May Minor League Report

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All this work on the IceHL's 13 Weeks of R&R project has kept from doing my real job on Icethetics — updating the blog with actual news. In other words, there's a lot to catch up on.

Hartford Wolf Pack officially return to AHL

Well that didn't take long. After playing parts of three seasons as the Connecticut Whale, the Hartford Wolf Pack identity has made a glorious comeback — thanks to their NHL parent club, the New York Rangers.

The Wolf Pack were established in 1997 when the Binghamton Rangers moved to Hartford. Then in 2010, Howard Baldwin happened. His effort to recapture Hartford Whalers failed miserably with the rebranding of the franchise as the Connecticut Whale.

Connecticut Whale, 2010—2013

We applauded the judicious use of green but not the name or the terrible logo. Within two years, Baldwin was gone — which probably says more about his management style than his taste in sports branding. But we're all grateful nonetheless that the Pack is back.

And not for nothing, but the New York Rangers' AHL affiliate is now operated by the parent company of the Philadelphia Flyers, is it not? Global Spectrum is running things these days and it would seem they have two masters. Interesting.

The Rivermen are dead, long live the Rivermen

Speaking of the AHL, some craziness took place on Monday. The Vancouver Canucks who recently acquired the Peoria Rivermen franchise from the St. Louis Blues, announced the team would not operate out of Illinois next season. They don't know where exactly yet. Just not Peoria.

So it seemed the end of a brand that has existed for nearly 30 years. But the Rivermen are plucky. They won't go quietly. After 12 years in the IHL between 1984 and 1996, the franchise transferred to the ECHL for about a decade. Then in 2005, they got the upgrade to the AHL. In 2013, they move down — way down — to the SPHL, that's the Southern Professional Hockey League. (It exists!)

The SPHL is home to teams like the equally plucky Columbus Cottonmouths and the Pensacola Ice Flyers. And now it's also home to...

Bloomington Blaze switch from CHL to SPHL

The Bloomington Blaze are jumping the sinking ship that is the Central Hockey League for the equally crummy SPHL. A lateral move at best. But one they apparently feel is necessary.

The Blaze were founded just two years ago after the folding of the IHL's Bloomington PrairieThunder. (All these minor leagues you've probably never heard of.) They begin play in their new league this fall.

Now that we're on the CHL, we might as well talk about their newest expansion team.

Brampton gets Beast to replace lost OHL team

Earlier this year when we learned the OHL's Brampton Battalion were moving to North Bay, Ontario, it seemed like the good people of Brampton would be without a team. But that's when the Central Hockey League jumped in, expanding into Canada for the first time.

On April 27, the Brampton Beast were revealed to the world. Along with a very vanilla CHL-like logo. I won't pass judgment too hard since somebody was obviously trying. (I just don't know what they were trying for.) In any case, the Beast begin play in the fall. Like Peoria, hockey fans of Brampton won't miss a beat.

For the record, the North Bay Battlion also begin play in the OHL this fall. They will keep the same logo they had in Brampton.

2013 Stanley Cup Playoff Logos

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Here's something fun to look at. Last month when the AHL's Calder Cup Playoffs began, we saw each individual team's version of the 2013 Calder Cup logo. Little did we know the NHL would be doing the same thing for the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

These are the 16 individual team logos in use this postseason*.

*As you can see, for the bottom four I had to guess at the design as I couldn't find them anywhere on the web. If you've seen them, let me know so I can update this graphic. Unfortunately, all four teams have been eliminated so it's unlikely they'll turn up if they haven't already.

Meantime, I hope you're enjoying the playoffs as the Conference Semifinals get underway!

Third Jerseys in the 2013 Playoffs

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There's been a lot of chatter on Twitter this week regarding the trio of teams that have opted to wear their third jerseys during the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs. For those of you not on Twitter, I present this brief blog post.

The Toronto Maple Leafs, San Jose Sharks and Minnesota Wild are all sporting their alternate uniforms when they play at home this postseason. It's certainly nothing as many teams have done it in recent years — the Sharks included. And the BlackArmor has served them well this year as they swept the Canucks.

For the Wild it was their first time in the playoffs since 2008. I say "was" because they were eliminated by the Blackhawks last night. And by the way, 2008 the only season since 1996 where no NHL team has had a third jersey. That was the inaugural season of Reebok Edge.

The Maple Leafs, I believe, have made a habit of sporting their thirds for the playoffs in recent years. Well, not "recent" as the last time they qualified was 2004. But between 1999 and 2004, their old white alternate got an extra workout in the postseason.

Should we read anything into these decisions? The Kings wore their black thirds in the 2010 and 2011 playoffs before making them their home uniform in 2011-12. But I wouldn't call that typical. The Sharks are supposedly making some changes in the fall but I doubt they'd drop the teal. And Minnesota is only looking at a new road sweater for now.

That said, I'm fairly sure the NHL only permits teams to use two jerseys during the playoffs. So if the Sharks were to win the Cup, they'd only be able to do so wearing black or white.

What's your take? Do you like seeing third jerseys in the playoffs? Or should they be reserved for the regular season only?

Send Icethetics to Dallas!

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Last Friday, the Dallas Stars announced via special invitations a big event to take place June 4 — an event that can only be the unveiling of their long-awaited new logo and uniforms.

Icethetics will have live coverage of unveiling

Yours truly was on the invitation list. But I originanly said I wouldn't be able to attend given the distance between Seattle and Dallas. In the last few days, circumstances have changed. Now, I will in fact be going. I've RSVPed and everything.

That means for the first time in Icethetics history — original live reporting of a major unveiling event!

Help offset the costs and be the first to see it

Flying roundtrip between Washington and Texas isn't exactly cheap, of course, but I have booked a flight. One reader suggested that a way to offset the costs of this trip — for which I'm not really getting anything in return — would be to accept donations from the Icethetics community.

Let me start by saying I have no expectations here. This news will be all over the web on June 4, we all know that. Icethetics would be one of many sources. So why would you ever bother donating money to send me to Dallas? If that's your mindset, you probably shouldn't donate. Your money would be better spent elsewhere.

But if you're a longtime reader who's excited about the prospect of some original reporting and live coverage from Icethetics — and don't mind helping me out — this might be for you. And heck, if you donate at least $10 to help me offset travel costs, you will be among the first to see the new look of the Dallas Stars.

What a $10 donation gets you

Anyone who donates $10 or more, will get photos sent direct from the event to your inbox — before I post it on Twitter or icethetics.info. It's that simple. If you want to do something nice for the site, I want to do something nice for you.

Remember, this is NOT about buying access to Icethetics coverage. I still intend to live tweet and post extensively about the event. If you're making a donation, it's because you want to support Icethetics. In return for that support, I'll give you early access to my reporting. So instead of refreshing your Twitter feed every other minute — you'll get photos sent straight to your email.

Icethetics will be in Dallas no matter what

Whether or not any donations are made, I will be in Dallas for this event. So don't worry about whether a certain goal has to be reached to make a donation worth it. The only reason I'm accepting donations is to help offset travel costs — airfare, hotel, cabs and the like. It's a lot of money out of my own pocket so it'd be nice for a little help from the community as a whole. I'd be immensely grateful.

If you do choose to donate, you can spend any amount you'd like. But $10 is the magic number to get you "insider access" from me ahead of everyone else. Just please don't let that be your only reason for donating. If the logo or uniforms were to leak prior to the event, there would not be any refunds.

Believe me, I feel weird asking for any money at all, but the only reason I'm going is for this community. So I figure if ever there was anyone interested in helping to offset costs, it would be you guys. Thanks in advance!

To donate via PayPal, use the link in at the top of the page on the right.

Stars' New Look Coming June 4

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Image from Dallas Stars

"Special event" scheduled for next month

The Dallas Stars will hold a special event on Tues., June 4 where — presumably — they will officially unveil their long-anticipated new logo and uniforms.

I say "presumably" because they're not strictly saying the new look will be revealed on that date. I, along with surely many others, received an invitation from the team this morning for a "special event." Accompanying that invite was the above photo — the big date spelled out in generic white jerseys.

Do the math.

Unfortunately, Dallas is a bit of a haul from Seattle, so I won't be able to attend — though I'm grateful for the opportunity. The event takes place at 6 PM local time (4 PT) so I'd expect to see images online around that time.

The countdown begins! Who's excited to see what they've come up with?