Friday: NHL 100 Classic

Hello folks, and happy St. Patrick's Day!

This is normally the part of the post where I say "there's no news today, so let's get right to the concepts," but there actually is news today so I should probably do that first.

Image from @PR_NHL on Twitter

For a while now there had been rumours that an outdoor game would take place in Ottawa in late 2017, and the NHL made it official today announcing the NHL 100 Classic.  The Senators will face of against the Canadiens at Lansdowne Park in Ottawa, on December 16th.  It will be the Senators second outdoor game (first time hosting), and the Canadiens fourth (all on the road).

The logo for the event uses the same general style and colour scheme as the NHL's Centennial Classic logo, so I'm guessing that the jerseys will also be a bit more modern like the Centennial Classic jerseys were.  Honestly I was hoping this game would be a retro event like a Heritage Classic (and maybe it still will be), with the Senators throwing back to their old barber pole jerseys, but I'm still exciting to see what they come up with.

As for the name "NHL 100 Classic", I think it's a bit clunky and it definitely doesn't roll off the tongue as nicely as "NHL Centennial Classic", but I also think it would be a bit confusing having two events with the same name in the same calendar year.

Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

Now getting back to St. Patrick's Day, the New Jersey Devils wore their beautiful red and green throwback jerseys last night.  They were matched up against the Philadelphia Flyers, who were wearing their regular road jerseys, so it was a great looking vintage game all-around.

I love the Devils tradition of wearing their vintage jerseys for St. Patrick's Day.  It's especially special since they only wear these jerseys once or twice a year, if they were used more often the novelty would wear off and it would become a less memorable event.

Photo by Ernest Doroszuk/Toronto Sun

Lastly, don't forget the Toronto Maple Leafs will be wearing their throwback St. Pats jerseys tomorrow when they host the Chicago Blackhawks (that should be another beautiful match-up).  The players have already been practicing in their green pants and gloves (shown above), and I can't wait to see how everything looks together.

Hopefully the Maple Leafs follow the Devils lead, and bring back this jersey annually for St. Patrick's Day.  It's the perfect jersey for this holiday, it literally says "St. Pats" right across the front.

Okay, now onto the concepts, I mean voting reminders!

--------------------------------------------------

The will only be one vote this upcoming, the regular COTW vote.  The poll should be up sometime this evening.

COTW Mar 10-16 vote (ends next Friday @ noon EST)

Also, Ryan wants to know if there's enough interest in an HJC jersey raffle, so if you haven't already please take a moment to answer the following poll (you have to be logged into a Google account to see the poll).

Okay, now onto the concepts!

--------------------------------------------------

Pittsburgh Penguins, Anthony C:

• Anthony brings us our first concept of the day, a new set of jerseys for the Penguins.  I like that Anthony kept and simplified the contrasting upper arms (although it would look better without the phantom yoke), and I'm also a fan of the Robo-Penguin's return as a shoulder patch.
• The wordmark's fine I guess, but I'd rather see an actual logo on the front.  Also the rounded number font clashes with the font of the wordmark, I think a block font would look better for the numbers.
• The collars were left uncoloured, and I don't like how the sleeve numbers and shoulder logos extend beyond the jerseys.

Rating: 6/10

Team Canada, by Anthony C:

• We also have a Team Canada concept from Anthony.  This striping pattern is the same style used by a few countries in the 2014 Olympics (United States, Slovakia, Germany).  It's on okay style, but to me it's overused, both by international teams in real life and by Anthony's recent concepts.
• The sublimated maple leaf on the hem and the sleeves is a nice detail, and I also like the leaf in the collar insert.
• I normally prefer logos over wordmarks, but I'm fine with the use of a wordmark here, especially if this is meant to be an alternate jersey.
• Both the names and numbers could contrast a bit better.  I'd go with white for the names, and use a thicker white outline for the numbers.  Also, the sleeve numbers are missing.

Rating: 6/10

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, by Anthony C:

• Anthony's third concept is a new set for the OHL's Greyhounds.  The striping pattern of the primary jerseys is basically the same as the teams 2009-13 set, which I think this is the ideal look for them.  I'd just remove the hem trim from the red jersey.  The black jersey is a neat look for a third, but the names and numbers would be hard to read.
• I like the removal of the circle from the logos on the jerseys, and I also like the stars added to the pant stripes.
• The number font is an okay fit here, but it looks like the same font as Anthony's previous two concepts.  I'd like to see more variety.
• There are some stray pixels in a few areas (like inside the hem of the red jersey), and the stripes aren't always flush up against the template lines.  Also, the hem trim is only shown on the front of the red jersey.

Rating: 7/10

Charlotte Checkers, by TC Moore:

• TC returns the Checkers to their more unique colour scheme from their ECHL days, which I think is a great decision.
• I like the striping pattern on arms of these jerseys, especially how they're identical on all three jerseys.  However, I don't like the use of contrasting shoulder yokes with the contrasting arms, I've just never been a fan of those two elements together.  I also think the white jersey could use some navy blue on the hem.
• The back numbers are an inconsistent size, they should all be about the size they appear on the white jersey.  Also the logo is too large on the navy blue jersey, all the sock stripes are too high, and the collar on the navy blue jersey appears to have been left uncoloured.

Rating: 6/10

Team Luxembourg, by Mike F:

• For his Team Luxembourg concept, Mike incorporates the country's flag into the striping pattern of both the primary and vintage jerseys.  Both designs use the flag in a somewhat interesting way, thin and angled on the main jerseys, and on the vintage jersey it's thicker and on a sleeve-length yoke.
• I think the logos on both sets look good.  The primary jersey's logo is the shield from Luxembourg's Coat of Arms, with the shield removed from behind the lion for the vintage set.
• I like the choice to use darker blue for the main equipment, it helps balance out the lighter colours of the jersey.  However, I don't like the white helmet paired with the main blue jersey.  I don't have any complaints about the equipment paired with the vintage set though.

Rating: 8/10

Vancouver Canucks, by Brooks F:

• At first glance these two Canucks jerseys from Brooks looked like they'd be from two different sets, but after a few seconds I realized each jersey uses the same striping pattern, and the different base colours just make them look different.  I love that idea when it's done well, and I think it's done great here.
• I've been saying for years that the Canucks should use Johnny Canuck as their main logo (with the stick in the as a secondary), so it goes without saying that I like the logo choices.
• The name and number font isn't what I would have chosen for this concept, but I also don't think it looks bad (if that makes sense).  I do like that they don't have any unnecessary outlines.

Rating: 8/10

Colorado Avalanche, by Taylor R:

• Using a mountain pattern for an Avalanche concept is very common, but Taylor was still able to make his concept unique by giving the mountain stripes a new twist.  His pattern is more jagged compared to the Avalanche's original design.
• The one thing about the jagged mountain stripes is that it's a fairly visually busy design.  To counteract that I'd simplify the striping pattern by removing the top silver stripe (you could then recolour one of the white stripes to silver, if you wanted to keep silver around).
• I like everything else about this concept.  The logos, fonts, collar design, and equipment all look good.

Rating: 9/10 and my COTW nomination!

--------------------------------------------------

That's all folks!