Time Traveling in Toronto

Whenever I put together a new concept art post, I often try to tie it all together with a theme of some kind. One of my more common themes is geography. Sometimes I'll take you on a virtual journey across the continent with a number of different teams. Tonight's theme focuses on one team and instead of traveling through space, how about time?

A handful of designers have reached back into history to come with their ideal versions of Toronto Maple Leafs jerseys — be they home, road or alternate. Now strap in. Don't want to lose anyone on the journey.

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Matt Marczel	We begin with Matt's combination of present and recent past — though I use the term "past" loosely and you'll see why in a moment. These home and road Leafs jerseys are pretty much a hodgepodge of the last half-century — especially when it comes to the logos. For the primary logo, he's got the leaf introduced in 1966 with the text stylings that came about in 1970. The secondary/shoulder mark is based off of the leaf logo launched in 1938. And it looks to me like the T within it is borrowed from the TML shoulder patch which debuted in 2000. So that's a pretty good mix of history there.
Yoav Ickowicz	The oldest thing in Matt's design dated back to 1938. Yoav Ickowicz wants to go back at least another decade. His Maple Leafs concept is based on the less-common 1928 logo. He's also gone with three stripes on the sleeves and bottom of the jersey instead of the usual two. It's great work and I sure hope we see more from Yoav in the future.
Ryan Haslett	So maybe you thought 82 years was far enough back in time. As it stands, the Leafs themselves are only 84 years old. But you'd be wrong. Toronto's hockey history dates back much further than that, as Ryan demonstrates with his Toronto St. Pats concept. With the Devils dipping back into their past for green-infused uniforms this St. Patrick's Day, perhaps the Leafs might join them in something like this? Not to mention, I'm sure they'd sell like mad.
John B.	Now this last one may have you puzzled. I sure am. The only way I can figure it, not only would you have to travel to another time, but also another dimension to find it. It's what I imagine someone from the 1950s would draw if you asked them to predict what the Maple Leafs would be wearing in 50 years. (Except that the CN Tower wouldn't come for another 20 years. Let's just look past that.)

Man, I just gave myself a great idea. What if we started concept contest where we try to imagine/predict what teams would be wearing (or even exist) 50 or 100 years from now? I think it would yield some interesting artwork.

Northeast Roadtrip

This is shaping up to be quite a week. New posts on the blog and jersey galleries, and now brand new concept art. Today, I'm grouping up a handful of artwork for the Northeast Division — namely, the Sabres and Maple Leafs.

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Jeff Wozniak	We start with a slew of Buffalo concept jerseys by Jeff Wozniak. The first graphic shows what he thinks the Sabres should wear on a regular basis as road/home/third. I like them all but I always liked that crossed-sword logo better on the red jersey several years ago. His next attempt is a gold Sabres jersey. I don't believe they've ever worn gold so that would be quite a step out of the ordinary. (And not a pleasant one either.) The other two are all about early 20th century sweater styles. Lots of stripes and simplistic crests. I think I could get behind the first one for some kind of special event. However, the "BS" jersey should stay right here on this page where it is and go no further. We learned from the Montreal Canadiens' 100th anniversary that this type of striping does not work. You have to be able to read names and numbers and not be concerned with epileptic fits. Then there's the white pants. Very few uniforms can make that look good. This is not one of them. Look back toward the top of this group and you'll see Jeff has some great design ideas for the Sabres. But clearly he should avoid fourth, fifth and sixth alternate uniforms in the future.
Ryan Haslett	Another Icethetics regular, Ryan Haslett, came up with a grey-infused Sabres concept. It's based on the vintage three-stripe sweater from the '70s with several contemporary elements, including the grey/silver accents and numbering and lettering style. As for my thoughts, white would probably be a better highlight than grey. Simply swapping white in would probably be an improvement. But I think I'd have to see it in a game to know for sure.
Ryan Haslett	This post has been pretty focused on the Sabres, so let's switch to another Northeast team. This Maple Leafs concept calls for two alternate sweaters — one for home games and another for the road. Also designed by Ryan, it features the two waist stripes that will be returning to Toronto's regular home and road sweaters next season. He's also come up with two new alts. The home design is a dark version of the Leafs' current third jersey. The road whites are a new design borrowed from the team's rich past.

There will be one more new post before I leave for Vegas on Friday. Then beginning Friday, check back for new concepts to be auto-published daily.

Update on Wednesday · Jan 6 · 2010 | 9:08 AM PST by Chris

Just received some more Sabres and Leafs concept art so I'm adding it on to this post.

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Mike Ivall

First, longtime Icethetics artist Mike Ivall sent in an update to the Maple Leafs' uniforms. Howard Berger recently said that the two stripes at the bottom of the Leafs' jerseys would be returning in 2010 after an Age of Reebok hiatus. Mike is just putting his spin on that new information. Maybe they can bring back a shoulder patch while they're at it. But in all fairness to Mike, he did say... There are no shoulder patches because I like the leafs without them. Some teams look good with a shoulder patch. The Leafs just aren't one of them. So, to each his own.

Jesse Dupuis

And lastly, Jesse sent in this Sabres concept which harkens back to the old red third jersey — one of my personal favorites. All he really did was make black and white versions but I'm still a fan. Anything beats the slug.

The Next Winter Classic(s)

It's hard to believe 2010 is a mere four days away. That means the third annual Winter Classic is coming up at the end of the week.

And on the eve of the big event, a bunch of eager artists have started thinking about the next one. Or should I make that plural? A couple weeks ago, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said he'd like to see a second outdoor game on New Year's Day 2011 — this one in Canada.

No decisions have been made at this point and any discussion on the topic is pure speculation. But that's what the Icethetics Concepts page is for. So as we prepare for the Philadelphia Flyers to face the Boston Bruins at Fenway Park, let's think about what we might like to see in 2011.

Rumors suggest Yankee Stadium will play host to at least one of the 2011 outdoor games. That puts the Rangers at home to face who? Islanders? Maple Leafs? Capitals? And regarding the Canada game, Bettman mentioned Calgary by name. Would the Flames face their province rivals, the Oilers? Perhaps the Canucks or even Avalanche?

Let's see what some talented people have come up with as suggestions for 2011.

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Brendan Droppo	Yankee Stadium Rangers vs Islanders This may be the most well-designed Winter Classic 2011 concept I've received. Brendan Droppo is sticking with the New York City rumors and pairing the Rangers and Islanders at Yankee Stadium. Probably a safe bet. He's got a great logo that evokes the locale (as the past logos have done) and a pair of classic sweaters. Though I'm not sure you can call anything but their current jersey a classic. But then I thought that about the Red Wings too. And theirs worked out just fine last year. This is an awesome concept and I'm completely on board with it only if western Canada also gets their own Winter Classic. If they don't, I say out with the Isles. Canada deserves to get back into the outdoor games. Pit the Rangers against the Maple Leafs. If there is a Canadian game, I'd vote to leave it the way it is. Not sure the Rangers have another rival as big as the Isles. Plus we need to share the wealth. Everyone should get a shot at a Winter Classic game.
Cole Jones	Target Field Wild vs Stars Cole Jones of The Other 6 Seconds hockey blog emailed in to tell me about his idea. You can read the full proposal on his blog, but here are the bullet points. While I'm over here trying to get a Canadian team back into their own game, Cole, a Stars fan, is attempting to get a southern U.S. team into the mix — his own. He'd like to pit the Dallas Stars against the Minnesota Wild at Target Field, which is currently under construction in Minneapolis. It will serve as the home of the Minnesota Twins beginning in April 2010 — more than enough time to prepare it for a hockey match. It would be a huge day for Minnesota hockey fans, that's for sure. To see their current team after 10 years on the ice, facing a blast from the past in the form of North Stars jerseys would probably send some people into a tailspin. The only problem I see is this: Aside from Minnesotans, who cares? Part of the idea behind the Winter Classic is to appeal to new fans. To put the game in front of people who normally wouldn't watch. The past few seasons the NHL has been going for teams in big markets or with long histories. Yes, Dallas and Minneapolis are two huge markets, but the point is to go beyond them. A Rangers-Isles game would certainly do the trick. Everybody knows the Rangers, even if their not hockey fans. But this idea of getting the Stars back to Minnesota for a big event is a pretty popular one in hockey circles...
Ryan Haslett	Target Field Wild vs Stars Another regular Icethetics artist, Ryan Haslett, independently came up with the same idea. Wild and Stars at Target Field. But Ryan's idea for an event logo and game jerseys is a little different. They definitely feel like classic hockey, but both designs borrow from current sweaters. The "M" on the Wild jersey comes from the new green third while the Stars sweater is based off their current third, but infused with a little more gold. Either Cole's or Ryan's designs could work well if, indeed, one of the 2011 Winter Classics were to take place in Minnesota.
Ryan Haslett	Rogers Centre Maple Leafs vs Canadiens Speaking of Canada, Ryan did have a second Canadian option — going with one of the oldest rivalries in professional sports. He's got the Habs and Leafs at Rogers Centre in Toronto. Formerly called the SkyDome, the stadium plays home to the Toronto Blue Jays and Toronto Argonauts. As expected, he's got the teams in vintage sweaters, and surprisingly enough, one that the Canadiens have NOT worn in the past two seasons. The logo is a little weak but it plays off the simplicity of the Rogers Centre logo. Now to be fair, the Canadiens just took part in an outdoor game in 2003. Maybe they should sit on the bench a little while longer, you know? If you're going to put the game in Toronto, maybe have the Leafs face their province rival Ottawa Senators. As I said, spread the wealth.

One thing I've noticed with these concepts is they're all set at baseball stadiums. Let's not forget the first two NHL outdoor games took place in football stadiums and were quite successful.

In wrapping things up, the one concept I don't have to share that I would really like to see is Calgary. I'm not familiar enough with the city to know where it should be played, but the Flames should host it and their opponent should NOT be the Oilers. (The Oilers faced the Habs in 2003 in Edmonton.) I think it comes down to the Maple Leafs, who play in a huge market and have a long history, or the Canucks, who are geographically closer and a more common foe during the regular season. But it's not up to me.

So what are your thoughts on the 2011 Winter Classic(s)? If you have have concept art to share, I'd be happy to add it to this post. If you just have another thought about a good match-up, drop a line in the comments.

By the way, happy new year!