Rbk EDGE Review: Lightning

Part 5 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

Tampa Bay Lightning

New Uniforms

Old Uniforms

The Unveiling
Saturday, August 25. The Lightning unveiled their new uniforms to fans at ICEfest held at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa. Among those players in attendance were Chris Gratton, Filip Kuba, Johan Holmqvist and Marty St. Louis donning their new jerseys.

Home vs. Road
Home: Black. Road: White. The two sweaters are essentially mirror images of each other in terms of overall design and both feature secondary logo patches on each shoulder.

The black home jerseys feature white cuffs with thin blue piping at the wrist. A blue stripe around the arm rounds up on the inside to the armpit. The collar is blue and the primary logo serves as the crest.

The white road jerseys feature black cuffs with thin blue piping at the wrist. A blue stripe around the arm rounds up on the inside to the armpit. The collar is blue and the primary logo serves as the crest.

In The Details
The same shoulder patches featuring the secondary logo are found on both shoulders of each sweater. The block style numbering and lettering have been retained. The white sweaters feature the jersey number on the front right shoulder. The black ones do not. The unique thin stripes found under the armpit have been carried over from the old style jersey. Another noticeable change was to the pants where the lightning bolt now sits on a blue stripe.

New & Old
The Lightning were one of seven teams to introduce new logos. Aside from that, the overall jersey designs saw drastic changes. The shoulder yokes found on both sweaters are now gone, making the jersey a solid color throughout. In addition, the horizontal stripes at the waist are gone and the sleeve stripes have been greatly altered.

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

UPDATE (10/5 2:01 AM): Originally, the Lightning were only going to be wearing the number on the front of the white jerseys. Apparently that's changed as they wore the numbers on the front of the black jersey in the regular season opener. So the information here has been changed to reflect that both jerseys now have numbers on the front.

NHLToL Editorial by Chris
I should first say that with the Lightning being my favorite team, I may come off as biased. But this is the opinion area after all. As a Lightning fan, I've always thought our uniforms were dull and second rate. I can now proudly say we've taken a huge leap forward. I don't know if I can honestly say I believe the new sweater stands up to the likes of some of the others, but I'm very impressed. My favorite aspects include the increase in the use of blue in the uniform and the removal of the shoulder yokes. A fact worth noting that I own a black Rbk EDGE premier jersey and I love it. 4/5

View the photo gallery

Buy your new Lightning jersey!

Your Daily Dose Is Here

You know what this is. I've got today's concept art right here and there's a lot of it! And it's gonna be good. Mostly.

We'll start out with this Florida Panthers logo that caught my eye whilst I perused my inbox.

It's a sort of fusion between the primary and secondary logos that the designer said stemmed from an idea based off of the old Buffalo Sabres logo. But while that logo seemed to red "Buffalo Sabres" from top to bottom, this one seems to say "Panther Palm Trees."

No but seriously, it's very sharp. A little to detailed to ever see printed anywhere but here, but still nice.

What I'm concerned about is this logo. I'm certainly more a fan of the official VC logo introduced by the Vancouver Canucks last month. They introduced so many cool new logos, though. It's hard to like the orca on the crest anymore.

I got an email a while back, the source of which I cannot vouch for, that suggested the Canucks have planned to change their logo again in 2010 following the Olympics. This time they would feature Johnny Canuck as their primary symbol. I won't take a position on whether or not that has any validity, despite this logo just being introduced.

Anyway, perhaps a jersey may look something like this.

Although that V across the front of the jersey really scares me.

In other news, one of my things is that I feel like the New York Islander should make use of a lighthouse in their logo — if even just as a secondary. This concept borrows a recolored lighthouse logo from the mid-90s logo introduced as part of the "fish sticks" get up. That design wasn't all bad.

What I could live without is any changes to the New Jersey Devils' uniforms. I rated them a 5/5 in my review yesterday. Still, someone toyed with it a little.

That is something I feel would work for improving the Edmonton Oilers' sweaters, but not so much the Devils. Interesting as it is, I'd never want to see the Devils hit the ice in it.

Along those same lines is this item. The Hurricanes are just one of those teams that I cannot possibly envision in any colors but black, red and silver. I just can't do it.

So this whole Hartford Whalers thing has me thrown. It's just so unacceptable, you know? Or maybe it's just me. I often tend to go against the grain. You know this already if you're aware of my feelings regarding the Blackhawks' logo and uniforms.

And that about wraps things up. If you have any comments you'd like to share with the rest of the class, please do so by leaving a comment below. If you have any of your own artwork or have stumbled across someone else's that I haven't posted, feel free to email me.

Rbk EDGE Review: Devils

Part 4 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

New Jersey Devils

New Uniforms

Old Uniforms

The Unveiling
Thursday, September 13. Photos of various Devils players wearing the new sweaters began appearing on the team web site. No unveiling ceremony was held.

Home vs. Road
Home: Red. Road: White. The two sweaters essentially mirror each other in terms of overall design.

The red home jerseys feature white-black-white stripes around the elbows and waist with the black stripe being roughly twice the thickness of one white. The black shoulder yoke is squared and slightly curved at the ends. The black collar features a thin white stripe within. The primary mark is featured as the crest.

The white road jerseys feature red-black-red stripes around the elbows and waist with the black stripe being roughly twice the thickness of one red. The black shoulder yoke is squared and slightly curved at the ends. The black collar features a thin red stripe within. The primary mark is featured as the crest.

New & Old
There are no major differences. The design of the old sweater was merely adapted to the Rbk EDGE cut.

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

NHLToL Editorial by Chris
Given that the Devils have had one of the league's best uniforms since exchanging green for black 15 years ago, I'd say this would be among the last uniforms to need a change. I'm glad to see they didn't do any major alterations and that some of the more glaring EDGE elements (e.g.: piping) were left out of this design. The colors make the jersey simple and strong. A split-second look leaves you with no doubt that you are watching the New Jersey Devils. I can't think of a single thing that would improve it. 5/5

View the photo gallery

Buy your new Devils jersey!

EDGE Makes Flames Sweaty, Too

I recently posted an article from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette about members of the Penguins whining over certain aspects of the new Rbk EDGE jerseys. Well now, according to the Calgary Sun, the Flames have jumped on board.

Randy Sportak wrote this article on Tuesday. You can read it below.

September 25, 2007

New duds judged a dud

By Randy Sportak
Calgary Sun

Traditionalists still call a hockey uniform a sweater.

Having now sampled the new, high-tech togs unveiled by all 30 NHL teams this year for a handful of pre-season games, Flames players are understanding why the word sweat is in sweater.

"My undershirt is just soaked," said forward Owen Nolan. "I find I'm changing them in between periods and a lot more frequently than before. I feel like I'm working out in a sauna."

The new uniform system unveiled by RBK has benefits. Sweaters are lighter, are apparently more wind resistant and repel moisture.

However, while moisture doesn't soak in from the outside, it doesn't release from inside the uniform. That means players are becoming saturated in their own sweat.

"With the other ones, you had holes and got more of a breeze in there — maybe that's why you got that drying out effect," said blueliner Cory Sarich. "These seem to heat you up more because there's not that two-way air flow.

"Besides, the jerseys don't feel much different than the old ones. I don't know if they've accomplished what they want. From talking to guys, I don't feel they're making a difference on the ice."

Moreover, players around the league are complaining their gloves are becoming so full of sweat they have to change them constantly.

Also, their skates are filling like buckets, and that's not a piece of equipment they want to change mid-game.

The complaints don't end there, either.

To be form fitting over equipment, the sweaters are made of a stretchier material. Uniforms are tied down in the back to prevent an opponent from pulling it over their head in a fight, but it's now possible to 'jersey' somebody in a brouhaha.

"I know with the old ones, my sweater could only be pulled about halfway up my neck, but these come up over my head," said Warren Peters, one of the few Flames to drop the gloves this pre-season. "It's like they're elastic."

Forward Eric Godard hasn't been in a scrap yet, so he hasn't experienced the impact first-hand.

"The old jersey trick has been around a long time," he said. "Usually in a fight, I'm not worrying about the jersey. I worry about the other guy. If I start getting beat up, then I'll be saying, 'It's not fair.' "

And then comes the aspect considered most controversial about the new uniform. Some players prefer the uniforms being tighter, but the majority are partial to the old unis. In the development stage, RBK worked with player input, but still skaters feel restricted.

"I feel skinnier, but that's not the look I'm going for," Sarich said. "It takes me longer to get my sweater on because the shoulder pads and the elbow pads get tangled up in the sleeves."

"They're really tight," Nolan said. "I used to wear a really loose shirt because I want the freedom."

But, nobody's expecting the league to go back to the old ways, so it's best to accept it.

"You're soaked. But whatever sells jerseys, I guess," said defenceman Anders Eriksson. "Anyway, just give me a jersey, and I'll work with it."

Besides, seeing as the sweaters are supposed to be 9% more wind resistant, players must be 9% faster.

"Oh yeah, can't you tell?" Eriksson laughed. "I almost feel slower because everybody was telling me I was gonna be faster."

So essentially, the moral of the story is you cannot please everybody all the time. Hopefully we all knew that already, though.

Oilers, Here's How You Fix It

The Fix It series trudges on tonight as we consider improvements to the new Rbk EDGE NHL uniforms. I told you yesterday that you'd be in for a treat on this one.

As far as I'm concerned, the Edmonton Oilers have gotten stuck with one of the worst new sweaters in the league. That's a personal opinion, but I stand by it. Many have complained that the Rbk EDGE jerseys look a lot like practice jerseys. I disagree with that statement as a generalization. But here, I find it appropriate.

I have several designs to show you and I'll save the best for last. We'll start out by making some very slight alterations that would improve the jerseys on a major scale.

By simply extending the stripes on the sleeves to wrap completely around the elbows and adding a shoulder patch — one borrowed from last year's third jersey — you already end up with a sweater that doesn't look quite so blank. It's disappointing to see that the Oil couldn't manage something as easy as this on their own.

Then we have another design very similar to this but with a brand new shoulder patch.

I think that's a very interesting logo and with a little work, it could be great. I also truly believe that fixing the elbow stripes and adding something to the shoulders is all this jersey needs to really make it shine.

But speaking of shining, this is what you've been waiting for. Personally, I feel like it's one of the best Edmonton concept designs I've seen this summer.

The pattern was borrowed, obviously, from the Florida Panthers' new duds, but these colors are what Oilers hockey is all about. Imagine Gretzky and Messier wearing this. You almost can't help it. I am very impressed with this design, but as a Bolts fan I'm not sure I really have a say. I'll leave it to the rest of you now to decide. Especially Oilers fans.

Tell us how you feel about these fixes in the comments.

Up next: Washington Capitals.

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.

Ducks, Here's How You Fix It

We're working our way through the less accepted jerseys that have been introduced at the hands of Reebok this offseason. Today we're addressing the Anaheim Ducks, specifically.

One of my pet peeves is wordmarks passing themselves off as logos. So you can imagine my disdain for the Ducks' new logo when it was introduced last summer. Now it's the smallest crest on any of the new Rbk EDGE uniforms (Dallas' home sweater doesn't count because that's another animal altogether). So here's a simple fix.

How hard would that have been? Really? So disappointing.

But let's just say for the sake of argument that this suggestion is too drastic. What about this?

It's very subtle, but adding that black oval behind the wordmark does wonders for it. If you ask me, it doesn't do enough, but it's definitely better.

Am I way off base here? Ducks fans, do you approve? If you have any suggestions yourself, email me and you might just see it posted here one day soon.

Coming up next: Edmonton Oilers. And Oilers fans, you aren't going to want to miss it. Man, did your club miss the boat on this one. Knowing you guys the way I do, you're going to love it.

Rbk EDGE Review: Avalanche

Part 3 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

Colorado Avalanche

New Uniforms

Old Uniforms

The Unveiling
Wednesday, September 12. The Avalanche unveiled their new uniforms to the public at a press conference.

Home vs. Road
Home: Burgundy. Road: White. The two sweaters are essentially mirror images of each other in terms of overall design and both feature secondary logo shoulder patches.

The burgundy home jerseys feature thick, blue stripes down the sleeves. There is also a blue panel extending up the side of the torso to the armpit. Thin black and white piping lines the sides extending down from the collar.

The white road jerseys feature thick, burgundy stripes down the sleeves. There is also a burgundy panel extending up the side of the torso to the armpit. Thin silver and blue piping lines the sides extending down from the collar.

In The Details
The same shoulder patches featuring the secondary logo are found on both shoulders of each sweater. The collar is blue, outlined in a thick silver stripe. The unique numbering and lettering style has been retained.

New & Old
The biggest difference between the old new sweaters is the new striping and pattern of the Rbk EDGE jerseys. Gone are the zig-zag, mountain range-shaped stripes extending the length of the sleeve. A similar element around the waist is also gone, leaving the waists of the new jerseys blank.

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

NHLToL Editorial by Chris
If you'd asked me a year ago which NHL club had the best uniform, among the list of those I'd seriously consider would've been the Avalanche. That was until now. I recognize the limitations of the EDGE design but refuse to accept it as a valid excuse. I really liked the mountain range thing along the arms and waist. It's sad to see it go. Though, to be fair, the overall look of the jersey remains largely unchanged. Beyond that, the piping extending down from the collar makes the logo seem trapped. All in all, this could've been so much better. 3/5

View the photo gallery

Buy your new Avalanche jersey!

Mailbag: Silly Bolts Concepts

It occurs to me I haven't written a Lightning posted in a while — six days to be precise. It's all right though because some folks have been creating some crazy Tampa Bay concept art. These were emailed to me this past week and they're worthy of the Freak Out series, but I just could bear to wait any longer to post them.

This first one is a rather simple concept. The team is called the Lightning. So let's put some lightning on the jersey.

I wasn't amused. More like horrified. But it was a good effort. Though I've never seen black or blue lightning bolts in my life. Perhaps 23 years in Florida isn't enough.

Then, along the lines of sharks and panthers biting through hockey sticks comes this idea.

What worse is that this was stolen from my own design — the only one I've ever made for this site. It's frightening, really.

By the way, I hope you all understand I'm not trying to be mean. It's just a team that's close to my heart. Anyway, that's all I got. If you've come up with anything or seen anything that hasn't been posted already, please send it along. I'd love to see it.

Concepts For Logo Upgrades

All right, if you've been reading for a long time (or even a short time), you probably know about my distaste for the logo many consider to be among the best in sports. That of the Chicago Blackhawks. I just don't see the allure.

You might find it surprising that I don't stand alone. In fact, in the past I've even posted changes folks have made to the logo. Well, I have another one. I still don't love it, but with a little work, I'd call it a big step in the right direction.

Then I thought this one was kind of funny. Not crazy enough to freak anybody out, but definitely different. Imagine the Phoenix Coyotes using both logos together with their current color scheme.

Okay so maybe it is a bit scary. What's not scary is this New York Islanders concept. I don't know. It just feels like such a special thing when you run into a concept this well-designed. Dump the text out of that logo and you've got yourself pure gold.

I like these jerseys so much. Even using the current logo on the shoulder is a great touch. Hell, I could even live with this lighthouse logo as a secondary. But I really do think the Isles should reintroduce something of this nature. I just feel like a lighthouse would make such a great logo for the Isles.

And finally, we go completely off topic here. This is a fan made logo redesign for the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals.

Thought it was pretty decent. It feels a little familiar to me, like I've seen it somewhere before. But that could just be my brain playing tricks.

What do you guys think? Feel free to drop a line in the comments.