Friday: Flying to Saskatchewan

Hey y'all, and welcome to another Friday post here at HJC.  The end of the regular season is approaching, and I must say it's got me feeling like I stepped into topsy-turvy world.  The Rangers are in the basement of the Metropolitan, beating out only the lowly Islanders, which is sort of like beating Helen Keller at a spelling bee.  Yeah, you're not in last place, but it's not really even a moral victory.  While I did see the Golden Knights making the playoffs due to their relatively solid roster and fairly weak division, I never thought that they'd do quite as well as they did.  Probably the biggest surprise to me was the Central division, I never thought that the Avalanche would beat out not only Dallas but Chicago as well, and pretty handily for that matter.  If you'd told me at the beginning of the season that the Jets would break 100 points, I would have slapped you in the mouth and bet my first born that they had a better chance of moving back to Atlanta and retaking the Thrashers moniker.  Lo and behold, the Jets are setting franchise records and show no signs of a migration back down south.  It's been an odd season to watch, especially as a Rangers fan, but I must admit that it's shaping up to be a very interesting postseason.

In voting news, we have the regular COTW vote for March 23-29, with polls closing Friday at noon EST.  We are also in the entry phase for the Color (I refuse to use that superfluous u, because 'MERICA) Swatch Competition, so be sure to check out the rules on the competition page, and get those entries in by next Friday at noon EST. 

 COTW March 16-22 vote (ends Friday @ noon ET) 

 Colour Swatch Competition entries (due Friday, April 6 @ noon ET) 

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Now on to today's concepts!

Lucas D.- Philadelphia Flyers

Our first concept of the day is Lucas D.'s design for the flyers.  While I do love the Flyers' logo, color scheme, and overall design, I do think that they probably need an update from the current design, aka their early 70's design moved to a new template.  Lucas attempts here to bring that update to Philly, and I must say it's a pretty solid look for the Flyers.  Lucas preserves the Flyers' signature extended yoke, but gives it a more jagged design and adds some piping to it.  It's similar to the Flyers' traditional design, but just modern enough to pull it into the 21st century.  Lucas also adds a matching side panel design which isn't bad, but as a traditionalist, I think a jersey just looks too bare without a hem stripe.  The Flyers manage to work one in with their non-traditional design, so I think it could work here as well.  My only real detraction other than that design-wise is that both designs seem a little devoid of black, which I think can be amended by adding black to the cuffs like the actual Philly uniform.  Gear looks great, the socks actually work really well and match the design perfectly.  One execution error: on the 2D template, the side panel design ends at the hem, but on the 3D it looks like it extends all the way to the bottom of the jersey.  Final verdict: a nice, modern take on the Flyers design, but color balance throws it off a little.  8.5/10

Noah B.- Team Saskatchewan

Our next and final design of the day is the latest entry in Noah B.'s Canadian Province series, this one for Team Saskatchewan.  Noah does a great job here of incorporating the colors of the province's flag, especially by using the yellow as the away color instead of white.  The striping looks great, especially when combined with the contrasting cuffs, and the green yoke on the yellow jersey helps the color balance quite a bit.  logo and font choice are great, and the red in the pentagon is a great nod to the prairie lily on the flag.  The sublimated wheat grain pattern really ties this set together and is a great way to celebrate Saskatchewan's agricultural identity.  The gear looks great, but I wish there was a little more yellow in the gloves.  Final verdict: a fantastic entry in a great series that really shows the distinctiveness of the province.  9.5/10 and my COTW NOMINEE!!!!!

*BONUS* 

As a special treat, our very own Jets96 has compiled a roster for team Saskatchewan based on current players.  I know present the fruits of his labor.

GM- Kevin Cheveldayoff

Head Coach- Todd McLellan

C- Brayden Schenn (Saskatoon), Ryan Getzlaf (Regina), Tyler Bozak (Regina), Hayley Wickenheiser (Shaunavon)

RW- Jordan Eberle (Regina), Colby Armstrong (Lloydminster), Riley Armstrong (Lloydminster), Dan DaSilva (Saskatoon)

LW- Patrick Marleau (Swift Current), Clarke MacArthur (Lloydminster), Tanner Glass (Regina), Travis Moen (Swift Current)

D- Garnet Exelby (Craik), Brayden McNabb, Luke Schenn (Saskatoon), Robyn Regehr (Rosthern), Cory Sarich (Saskatoon), Matt Dumba (Regina

G- Devan Dubnyk (Regina), Braden Holtby (Lloydminster), Brent Leroy (Dog River)

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