Just To Freak You Out XXXVIII

The absurdity continues here in my little corner of the world. First thing's first. We all have to be able to laugh at ourselves every now and then and god knows I make a habit of it. But this whole "rebranding" thing — it's a little weird, right? I mean it takes a special kind of person to keep an entire blog dedicated to the redesigning of NHL logos by various artistically inclined hockey fans.

I got a graphic emailed in this week that really made me laugh and I have to lead off with it.

Let the petty sniping begin (we all know that's what the comments are for anyway). I think it's absolutely hilarious. And when it comes to well-designed artwork, I get inspired regardless of whether I think a team should actually wear it in real life. That's what art is for anyway, isn't it?

But this post is about freaking you out, so you won't find any detailed and well-thought-out designs here. Instead, imagine the Quebec Nordiques going out west to become the Denver Dekes.

I don't have the words for it. Nor this.

I need a prescription for a drug that will allow me to fly. What's that? You say they don't make one? Hmm...

Forgive the poor quality of the jerseys in the next image, but these are worth looking at.

Be sure not to miss the purple and orange Flyers jerseys.

And lastly, an article on Yahoo! was pointed out to me today. The writer talks about the horror that was the Mighty Ducks third jersey back in the mid-'90s. (You guys should know, you voted it worst third jersey logo EVER!)

Anyway, that got me thinking. A while back I got these logos from a reader. He took the duck bursting through the ice and painted a different team's logo and jersey onto it — and then did it again for every team in the NHL! It's an absolute riot and this is the perfect time to start posting them.

As you can see I started with the Pacific Division so that I could show you the crazy duck with the new Ducks logo and colors on it. Just wait until you see the rest of the league. I'll post a new division in each Freak Out Friday post until we get through all six.

Wallpaper Wednesday III

It's Wednesday and that means I have wallpapers for you. You guys have been sending in some great stuff, so pick something new to grace your desktop this week.

First, Roberto Luongo's mask won the NHL Tournament of Goalie Masks so one reader designed a wallpaper with that in mind along with the blog's new name.

Plus, for all you Canucks fans, a couple of logo wallpaper options here.

And our friend SnyperP who's been fulfilling some requests has these to share.

That Islanders background is nice, but so are the Leafs and Sharks.

And finally, for Ducks fans, I've got a couple of excellent wallpapers to share.

Giguere looks great (from LightItUp4126 at allducksgraphics.com), but I like the color scheme here for Schneider (from Dark Knight at allducksgraphics.com).

So if I were a Ducks fan, it'd be a toss-up as to which one I went with. Hope you guys enjoyed those. I'll have more next week. And if you've designed any you'd like to share, email them to me at nhllogos@gmail.com.

Just To Freak You Out XXXVII

Two weeks have elapsed since the last Freak Out Friday, so right on time it's here again. And oddly enough, we're starting where we started last time — with the clubs from New York.

I think that needs no explanation. And sticking with NY for a moment, check out this Buffalo Sabres logo concept.

Yeah it takes a minute to really realize what you're seeing. At first you're thinking, "yeah, that classic '70s logo... but wait, something is a little off about it — aside from the buffalo being yellow, that is." Oh that's it! It has a slug head.

And just when you thought the Sabres hadn't been through enough for one Freak Out post, just wait for this.

Perhaps if the Bills played hockey... No, just no. And while we're on the topic of odd jerseys, we have another.

I believe we've seen something of this nature before, but it's still funny to me.

Now we're heading out west for the rest of the post — starting with a very strange Vancouver Canucks concept logo.

The whale is diving into the "C" ... get it? (Say it out loud if you haven't gotten it yet.)

And with the QMJHL logo tournament in full swing over at ToHL, a reader sent me this logo crossing the Rimouski Oceanic with the Phoenix Coyotes.

Finally, on a completely different tack, someone has not only created a brand for a team, they've created a brand new team. I'm told the Florida Panthers should move to Seattle to become the Totems.

Now I'm no fan of the stinkin' Panthers but if this is the only option, I can't say I'd wholeheartedly support it. The design comes complete with jerseys and everything.

So keep your freaky artwork coming so I can keep this series going. Check back in two weeks for the next Freak Out Friday.

Oh, and to anyone out there who doesn't believe in the evil powers of Friday the 13th, consider this: Tim Russert dropped dead in the NBC newsroom today, a 6.9 magnitude earthquake rattled Japan, Iowa is under water and a tornado just tore off a bunch of roofs and wiped out a Wal-Mart down here in my part of Florida.

Yeah, but that Wal-Mart had it coming.

Eastern Identities

Just when you thought things couldn't get better, what with the Wallpaper Wednesdays kicking off today, I have concept logos. And some really great ones too. And since we did the West yesterday, today we're sticking to the East. Dare I say it, some of them even rise to level of Matt's work.

We're starting with the New York Rangers. And before you balk at the notion of rebranding a member of the Original Six, just give it a chance.

If you've been reading this blog a while, you know how much I love the Lady Liberty logo for the Rangers. Here are the uniforms to go with that logo set.

These work exceptionally well and I think that's hard to deny. Now I could go on and on about the quality of this artwork, but I'm more interested in reading what you guys have to say, so comment below.

But first, let's move on to the Ottawa Senators.

It's like a Hulked up version of the new alternate logo. Scary. Very scary.

Got a couple more neat designs before I call it a night, including a secondary logo for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Or who knows, maybe it would even work as a primary. But I'm smart enough to know you guys don't like messing with tradition.

Then this here is just a Philadelphia Flyers logo incorporating the Liberty Bell.

So we begin and end with "liberty" today, apparently. Weird. Totally unintentional. Seriously though, drop us a line. I really want to read what you guys think of these logos, especially the Rangers. (Take a close look at that secondary mark.)

I hope to have more for you tomorrow.

Just To Freak You Out XXXIV

Time again for me to try to freak you out with some of the crazy stuff people send to me. We've got a theme for this one, though.

As you know, we're currently in the midst of the Tournament of Goalie Masks. It's pretty cool and it's made a lot of people look at goalie masks in a different way. I'm not really sure how to describe these next couple of graphics. They're not so much concept art as... freaky.

Yeah, that's an astronaut's mask on Cam Ward.

Right, a welder's mask on Marty Turco.

Ah, and a diver's mask on Jean-Sebastien Giguere. That's just trippy. Wait it gets worse.

Stare at this a little while.

I'm pretty sure a bunch of Leafs and Sens fans just swore off this blog. It's just so... freaky.

Speaking of which, ever wondered if Luongo can pull off purple?

Yeah, he can't. I've got an "If They Mated" concept for the Canucks, though.

I like the Rangers' jerseys with the red in them. But now let's get really nuts. If you want First Nations art, why don't you just go all or nothing?

And the answer comes back plainly enough.

We'll stay in Canada as we finish things off this week.

It's an actual maple leaf. Inventive.

That's all. As I mentioned before, I'm probably going to be making the Freak Out Fridays into an every-other-week feature simply because I'm not getting enough stuff sent to me to do it every Friday. But I enjoy these posts when I can write them and I know you guys do too.

Enjoy your weekend and stick around for more news about the changes going down here at NHLToL. Our birthday is just a week away!

Fan Art To Finish Your Weekend

I think I promised you guys a concept post before the weekend was out, so here it is. I've assembled some of my favorite designs from my stash. There's a lot of quality work, so let's dive in.

First, an interesting new look for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

I'd like to see the jerseys that go with it. If nothing else, the production value is through the roof on this one.

But if you want to talk excellent concept logos, look no further than this one for the Washington Capitals.

I admit I had to stare at it a while, but there it is, a "W" and a "C." And I don't know why it took us so long to realize that if you put those two letters together the right way, it forms a star! However, I'm not sold on the wordmark. I get the whole Declaration of Independence thing (been watching John Adams today), but for a sports team it's not a good idea.

I like that Thrashers jersey as well. With much thanks to Jacob at We're Revolting! for that one.

You guys always give me trouble for my aversion to yellow jerseys, but I've come across a bunch that I actually like — despite their resemblance to what I can only assume is Hillary Clinton's favorite suit.

Well, it's the Boston Bruins of course. Can any other team really do a yellow sweater?

This second set wouldn't work because yellow is still a light color. It wouldn't work as a dark home jersey. However, I am intrigued by the use of the secondary logo with a black background and yellow text.

Up next are the Chicago Blackhawks.

All those stripes do weird things to my brain. And there's not enough contrast in the other one. But I don't know, either could work as a temporary third jersey.

Finally, it's the Buffalo Sabres.

It's a nice logo on a traditional uniform design. I think you'd be hard-pressed to find nay-sayers.

That's good for now. Stay tuned for new polls going up tomorrow both here and at ToHL. Here, we'll have Cam Ward and Josh Harding going head to head and for the WHL Tournament of Logos, it'll be the Calgary Hitmen and the winner of the Americans/Thunderbirds poll which closes tonight.

Just To Freak You Out XXXI

I began the last Freak Out post with a similar image, so this is not a repeat. Look closely.

Yes, the duck is wearing himself on his own jersey. This is like some sort of weird fractal, right?

Anyway, we've also got an odd Minnesota Wild concept that scares me.

There's a reason teams choose bright colors. I can't remember what that is at the moment.

Got some stuff for Toronto and Montreal.

Does that Leafs logo look familiar to anyone? I've always thought the Habs should try blue — but on the jersey, not the logo.

And then of course we've got a string of "If They Mated" concepts for some of the clubs that found new homes in the '90s.

The Hartford Hurricanes?

The Quebec Avalanche?

The Winnipeg Coyotes?

No, no and no. Lastly, I've got a little something to celebrate St. Patrick's Day albeit a bit after the fact.

He's got shamrocks on his shoulders! You guys absolutely slay me.

Rumors On Alternates

I've gotten several emails about a message board post propagating rumors about the new crop of third jerseys to be introduced for the 2008-09 season. With few reports being confirmed by the actual teams, I thought these might at least be interesting enough to discuss here. They may even produce some new ideas for concept art.

Atlanta Thrashers
Word is the new sweaters will incorporate more maroon like the original dark jerseys. I don't know if this means the sweater itself will be maroon or rather navy more along the lines of that original jersey.

Boston Bruins
We've actually seen the black jerseys already which will feature the BRUINS version of the secondary logo found on the shoulders of the current jerseys. The jersey features the primary logo on the shoulders. Of the two "finalists" we saw, one includes a gold stripe around the bottom while the other does not.

Buffalo Sabres
This isn't really news, but the Sabres will supposedly return to the blue vintage sweaters like the ones they wore last year. We've heard that there's the possibility of some slight alterations, but I wouldn't expect much.

Carolina Hurricanes
Rumor has it the new 'Canes third will be black with the secondary logo on the front. You know the one with the tropical storm flag blowing in the wind. Sounds pretty good. I'd like to see a mock up. One would also expect to see the primary logo on the shoulders.

Chicago Blackhawks
Supposedly, the 'Hawks will resurrect the black sweater they've been wearing as a third jersey for years. No surprises here but I can't say I wouldn't be disappointed if they didn't attempt to make a few tweaks to it.

Dallas Stars
Interestingly, rumor suggests that the new Stars alternate will be a white version of the current black one. You know, with DALLAS written across the front. I'm a fan of one jersey like that. But let's not start in with turning the NHL into the NBA.

Edmonton Oilers
We're being told it's a vintage design with laces at the collar. That sounds absolutely amazing, especially when compared with the travesty visited upon the Oil this season. But this could just be wishful thinking.

Los Angeles Kings
We're speculating that the Kings will return to the purple sweater from last season with the coat of arms logo. Of course the author of the rumors being discussed here suggested the jersey may be black. We'll have to see, but my money's on purple.

Minnesota Wild
You'd think they can't go wrong with a green sweater, but then word is it will have MINNESOTA plastered across the front a la the New York Rangers or Colorado Avalanche. That may not sound impressive, but the Wild have a history of creating vintage-looking thirds that are really killer. I'll hold my judgment until I see it.

New York Islanders
Evidently we should expect a vintage design. Something I'm surprised they didn't go with when unveiling their new Rbk EDGE sweaters over the summer. I'm not really disappointed the orange won't be making a comeback.

Ottawa Senators
I hope this rumor isn't true. Apparently they're going with a gold sweater — you read that right — with SENS written across the front. I don't know if this is more in the vein of the Stars or Rangers. Time will tell. But just let it not be gold. I wouldn't even wish that on the Stars.

Philadelphia Flyers
The team has already told us to expect an orange sweater. What they didn't mention is whether it will be an altered version of the current design or a vintage throwback. Rumor suggests the latter.

Phoenix Coyotes
Opting for a new alternate logo, it sounds like they may be going with a full-body coyote on the front of a black sweater. I think a black jersey will go well with the brick/sand color combination. This one I'm looking forward to seeing.

Pittsburgh Penguins
The team has all but confirmed already that they'll go with the same design they wore for the Winter Classic two months ago. You can't really go wrong with that one. Vintage quality at its finest.

San Jose Sharks
We're likely looking at a black version of the current uniforms. I know a lot of folks dislike the orange. I personally don't mind it. However, how cool would it be if they went with a black/grey/white jersey with some teal piping/lining? And I'll go ahead and put my vote in for the full-body shark like you see on the shoulders of the current sweaters.

St. Louis Blues
We know all about St. Louis already from the team higher-ups. They're talking about a navy sweater with a brand new logo featuring the Gateway Arch. In fact, I have some great concepts to share later with this logo alteration in mind.

Tampa Bay Lightning
The rumors I'm reading scare me because, as a Lightning fan, I'd hate to see this happen. Supposedly the new third will be navy (so far so good) with BOLTS written across the front (there's where you lose me). Sounds an awful like what's going on with the Senators. Read above.

Toronto Maple Leafs
Likely a white vintage design will make its way onto the backs of Leaf players. Probably with the old leaf logo as well. This wouldn't surprise me and sure wouldn't disappoint. Looking forward to it, as a matter of fact.

Vancouver Canucks
It's rumored that a vintage design — I'm guessing blue — is in the works. I like the stick-in-the-rink jerseys as much as anybody, but I would not be surprised to see a completely new design with the newly introduced Johnny Canuck logo. It's a chance that's too good to pass up for a team in the midst of a serious identity crisis.

By the way, that leaves 11 teams without third jersey rumors here. In case you're wondering, those teams not accounted for are the Devils, Rangers, Canadiens, Panthers, Capitals, Blue Jackets, Red Wings, Predators, Flames, Avalanche, and Ducks (who frankly, could really use one).

That's all I've got for you tonight. I've got concept art based on the rumors for the Wild, Blues, Flyers and others, but I'll save that for later on. I'll try to get it posted this week while I'm on my trip.

In the meantime, allow your imaginations to run wild and, you know, feel free to play around in Photoshop and send me whatever you come up with. I can post it here and who knows, maybe you'll even guess correct.

Canada I: Toronto

I'm probably getting annoying with all the talk about my Canada trip, but can you blame me? I've got concept posts coming specific to Canadian clubs for the next few days leading up to my trip. (I fly out of Tampa on Wednesday morning, by the way.)

Anyhow, tonight we're getting things going with the Toronto Maple Leafs. First up is a simple design that would be acceptable as an alternate sweater.

With the same logo, but on a different tack comes this set.

That's really cool but probably somewhat unrealistic. More on the realistic side is this next set.

But most folks probably won't like the piping. However, I think the shoulder yokes make up for it.

These jerseys are nice. A lot of people will probably complain about the broken stripes around the waist.

I understand that, but it's a unique feature. What I like about the next set, which is similar to this one, are the shoulder logos.

These last two are just for fun. One designer suggests the Leafs use a version of the Marlies logo.

Probably not the best idea. And the last one recommends green for an alternate sweater.

I don't really know what to say about any of that.

But that's it for tonight. Can't wait for Vancouver!

Just To Freak You Out XXIX

Since I leave in four days for my trip up to Canada, I'm going with a Canadian theme here in order to freak you out tonight. So let's start with the most obvious one. The usual "If They Mated" concepts typically mix two and in rare cases three teams. One artist went above and beyond, mixing all six Canadian teams onto one jersey. The result will shock you.

I warned you. And I love how it's on the Lightning's white sweater. Creativity at its finest there, friends.

But back to more familiar territory now. Imagine the Canucks and Flames swapping colors and sweaters. Wait, you don't have to. I've got it right here for you.

The Atlantawa Thrashators, if you will.

What happened to that dude's face? Not to be outdone, ladies and gentlemen, the Edmonton Oilers.

Gotta love the oil shooting out onto the shoulders. But back to the nation's capital, for a small handful of teams the state/provincial outline works well in the logo — Lightning, Islanders and Stars to name the only ones. Here's a good example of why not everyone should try it.

Yeah, I didn't even mention the stripes. Can you believe that?

And as you know, it's difficult to pull of a yellow jersey that actually looks good. Unlike most of you, I was a fan of Nashville's gold alternate jersey but not Boston's yellow third. Weird, I know. But the Flames should absolutely not try yellow.

That's why. And if they ever decide to look for a new logo, here's what else they shouldn't try.

Balls of fire! And that is all I have to say on the matter.

And with that I'm going to go pack a bag and prepare myself for weather in which a native Floridian can only freeze. But I'll be loving every frozen second.