Friday: First Post ft. Vegas' New Golden Knight

Hey y'all (I'm from Georgia, get used to it), I'm the new Friday writer here at HJC, TC Moore.  I've been submitting to the site for a while, and I'm really excited to join the team and give back to the site and the readers.  First off, I would like to thank my predecessor, Steven G. The whole team here at Hockey Jersey Concepts has appreciated all that he has done for the site during both of his terms here, and wish him all the best going forward.

Now to the news:

dobberprospects.com

While they await the expansion draft in mid-June to field a full team, the NHL’s newest team is not completely devoid of an idea of their roster.  The Vegas Golden Knights currently have one player signed to their team, Reid Duke, a 6’, 192 lb., 21-year-old C/RW.  Drafted by the Wild in the 6^th round of the 2014 draft, Duke has spent the majority of his playing time in the WHL, most recently with the Brandon Wheat Kings.  Duke spent three years with the Wheat Kings, including their 2015-2016 Chynoweth Cup winning campaign, during which the racked up eight goals and sixteen assists in the postseason.  Duke totaled 184 points in 179 games during his tenure in Brandon, and is currently under a player tryout contract with the Chicago Wolves, the Blues’ AHL affiliate, but has been a healthy scratch during the Wolves’ playoff run. 

While he may lack major league experience, Duke is still a relatively good sign overall for the NHL’s newest franchise.  His time with the Wheat Kings gave him playoff experience and showed that he can produce points when it really matters.  His time with the Wolves will serve as a nice stepping stone to get him more acclimated with the pace of an NHL team, as opposed to his experience with WHL teams.  Duke also has connections with the Golden Knights, as his coach on the Wheat Kings, Kelly McCrimmon, is Vegas’ new Assistant GM.  Duke’s postseason production and approval from the front office could be just what the Golden Knights need in a first signee, but only time will tell if he can produce in the NHL the same way that he could in the WHL.

In other news, be on the lookout later today for the new COTW poll, as well as the poll for the Random Competition.  Polls run until next Friday at Noon Eastern

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COTW April 28- May 4 vote (ends next Friday @ noon Eastern)

Random Competition vote (ends next Friday @ noon Eastern)

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Here are the entries for the Random Competition the we've received since the last post.

Tyler S.- Pittsburgh Penguins (Red and Black)

Brendan P.- Washington Capitals (Red and Grey)

J.J. A.- Dallas Stars (Red and Blue)

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Now on to today's concepts!

Anthony C.- Vancouver Canucks

First up, we have Anthony C. with a concept for the Canucks.  Let's start with the positives: I like the initiative you took with the creation of your own logo.  It shows an added level of creativity on your part, and I applaud you for that.  I also like the idea of the yoke striping that goes along with the arm and hem striping patterns.  Furthermore, I appreciate you sticking to the '72-'78 striping pattern that the Canucks used, a really classic pattern.  Now for the negatives: I'm going to be honest, it took me a little while to figure out what this logo was supposed to be.  At first I thought it was for a Star Wars theme night like what some minor league teams have done, as it reminded me of a TIE fighter.  While I do like it more now that I get what it is, I don't think it's strong enough to dethrone the stick-in-rink.  Additionally, I like the idea of the yoke striping, but it's a little confusing with the mismatched striping between the dark and light jersey.  Also, the colors aren't vibrant enough for a Canucks jersey.  They look like a sun-bleached Canucks jersey, and I don't think it would work on ice.  Finally, some execution errors: I believe others have mentioned this to you before, but just in case, make sure your stitching stops at the hem stripe.  It's a simple fix with the paintbrush.  Also, try to include the gear with your concepts, it gives a better idea of what the actual uniform will look like and the color balance.  Last execution note: try to avoid white backgrounds so your light jersey doesn't bleed into the background.  Final Verdict: 6.5/10

Brooks F.- Dallas Stars

Our next two entries come from Brooks F., who continues his nineties series.  I'm a big fan of this series, because it offers a departure from the more traditional designs we usually get.  I love the return of the gold to the uniforms, as I always felt the silver just fell too flat.  I like the design of the stars gradually getting bigger, creating a unique take on the diagonal hem striping. I also like the arm and sock striping, with one small exception.  I get that you're trying to match the outline of the stars on the hem stripe, but the top stripe on each jersey and sock is just way too thin and gets lost.  Additionally, I would switch the black and white on the dark jersey, as the black and green might bleed into each other, and I think white stars would really pop.  Also, I would probably make the hem striping a little smaller so that it doesn't run into the numbers on the back.  Finally, I just don't like that striping on the pants.  I would go with plain black pants or a script like they had in the nineties.
Final verdict: 7.5/10

Brooks F.- Detroit Red Wings

Brooks continues his nineties series with a concept for the Detroit Red Wings.  I like the ambition with this one, as the Wings have had essentially the same uniform since 1961.  I like the idea of the wings on the shoulders, similar to some of the seemingly endless uniform options of the Oregon Ducks football team, but I think in reality it would be too hard to achieve unless it was screen printed, as having it made up of patches would make the jersey heavy and unwieldy.  I like the striping pattern, but on the hem I wouldn't have them converge, just make it more like a side striping with some blank space in the middle.  I do like the continuation of the striping pattern on the pants, but I would have liked to see it on the socks as well.  Finally, I think the font works really well with this concept.  While it wouldn't quite fit on the normal Wings jersey, it meshes excellently with the more rounded, modern striping on this jersey.  Final verdict: 8.5/10.

TC Moore: Providence College Friars

For my next two concepts, I have the tricky task of reviewing my own work without sounding too conceited. I'm going to try to be as objective as possible on this one, so here goes.  I know that providence loves their hockey specific logo, but to me it belongs in the past.  For some reason, it looks like a combo of Pittsburgh's skating penguin and the Robopenguin to me.  I did make a concession to the fans of the logo by putting it on the third jersey.  As for the jerseys themselves, I like the simplistic striping pattern, but looking back I don.t quite know if the middle white stripe on the light jersey is distinct enough or if it blends into the grey.  I used the primary friars logo for the chest and the shield logo makes a fantastic shoulder patch.  I also think that the Thrashers (RIP) font is a great fit with the font used in the shoulder patch.  On the third jersey, I realize now that I eliminated white from the uniform, but it's still present in the logos.  Not my best move. Final verdict: 7.5/10.

TC Moore- Murray State Racers

I chose Murray State here because they have a very unique mascot and I like their logos and color scheme.  I understand that the yellow numbers on the light jersey may be hard to read, but when I tried to do it with the colors reversed, it just looked atrocious, so I stand by my decision.  I really like the striping pattern, but it might be a bit too busy, especially with movement.  The logo choices work well, I think.  As for the third jersey, I fell into my old pattern of just eliminating the third color, but it works out okay here because you have the contrast of light and dark between the two colors.  Looking back, I might eliminate the yellow helmet and just go with the blue, just to avoid an overload of yellow.  Execution note: accidentally put the primary logo instead of the shoulder patch next to the third jersey.  Rookie mistake.  Final Verdict: 8.5/10

Since I have two concepts in this post, I'm going to leave it up to y'all to nominate who you want for the COTW.  Let us know in the comments.

On a final note, I want to point something out to anyone contributing to this site.  I, like everyone else on the HJC team, was brought on because I have a particular taste in jerseys that is different from the other members of the staff.  That's part of what makes this site work, the fact that it's got a wide variety of opinions on concepts that are brought from the different writers.  For example, most of the other guys who write for HJC absolutely HATE the jersey template that I use, but I find that it's the most user friendly, especially if you're just starting out, and it works for me.  This subjectivity means that we aren't the be-all-end-all of concept designs.  If you think we're wrong about your work, stand up for it and let us know why in the comments.  Even if it isn't your concept, if you think we got a COTW nominee wrong, feel free to let us know.  This site is meant for your opinions just as much as ours.  This is a community.

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That's it for me this week, I'll see y'all next Friday!