Friday: Unique Goalie Gear

Hello folks!

Washington Capitals, by DT Concepts:

DT Concepts brings us our first concept of the day, a rebrand of the Washington Capitals.  The jerseys themselves look good, I especially like the white jersey because I think the gap in the striping looks better on that jersey, but the blue jersey doesn't look bad either.  I'm not a fan of the logo though.  While I appreciate the decision to try something new, in my opinion this logo just doesn't work as a sports logo (it's flat, undynamic, and too detailed).  Last of all, I want to see the sleeve numbers because they would give me a better idea of what the back of the jersey looks like.
Rating: 7/10

Rimouski Océanic, by Brooks F:

Next up Brooks continues his CHL Redesign with a Rimouski Océanic concept.  The curved arm stripes look good, they flow nicely which works well with the waves in their logo.  However, I don't like how the side stripes just stop abruptly, they don't flow well.  I've got no complaints about the third jersey though, I like the star in the sleeve stripes, I like that it's bright blue, I like everything about it (it would also make a good third jersey for the old Houston Aeros of the WHA).
Rating: 8/10

Tampa Bay Lightning, by Lucas D:

We also have a couple of concepts from Lucas, starting with this De-Edge design for the Lightning.  I love the idea of the jagged lightning stripes, I could see something like this becoming a modern classic (like the Avalanche and their old mountain stripe jerseys).  But something about the design looks a bit off to me, it almost feels unbalanced, I'd suggest removing the plateau part of the design (or at least centering it in the middle of the jersey).  Also the back numbers feel too squished, I think they and the names could be moved up slightly higher.
Rating: 8/10

Providence Bruins, by Lucas D:

Lucas' second concept is a new set of jerseys for the AHL's Providence Bruins.  The design takes cues from some classic Boston Bruins jerseys, the yoke in particular, but the sleeve and hem stripes are simplified.  The end result is a great mix of retro and modern, which pairs nicely with their retro-inspired logo.  I also think the retro and modern mix works well with these Adidas style collars.  The execution is nearly perfect, but the outline on the sleeve numbers and player names should be thicker.
Rating: 9/10

Kamloops Blazers, by Taylor R:

Last up, Taylor updates the Kamloops Blazers 2005-09 jerseys with fantastic results.  The striping pattern on each jersey is much improved, the white jersey now rightfully emphasizes blue over orange, and adding white to the blue jersey makes a big difference.  The new font is also a lot better, it looks cleaner and it's more unique.  I also like the orange name on the white jersey.  The only thing I'm unsure about are the pant stripes, maybe I'm missing the reason behind them but they look a bit out of place to me.
Rating: 9/10 and my COTW nomination!

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If you've been reading this blog for a while, you may have realized that I like unique goalie gear (I've previously discussed unique goalie gear here, here, here, and here).  I particularly like when goalies use a colour other than white for their equipment, it's a nice change of pace since so many NHL goalies use white pads nowadays.  With the NHL's pre-season now underway, we can start to see how many goalies are wearing coloured equipment this year, and there's more than I was expecting!

Image from NHL.com/Blackhawks

After seeing Corey Crawford in white gear at the World Cup of Hockey, I was a concerned he would ditch the black pads he wore with the Blackhawks last year.  Apparently I had no reason to worry, as he has returned to his black pads for the NHL's pre-season.

Image from NHL.com/Blackhawks

Chicago's other goalie, Scott Darling, is also using non-white equipment this season.  As you can see he choose red as the primary colour, switching it up from last year when he wore black pads.

Image from CalgaryHerald.com

Last year with the Blues, Brian Elliot wore a lovely set of blue goalie gear (at least for the second half of the season).  We knew those pads wouldn't be sticking around for this season, since he was trading to the Flames in the summer.  I was hoping he would just switch blue for red with his new pads, and that's pretty much exactly what he did.

Image from EdmontonJournal.com

Staying in Alberta, the Oilers also have a new goalie with unique equipment.  Jonas Gustavsson not only choose blue as the main colour of his equipment, he also added the orange oil-drop from the Oilers logo.  I love the oil-drop, but I think these pads would look better without the blocks of colours on the knees.

Image from MLive.com

Near the end of last year, Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard wore red equipment for a handful of games.  It looks like he'll start this season red gear, hopefully he sticks with them for the whole year (the white glove was temporary, he was wearing a red glove in the next game).

Image from NHL.com/Jets

Meanwhile in Winnipeg, Micheal Hutchinson is going with navy blue equipment.  The pads and gloves are very nice, but the helmet is the real star of the show.  Unlike most modern masks, it's simple enough that it looks great from a distance, but there's still smaller details that look good up close.

Are there any other goalies wearing unique equipment this pre-season?  If so, let me know in the comments.

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The COTW poll will be reset today, don't forget to vote when it goes up.  Also, don't forget that the Carolina Hurricanes ReDesign will officially begin tomorrow (but don't send your entries in yet).

Hurricanes ReDesign entries (due Friday, Oct 14 @ noon Eastern)

COTW Sept 30 - Oct 6 vote (ends Friday, Oct 14 @ noon Eastern)