Let's Speculate Together

All right, at the request of a reader and in the interest of making information more easily accessible on this blog, I've added a new sidebar element I wanted to make note of here.

In less than a month from now, we should know what all of the new Rbk EDGE uniforms and logos look like. In the interim, we're forced to speculate. Along with all of the concept artwork I post, I try to keep up with potential information leaks as well. Among them are the Lightning and Senators logos and the Penguins' new uniforms.

Now, if you scroll down past the Changing Logos section of the sidebar, you'll find Speculation. There, I will post quick links to posts which feature content that might reasonably be considered to be leaked information, such as the specific examples cited above. If I've missed anything, do let me know and I'll add it.

Hope this makes the site a little more user-friendly. If you've got any other ideas or suggestions, don't hesitate to send them along.

All About The Isles

The New York Islanders unveiled their new Rbk EDGE jerseys to little fanfare last week. Some fans liked them. Some were indifferent. And some were none too happy with the striping and patchwork essence of the sweaters.

This design is very simple and screams Islander hockey to me, no question. I'm not sure what those semi-stripes are protruding from the collar, but I kind of like them. The best thing about it for me is the lighthouse logo on the left shoulder. I really think the Isles should've kept that or something like it after their late-'90s uniform disaster. Fact is, it wasn't all bad.

That's probably the best I've got to offer, but there's still more. One fan adapted this Los Angeles Kings concept with Islanders colors.

I think it needs a little work around the shoulders, but overall, it would be an improvement on the official jersey modeled by Rick DiPietro and Brendan Witt last week.

The last conept I have to offer comes from the same artist who created the designs I posted earlier today. And yes, it makes use of the lighthouse logo — as a primary crest. It might be going a little too far, but I figured it was worth a look.

Isles fans, any thoughts on these? Are the new Rbk EDGE jerseys that bad or am I making too much of that? Leave your comments below.

A Handful Of Uniform Concepts

My web travels today led me to Erik Kuhre's Portfolio of Art & Design site. Found a handful of jersey concepts I thought I'd share this afternoon. So let's dive right in.

Buffalo Sabres fans, you want blue and gold? Here's blue and gold. And a lot of it.

That's quite something, I thought. A little too much to actually be an NHL jersey, but there it is. I'm a big fan of that crossed-sabres logo but I like it better in black and red.

Here he had some fun with the Edmonton Oilers' third jersey logo — a logo I'm rather fond of. I don't like the orange in it, though. The blue looks better. That being said, I don't hate it on the blue jersey. I think the silver along the sleeves is pretty cool too. The Gretzky 99 sells me completely.

We know the Vancouver Canucks are getting new colors for this season, but take a look at this design anyway. I like the use of the "V" around the collar of this jersey, but the recolored '80s logo is too far down the sleeve at the cuff. The gloves would hide it. I also like the "V" on the sleeves and pants of this uniform concept.

I've got one more design to share from this artist, but I'm going to save it for a later post. I've got a bunch of New York Islanders concepts to add in the near future.

But anyway, what do you guys think of all these? Good work or not so much?

Revisiting The Caps, Cats

The Washington Capitals and Florida Panthers have already officially unveiled their new Rbk EDGE jerseys for this season, but that won't stop me from posting fan-designed concepts for those two teams.

Let's start with the Capitals and a couple of designs that have been floating around since about way back in January.

How about those lookers? Naturally, they're based off that infamous all-star jersey template. There are lots of colors. The quilt in my old bedroom is coming to mind. Sew a patch here. Sew a patch there. By George, you've got yourself a hockey jersey.

Moving right along now. Shortly after the Capitals announced they would be making a return to their traditional colors of red, white and blue, this concept popped up on the web.

The logo aside, that wouldn't be a half-bad uniform design, if you ask me. I could see the Caps wearing something like this and looking very good doing it. Know what I'm saying?

For a closer look at the logo used in that design, see the image to the left. What's interesting is that it makes use of "capitals" in the text of the logo. The irony is that the current logo and the one from the '70s are written in lowercase type. Weird, right? In addition to that, this logo also uses the stick and puck from the dome logo of recent years.

It's sharp work, but ultimately I don't feel it would be an improvement on what the Capitals ended up going with for their new unis. Now let's move on to the Panthers. Got some cool stuff there.

This is from the designer who treated us to the Ottawa Senators jerseys I posted yesterday. Check out the swooshes on those sleeves. That's quite something. Not sure about the choice to put blue numbers on the red jersey. Probably better off with white. I'm also intrigued by the use of the yellow. These jerseys look nothing like the Panthers despite the use of the same colors.

What I think is cool is the concept for a new secondary logo on the shoulders of these sweaters. For a closer look at that, check out this alternate jersey idea.

That's different. Though between that and the sun with the palm tree crossing the hockey stick, I prefer the current shoulder patch. Also, try to visually imagine a player wearing all of those items. That is quite a lot of blue, isn't it? Blue sweater, blue pants, blue socks — and the only thing that breaks it up is the red stripe on the sock.

Hope you enjoyed that. If you want to see what these two teams' uniforms actually look like, I've set up a photo gallery you can access from the sidebar.

But enough with my opinion, let's have yours. Comments go below.

Concept Jerseys For Everybody

I may be playing with fire here, but I've decided to make an Rbk EDGE jersey template available to anyone interested in trying their hand at a creating a uniform concept. God knows I'm not hurting for content, but a lot of people have been asking where to get a template, so I thought I'd try to be helpful for once. If you want to download it, you'll find it toward the bottom of the sidebar on the right.

Having said that, I too decided to try my own hand at a concept for my Tampa Bay Lightning. I put only about 10 minutes into it so the quality and overall design might be poor, but I just wanted to show that anyone can do it.

It's not much, but it works in the "leaked" new logos we'll likely see unveiled a week from today at the St. Pete Times Forum. I have a background in graphic design having worked as a newspaper ad designer for about six years (but you might not know it based on that). I know my way around Photoshop, but it is quite expensive and I am quite cheap. So I have to deal with what little I do have.

What I really wanted to do was see how the Bolts' home sweater might look in blue. I've always thought that would be a neat direction to go. Again, very basic and simplistic, but that's been the Lightning's style. I'm rather anxious to see what they've come up with. What would you all think of a blue Tampa Bay uniform? Too much like the Leafs?

So if you've never made a concept, now is your chance to take a stab at it. I mean, just go nuts. And if you think there's something to it, you've got my email address. Send it along.

UPDATE (8:41 PM): Just noticed an oversight on my part. No numbers on the sleeves. Oops.

First Photo Of Hurricanes Jersey?

I'm aware of the fact that EA Sports supposedly unveiled the Carolina Hurricanes jerseys earlier this summer, but that stuff isn't for me. I want actual photos. That being said, a couple of people emailed in something I can work with.

Apparently, this photo of Noah Babin was posted on the Carolina Hurricanes web site along with a bunch of other prospects. As far as I can tell, he's the only one donning the new Rbk EDGE apparel, though. You can tell by the collar.

In addition, the jersey also has the thin white striping around the shoulders, seen in the EA Sports images. While this isn't huge news, I thought it would still be worth posting. And for those of you wondering, it won't go on the sidebar until we see the whole jersey. For that, the 'Canes are asking us to hold out until September 16.

Canucks Logo Leaked Via Stickers?

Apolgies for the late posts today. Went to the movies this afternoon. Superbad was hilarious.

I got emailed a photo claiming to be that of sticker produced by the Vancouver Canucks bearing the alleged new logo. I should clarify. The sticker wasn't claiming anything so much as the sender of the email. Anyway, for your viewing pleasure:

For a better look at it, I was also sent this rendering of the logo. I really like it better with the green, but who am I to say, really? The question is what do you guys think? Is the blue/black/silver combo too Lightning? (It is for me.) Do you like it better than the blue/maroon/silver combo of the last decade?

I also want to be clear on the fact that I can't vouch for the veracity of this photo. Just know that it was something emailed to me and that the Canucks will supposedly make their official announcement regarding new uniforms and logos on August 29. We'll all be watching and waiting.

Sens, Sharks Uniform Fan Art

We've seen the new logos (unofficially for one) but we've yet to see the new uniforms that go with them. So why not muse on the Ottawa Senators and San Jose Sharks briefly?

I like the red Senators jerseys a lot, but the black doesn't look half bad. Though in reality, odds are highly in favor of the Sens wearing the red at home this fall. The teaser pic on their web site seems to suggest that. Could be misleading, but I doubt it. I like the larger shoulder patch. More teams should do that. It looks really good.

The only problem I see with these two jerseys is the placement of the numbers on the sleeves. Way too low. Needs to be above the elbows. But wait! There's more!

Consider these concepts for the San Jose Sharks.

They're pretty sharp, if you ask me. They could do a lot worse. The new logo looks very good on these. I'd like to see a bigger shoulder logo a la the previous Ottawa concepts. But otherwise I don't have a lot to complain about. Though from everything we've read and heard, I'd lean more towards expecting less curved lines and more straight lines. However, I'm not sure how well that would go with this logo. It's quite curvy.

Anyway, it all remains to be seen. The Sharks have yet to announce a date for unveiling their jersey, but the Sens have said August 22 will be their release date.

Before I leave you to your own devices for the evening, though, I have a couple of alternates from the same artists who came up with these designs. I know the NHL is dropping the third jersey program for this season, but we can dream, can't we?

Enjoy the rest of your night and don't forget to vote on the Senators-Rangers poll tomorrow morning!

Getting All Conceptual On Logos

One of my favorite things is seeing the ideas people have come up with for new team logos. I always like to start off with the most outrageous stuff. So Montreal Canadiens fans, prepare to gouge out your own eyes (because I know you will).

That's an idea someone came up with to update the Habs' logo. Personally, I think it's interesting but that it doesn't outdo what they have now.

I'm sure the Montreal faithful have lost their lunch, but I'm all right with that. But in all fairness, what do you guys think? Is it really that bad, or would this be the way to go if things needed to change?

This next concept logo comes from designer Ian Baker. He worked on an idea for the New Jersey Devils.

It's interesting, I kind of like it but again I'm not sure it would be much of an improvement on what they currently wear. I really like the Devils logo. It's one of those logos that will live on as an NHL classic a century from now.

It turns out the same ad agency who designed the first Tampa Bay Lightning logo I posted on Wednesday, came up with another idea. More of a word mark, but here it is.

It's pretty cool. I don't like the puck in it, but that's just me.

And finally, I'll leave you with a design that I feel would actually be an improvement for the Washington Capitals. I don't really like their new logo. I was a fan of the bronze and blue. But even if they had to switch back to the red, white and blue, what about keeping the logo. Something like this?

If you've got any thoughts or comments on these designs or any others, you know where to put them. Right down there in the comments section.

Mailbag: You Can Stop Sending These Now

All right, I've said I don't want to get bogged down in the whole video game screen grab thing, but I think popular demand almost requires this one. I've gotten about a dozen emails in the last 24 hours with the following images attached or linked.

From what I've been told, what you're seeing in these pictures is a page from the official Xbox magazine — a yet-to-be released issue I'm assuming. Apparently, the picture above shows a game between the Coyotes and Sharks (a completely new San Jose design we've yet to be treated to officially) in EA Sports' NHL 08. The picture you see here to the left, although blurry, supposedly shows the Oilers and Canucks.

I can't speak to the veracity of these pictures nor really anything else with regard to them. But I just wanted to post them in the hopes that my awesome readers would stop sending me them.

Once again, I don't mind you guys sending in screen grabs from video games, but don't expect me to post them too often. If we're going to see official new jerseys, I'd prefer photos. Thanks everyone!