Wranglers Roll Out New Uniforms

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Back in July, we got our first look at the new look of the ECHL's Las Vegas Wranglers. The team kept its color scheme but launched a whole new set of logos. Then last week, they debuted their new home sweater during a preseason tilt which introduced us to even more logos! But more on that in a sec. First, take a gander at the new uniform.

Wow, is it red! Really red. As Icethetics reader Jeannette H. pointed out, what ever happened to finding that balance in your color palette? Before this, the Wranglers wore almost solid black. Now they've swung completely the opposite way.

Add to that, I count four different logos on that uniform, including the ECHL 25th anniversary patch on the right arm.

So between the graphic above and the one to the right, we have our logo bases covered — the crest which prominently features Las Vegas in giant letters, the shoulder patch made up of a big W, a tiny LV and the new shield shape (new since the July unveiling), and finally the 10th anniversary logo comprised of a pair of fives.

For a better look at the Wranglers' new red road jersey, reader Matt McCall sent in this shot from the team's merchandise counter. It's the same design as the white with the colors flipped.

Photo by Matt McCall

Nothing earth-shattering in Vegas, but now we know how the Wranglers will look this year.

Photoblog: Sharp Sweaters in Puget Sound

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Later this week, the NHL lockout will become real. Tangible. Those season tickets sitting on your kitchen counter. They'll be worthless. You can take them to the rink. But they won't get you in. And even if they did, there'd be nothing to see.

I may live three hours away from the nearest NHL arena and thousands of miles away from my team, but it'll become real for me just the same when I endure the futility of trying to tune in on opening night. So in an effort to satisfy my hockey craving before any of that ugliness happens, I bought tickets to see some unadulterated WHL action.

Wow.

It was quite a night. What follows is a photoblog about my experience at Saturday's game at ShoWare Center in Kent, Washington as the Seattle Thunderbirds hosted the Everett Silvertips.

My last (and first) WHL game — a year ago to the day, as a matter of fact — was in Victoria between the newly-minted Royals and the Medicine Hat Tigers. Let's just say it didn't leave a lot of lasting memories.

Not only couldn't I tell you the score without looking it up, but I don't even remember who won or much of anything about that game. (The Royals lost 4-2.) So I must admit I wasn't exactly holding my breath for this one. As sad as that sounds.

Then the teams skated out. And I got a shock. Neither was wearing the jersey I expected. And as a guy who runs a website dedicated to the subject, the surprise was strange. Actually, it felt good. I didn't think I could be surprised by these things anymore. But it also hammered home the point that I don't cover the major juniors very well. (I'm working to fix that.)

Connor Honey and the T-Birds were sporting their two-tone blue alternate jersey, which is actually entering its second season. It debuted last fall — a fact I might've known had I bothered to go to any Seattle games last season. (No, apparently, I had to go all the way to Canada to watch a game that's played in my backyard.) But anyway, the jerseys looked positively phenomenal.

On the other side of Jesse Forsberg, the Silvertips were wearing a white jersey I'd never seen.

That's team captain Ryan Murray, wearing a unique C patch on his chest. If not for the lockout, I probably wouldn't have seen him. After being drafted by the Blue Jackets back in June, he was on track to make the NHL this season, I'm told. Instead, Murray was sporting a shiny new Silvertips sweater.

Turns out, it's not a third jersey as I briefly suspected. The Silvertips are celebrating their 10th anniversary this season with specially-designed home and road jerseys. (Which were unveiled two months ago.) And they looked "grrreat" on the ice as well.

Lest you think I'm only interested in looking at the jerseys during a hockey game, let me assure you I was very much into it. This game had it all. There was fast-paced action, lots of goals, drama, a penalty shot, and yes... even a couple of fights. This is hockey.

That's Michal Holub and Ben Betker getting friendly in the second period — which ended 2-2. After an early lull between two teams with losing records and the home team trailing for most of the game, something happened. The third period started.

I don't know how he did it, but coach Steve Konowalchuk lit a fire under his Thunderbirds. One goal after another, the T-Birds came roaring back. Alexander Delnov scored four minutes in for a 3-2 lead — making up for a missed penalty shot in the first period. Not 30 seconds later, team captain Luke Lockhart followed up with an insurance marker. And before it was all said and done, Shea Theodore notched a power-play goal (his second of the night!) and cemented the 5-2 Seattle victory.

A celebration well-earned.

Maybe I've been unfairly judging the WHL on one lackluster game I went to a year ago. If this is more like the sort of hockey one can expect on a regular basis from this league, count me in! (Especially if this lockout persists and there are no Lightning games to watch.)

And by the way, if any T-Birds fans are reading, you guys are awesome! The Royals didn't have the kind of support you brought Saturday — and they're in Canada. I especially liked the "Everett sucks" chant after the goals. (I'm eager to head up to Comcast Arena and see what the north sound crowd is like.)

Finally, if you were hoping for a closer look at the Thunderbirds' third jersey crest, I've got you covered. It's a sharp jersey, and if replicas had been available in the arena shop, I would've bought one. But at $300, an authentic was a bit too rich for me.

The Thunderbirds tell me the alternate uniform was designed by their in-house graphic artist Brian Eldridge.

Now here's to seeing more WHL games in the near future!

All photos © Chris Smith

Giants Pay Tribute to 1945 Canucks

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The WHL's Vancouver Giants opened the 2012-13 season by honoring the original Vancouver Canucks hockey club. The Giants wore special uniforms, modeled after what the 1945 Canucks — who recently joined the BC Sports Hall of Fame.

The jerseys were unveiled on Mon., Sept. 17 and then on Fri., Sept. 21, the Giants faced the Victoria Royals wearing blue instead of their iconic red. But let's be honest, they looked better than a lot of NHL teams do. This is a hockey uniform.

Despite the nice sweaters, the Giants lost 6-4 to the Royals that night. There are more pictures from the game on the Giants' website.

The original Vancouver Canucks debuted in 1945 in the Pacific Coast Hockey Leauge, which became known as the Western Hockey League in 1952. The Canucks won their fifth championship title in 1970 before giving up their identity to an NHL expansion team.

Concepts Page: How It's Made

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I'll get back to the jersey and logo news in short order, but here's a little something different today. The video above is a time lapse of my screen as I put together the display graphics for the Concepts page. This time lapse was taken on Sept. 18. It features concepts posted between Sept. 21 and today.

I usually try to work ahead about a week or more in order to make sure the posts keep flowing on a daily basis. Hope you guys enjoy it.

I'm also hoping this video inspires a few of our more prolific concept artists to record their screens when they sit down to design a logo or jersey. I think we'd all enjoy watching the making of an actual concept. Who's game?

Marlies Get Three New Sweaters

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At the end of last week, the AHL's Toronto Marlies revamped their uniform set across the board, adding new home and road jerseys as well as the sharp new third jersey seen above.

On Saturday, the Marlies hosted an event for season ticket holders and unveiled this retro alternate uniform, which is a tribute to the Toronto Marlboros — an organization that's been around for nearly 110 years. (They currently exist as the OHL's Guelph Storm, actually.) The Marlies produced this video to explain that history.

For those without video, here's the transcript:

The Toronto Marlboros are deeply enriched in Canada's hockey history, with a focus on developing talent since franchise inception in 1903. The Toronto Marlboros have been home to hockey's elite, including George Armstrong, Ron Ellis, Mike Palmateer, Charlie Conacher, Steve Thomas and many more. Now, the symbol worn proudly on their chests, become a beacon of hope for today's Toronto Marlies. With a nod to our past, it's time to turn our eyes to the future with the official unveiling of the Toronto Marlies' third jersey. 

It's insightful if you can look past the bad writing. For example, the first line says "enriched in Canada's hockey history" when they obviously meant "entrenched" (and even then, there are more appropriate terms such as "rooted"). But none of that is the point of this post. I'm just being a grammar snob.

I say it's insightful because I truthfully didn't know anything about this team or where its name came from. I never took the time to look into it either, but I guess that's the point. I always enjoy learning about the history of hockey franchises in Canada. There's just so much there.

Prior to the third jersey unveiling, on Thursday the Marlies gave us our first official look at their new home and road uniforms — which aren't exactly a huge departure from what they've been wearing.

This change was simply to put their look more in line with that of their parent club, the Toronto Maple Leafs — who made some upgrades in 2010. All that really means is the collar has changed and a pair of waist stripes have been added.

So while technically the Marlies will be sporting three new jerseys this season, they won't really be sporting anything "new" this season. It's all about recognizing where they come from (Marlboros) and where they're going (Maple Leafs, hopefully, right?).

Hard for this team to go wrong with sweaters like these. What do you guys think?