Monday: White Pants Party

Hello there HJCrs! Hope you all had a great weekend, and to those in America, a great Hockey Day in America. Canada, you don't get a Hockey Day because everyday should be that.

We finally got to see the Stadium Series threads in action and I have to say, not that bad looking of a game. I expected worse and was a little skeptical at first. Especially with the Kings' white pants. But I came around on them.

For those that were against them, and aren't looking forward to them breaking them out later this season one more time, look at it this way... The white shorts look like board shorts than hockey pants, being all white and a huge LA logo on the leg, and it works for a team based in Los Angeles. Its a one time thing, twice later this year, and its nice to see a team wearing something different than dark pants. I would hate if they wore them regularly, but its nice to see something new.

Other than that, the Sharks didn't look bad either. Granted, I still dislike how both teams' chest stripes didn't continue to their backs. Niemi's brown pads kinda bugged me because brown pads are a throwback thing, making his pads the only thing throwback-y about the game, but honestly, brown pads look good with pretty much everything, so good call Nemo.

So not only did the game look pretty good, but we also got a pretty good game out of it! What were your guys' opinions on the game?

Speaking of the readers' opinions, you should send in some emails with your COTW votes for this week. We only have the one vote, but we are also accepting Stadium Series Competition entries to the contest email.

COTW Feb 15-21 vote (ends Friday @ 11:59pm Eastern)

Stadium Series Competition entries (due Friday @ 11:59pm Eastern)

So now that that's out of the way, let's get to today's Stadium Series entries and then to what you all came here to see!

Dallas O.

Griffin B.

Jared L.

John E.

Ok and here's your daily concepts!

Buffalo Sabres Alternate Jersey Concept - Ben B.

Ben wants the Sabres to throw things back to their red and black days. I wouldn't mind seeing that happen in some way shape or form either. Surprised they didn't do something involving the red/black identity for Dominik Hasek's jersey retirement. I think the way to throw it back properly would be to recreate one of their red/black jerseys. This seems like something that would be worn for a Stadium Series game. It also looks close to an old Dallas Stars jersey, which wouldn't fly in Buffalo assuming they remember the 1999 Stanley Cup Finals. The TV numbers and Captains patch are too tiny, beef em up. The logo looks too low as well. Looks like part of the shoulder logos got cut off too. Fix these errors and the score goes up based on execution alone....

But, this design doesn't work for me overall. Throwing back to an era is one thing but its usually done best when its just recreating an old jersey. If you wanted to create a new design, then stick to the design and branding from that era. The jersey designs in the "goat head" era were swoopy and curvy. Not blocky. Plus, the resemblance to Dallas jerseys calls back a negative time in the team's history. Nice effort, it'd be nice to see an update to this.

Rating: 5/10


2016 Stadium Series - Chicago Blackhawks vs. Minnesota Wild Concept - Josiah B.

Josiah thinks the Stadium Series should brand itself as a throwback game instead of a more modern, progressively branded event. Little details like no helmet logos missing hurts.

For the Wild, the sleeve length yoke has history with the team and I like to see it back. I think with the Blackhawks wearing vintage white that the cream color in the Wild uniforms needs to be toned back, a lot. vintage white helmets wouldn't look great and the pants wouldn't be that great either. Overall, way too much cream/vintage white, especially since the Blackhawks would be wearing it too. The logo looks too shoulder patchy, so maybe stick with the bear head or their vintage script.

For the Blackhawks, the use of color in the striping is interesting. It's something the team has never done. It makes sense to do that with the use of the feathers for the main logo...which I don't think works. It works on merchandise, but not on a jersey. The headdress striping on the helmet is too out there for a fauxback jersey. The striping on the yoke looks odd. I like the idea but it needs some refining. The pants stripe feels out of place. On both teams' pants actually.

I think the reason that the Blackhawks headdress doesn't work as a standalone logo on a jersey, and utilizing the colors in the striping and team branding outside of the logos is that with all of the headlines and outlash against team logos and names like the "Redskins" and "Indians" is because the Blackhawks don't push Native American imagery as a huge part of their brand. They have their logos and that's it. The team would probably steer clear from the colorful Native American Headdress striping. Just my two cents though.

Ratings:
Wild: 4/10
Blackhawks: 6/10
Overall: 5/10


Ottawa Senators "Modernized Throwback" Concept - Ryan C.

Ryan would like to see the Sens throwback to the 90's. This isn't much of a concept. Basically just slapping their current Senator-profile logo on their old black jerseys. The black isn't black enough either. I know you're using a lighter black to show the stitching, at least I'm assuming, but darken it up a little bit. Also, you're mixing branding eras. The "S" logos stopped being used in 2007, which is when the Senator logo here was created. It's usually a good idea not to mix eras. Perhaps create new S logos that look like they belong in their current branding package. This would be a chance to improve the old jerseys as well, perhaps by adding a red stroke to the white hem stripe.

Rating: 6.5/10

Nebraska Cornhuskers (NCAA) - David P.

Only image I can find of Nebraska's current jerseys in the ACHA is here. This is an upgrade as everything goes together better. The alternate is pretty nice as well. The only thing here that needs to be changed is the pants stripe. Either ditch it or make it match the striping on the jerseys. I think this logo could be used somewhere, maybe the shoulders, or front and center on the alternate jersey.

Rating: 8/10


Anaheim Ducks Concept - "Simple Series" - Mike S.

Mike simplifies the Ducks look by straightening out the stripes and placing them at the end of the sleeves and hem. I think the stripes would look a little bit better if they were moved off of the cuffs and hem, like on the socks. I love to see the "OC" logo on the shoulders. I like this look for the Ducks and it's a shame they don't experiment with a simple look like this.

Rating: 8.5/10


2016 Stadium Series - Detroit Red Wings vs. Colorado Avalanche Concept - Justin C.

Second Stadium Series concept of the day, this one from Mr. Justin Cox. This one brands the event as it has been the past two seasons. The jerseys here are similar to what was worn this year. I'm assuming next years jerseys will be something completely new, but as a concept, its nice to see what this game would have looked like this year.

For the Avs, The jersey striping is great. Its a shame it's not on the back, but they did that this year, so it's realistic. I wanna say that maybe a blue helmet would work better, but I think a black helmet looks best, which explains why they use black in their uniforms at all. Maybe make the thin blue stripe in the striping black so you could use a black helmet or something. Still good either way.

For the Wings, this seems pretty accurate. It follows the template that all the Stadium Series teams would use, but it doesn't mess with the team's classic identity. It doesn't really push the boundaries but it's still different for them. The jersey is very similar to their 2009 Winter Classic jerseys but I think this looks better.

Ratings:
Avalanche: 8/10
Red Wings: 9/10
Overall: 8.5/10 and a COTW Nom!


There you have it HJCrs! 6 Concepts, 4 Competition entries, and a COTW Nom! I mentioned you guys sharing your opinions earlier, so here's another opportunity to share them in the comments section! Anything you agree or disagree with? See a COTW-worthy concept? Get to commenting! I want to see 50 comments. All good too. Let's do it. Come on.... I dare you!