you guys asked for this. Let this be an object lesson in the notion of being careful what you wish for. Actually, if this keeps up, we'll make it into a weekly feature. So if you've made or found crazy crap like this, feel free to send it my way at nhllogos@gmail.com and who knows, you just might freak somebody out.

Result: Senators vs Bruins

Ottawa
SENATORS
51% 10,129 votes

Boston
BRUINS
49% 9,847 votes

19,976 total votes

Ottawa Senators
Advancing to Quarterfinals to face Thrashers or Flyers

Boston Bruins
Eliminated

Click here to see the original poll

Poll opening date Aug 30 @ 4:18 AM

Poll closing date Sep 6 @ 11:59 PM

07CHTRN | #E2C | OTTvBOS

Poll: Senators vs Bruins

	vs
Ottawa SENATORS		Boston BRUINS

Place your vote and then feel free to leave a comment as to how you came to your decision. Tell all your friends to drop in and vote! The more voices heard, the more accurate the results!

UPDATE (9/5 2:36 AM): You already know what I'm going to say. I've closed the comments on this post. You guys need to get a hold on yourselves. It's just a silly poll that, in the long run, will mean absolutely nothing to anybody. I guess I can't make anyone not take it seriously, but come on. This isn't a message board. This is a personal blog. Not only are you being rude to each other, but you're being horribly rude to me. And it's not right.

I offer the privilege to post comments assuming you can be civil about it. There's no call for vicious attacks on one another or myself. If someone says something you don't like, try to let it go or just don't visit my blog anymore. That's all I can offer. Please don't ruin it for everyone else. Thank you.

Poll opening date Aug 30 @ 4:18 AM

Poll closing date Sep 6 @ 11:59 PM

07CHTRN | #E2C | OTTvBOS