Saturday: Olympic Women's Hockey Has Started!

Greeting jersey fanatics, and welcome to Saturday's HJC post! 

The Olympics officially opened last night! I thought the opening ceremonies had some really great moments. The projector technology on display was seriously cool. I think it was one of the better opening ceremonies in the last 20 years. Seeing Maria Sharapova carry the torch into the stadium in her home town was a great moment, as was Vladamir Tretiak light the Olympic flame.

In Olympic play, the greatest nation on earth has won the first gold medal of the Sochi Olympics. I missed the USA women playing Finland this morning, in a 3-1 win for USA, but I did catch the 5-0 drubbing the Canadian women put on Switzerland. Canada put 69 shots on goal! That's incredible. Canada vs. USA, on the 12th, should be a great game. Look for Phil the Thrill's sister Amanda to be a difference maker.

I can't wait until the men's teams start play. I bought a 1980 Team USA jersey from SportsK.com in preparation for this year's Olympics. What national jerseys will you be wearing when the puck drops? 

Hockeyfying the NFL: Atlanta Falcons concept - Gerard M.

What I like: The striping pattern works for the Falcons. It's a clean, modern look. The jerseys are well executed. The appropriate league logos are used, and Falcons number font translates well to a hockey jersey. 

What I dislike: I would like to see something that stands out, something a little more unique here. 

Overall: Very well executed hockey jersey for the Falcons. This wouldn't be bad as fan merchandise. (8.5/10)

Hockeyfying the NFL: Baltimore Ravens concept - Gerard M.

What I like: Gerard does a good job of translating the Ravens look to a hockey jersey. I never realized how similar the Ravens font is to the Thrashers. Gerard's execution is very good here.

What I dislike: I would put the Baltimore shield logo on the shoulders, instead of on the arm stripes.

Overall: Another solid look for an NFL team. (8.3/10)

Hockeyfying the NFL: Buffalo Bills concept - Gerard M.

What I like: Buffalo's aesthetic translates very well to a hockey jersey. Honestly, this looks like it was meant to be a hockey jersey from the beginning. If I were a Bills fan, I would want the team to put this on sale. Execution is very good.

What I dislike: Honestly, I wouldn't change a thing.

Overall: Great jerseys for the Bills. I would love to see this sold as Bills fan merchandise. (8.8/10)

Philadelphia Flyers concept - Brian B.

What I like: This is a very interesting concept. It's certainly not anything I've seen on a Flyers concept before, though there are some traditional design elements here. Execution is very good here.

What I dislike: I'm not a fan of gradients. I think that ship sailed in the late 90s. It's difficult to look at this and not be reminded of the Robo-Penguin jersey ('95-'02).  A logo would make the helmet look more realistic.

Overall: The jersey is well executed, but I'm not a fan of some of the aesthetic choices here. (7/10)

Calgary Flames redesign concept - Phil B.

What I like: I like using the flaming stallion logo as a shoulder patch.

What I dislike: That dragon background is really distracting from the concept. All these jersey are essentially just recolors of the same design. The new Flames alternate logo isn't improved by taking out the white, and speaking of white, the alternate jersey needs some to bring more balance to the color palette. I would take the red part off the alternate helmet. I appreciate trying to do something different, but it looks collegiate to me. 

Overall: I think this redesign would be a step back. (6/10)

Olympic Hockey in the Caribbean: Team Dominican Republic concept - Dallas K.

What I like: The white jersey is surprisingly conservative, but it doesn't look bad. I like the dark jersey being basically a flag. It translates well to a jersey. This is a very creative set. Execution is great.

What I dislike: I would make the collar on the dark jersey white, instead of two colors. I find myself wishing to see Dallas use a different number font from time to time. I would take the laces off, particularly because none of the Nike Olympic jerseys have them.

Overall: This would be a really cool set for the Dominican. (8/10)

Olympic Hockey in the Caribbean: Team Grenada concept - Dallas K.

What I like: The colors and primary logo reflect the flag of Grenada well. It's not lacking for ambition or creativity. (side note: where does the shoulder patch come from? I admit that I don't follow Grenada closely, but I couldn't find where it originated from. Did you create it Dallas?)

What I dislike: The striping is too much. I looks as if it blacks half of the primary logo, though I am assuming that is done on purpose. What I said about numbers and laces in the above concept applies here as well.

Overall: Very ambitious, but I would change some of the design elements here. (6.8/10)

Calgary Flames concept - David K.

What I like: I love the cowboy hat as an alternate logo. I think it looks really cool. The striping pattern is an improvement over the current set.

What I dislike: I would put another I would put another yellow stripe outline on the second stripe. The cowboy hat logo is really cool, but is better suited for an alternate logo. 

Overall: There are some really great design elements here, a few small tweaks, and this is a great set. (8/10)

Black out the NHL: Detroit Red Wings concept - David P.

What I like: It's better than the Black Ice concepts from a few years ago. Those were completely terrible.

What I dislike: Does anyone really want to see more black in the NHL? I thought the Islanders black third was the last gasp of that trend. The jersey needs sleeve numbers. It doesn't score high with creativity, as this is just a recolored Red Wings home jersey.

Overall: (6/10)

Black out the NHL: Philadelphia Flyers concept - David P.

What I like: Everything said above is applicable here.

What I dislike: See above; replace "Red Wings" with "Flyers."

Overall: (6/10)

Notre Dame concept - Jack C.

What I like: I love that monogram logo. The shamrock captain's patch is a nice touch. 

What I dislike: I would take the Fighting Irishman off the back of the jersey. I would put it on the shoulders, instead of the shamrock/monogram patch. You don't need three shamrocks, and three monograms on one jersey. Some hem striping might help here. Sleeve numbers are missing from the back.

Overall: There are some good elements here, but some changes need to be made. (6/10)

Pittsburgh EMS concept - Stephen T.

What I like: Stephen did his research. The Pittsburgh EMS logo looks good on a hockey jersey, and the striping comes from Pittsburgh's own emergency response vehicles. Jersey execution is pretty good as well.

What I dislike: The white jersey needs more blue. A blue yoke and cuffs could help that. Stephen knows how I feel about helmets without logos by now.

Overall: This is a very cool concept for Pittsburgh's EMS. I would love to see a friendly game between them and the concept below. (7.5/10)

Pittsburgh PD concept - Stephen T.

What I like: I think this could be a good set for the Pittsburgh PD, and combined with the concept above, could make for a great friendly hockey game between the EMS and PD. I'm thinking a charity game would be awesome. I love to see that, even if it was just a concept. I like the inspiration from the old Pittsburgh Pirates jerseys.

What I dislike: I wouldn't put the flag of Pittsburgh on just the PD jersey. That makes it seem as if only the police represent the city. The black jersey needs a little more white. Lack of helmet logos.

Overall: I would love to see a charity game between the Pittsburgh EMS and PD. That would be really cool. (7.3/10)

Boston Bruins alternate jersey concept - Jack G.

What I like: I love the Bruins in gold, even though I want Nashville to have a monopoly on the color in the NHL. Execution and presentation are great.

What I dislike: I've never like that Bruins alternate as a primary logo. The Spoked-B is just too good to relegate to shoulder patch duty (it's my favorite in the NHL). No helmet logo.

Overall: I would love to see a gold Bruins alternate. Their old WC jersey is near the top of my wish list. (8.5/10)

Toronto Maple Leafs CCM alternate jersey concept - Tristan M.

What I like: I really love this concept. Several design elements from old Maple Leafs jerseys are used here, and to great effect. The striping pattern is great. I love the old Maple Leaf logo. Execution and presentation are top-notch. 

What I dislike: I wouldn't change a thing.

Overall: This is a concept I'd love to own. (9.5/10) COTW nomination from me!

Did you see any concepts you liked? Did your opinions differ from mine? Leave your thoughts in our comments section, and be sure to nominate the concepts that deserve Concept of the Week consideration! If you saw a concept that gave you some inspiration, you can leave your concept ideas on our new Leave an Idea page! 

Voter turnout was great the last few weeks! Keep it up! Every vote helps your country's Olympic medal count! Okay, not really, but do it anyway. See you all back here next week!