Friday: Two Fisherman and a Tiger Walk Into a Bar...

Hey y'all, and welcome to another Friday post here at HJC.  This weekend marks the end of the regular season, and with that the end of many of our teams' games for the season.  For the first time in many years, I will be among the many fans who must watch the postseason as a bystander, as my beloved Rangers achieved a startlingly impressive collapse this season.  With that in mind, I am now faced with a decision that many fans are faced with each year, whose playoff train do I hitch my wagon to?  This year, the popular choice is of course the Golden Knights, and while I can respect them as an organization, I just can't get behind a team based in the most gaudy, deplorable city in America.  Another popular choice is the Winnipeg Jets, but as a Thrashers fan, the wounds are still too fresh to pull for them.  The Avalanche are an intriguing choice, I always love an underdog story, but I just don't see them making it far enough to warrant support.  Therefore, by sheer proximity's sake, I am announcing, here, for the first time, that I will be pulling for the Nashville Predators in this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs.  They put on an impressive showing last year, and I think that they may be a force to be reckoned with after such a successful regular season, I think they might be able to ride that wave to the Cup Finals. 

In voting news we have the regular COTW vote for March 30-April 5, as well as the COTW March vote, both of which end Friday at noon EST.  We also have the Color Swatch Competition vote, which also ends Friday at noon EST. 

COTW March 30-April 4 vote (ends Friday @ noon EST)

COTW March vote (ends Friday @ noon EST)

Colour Swatch Competition vote (ends Friday @ noon EST)

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Now on to today's concepts!

Ben S.- Nashville Predators

 

Our first concept of the day is our very own Ben S.'s design for a Nashville Predators alternate.  Personally, I would like to see the Preds in a blue alternate, but I understand that they've made the yellow their trademark look, so I can see them sticking with it for their alternate.  While I do appreciate trying to incorporate Nashville's musical heritage into an alt, I think the hem design is a little too much, they do it in a much better manner with the guitar pick shoulder patch and the guitar strings in their numbers.  The big, bold striping on the arms is a good call when pairing with such an intricate design on the hem, and it looks good on the breezers as well.  I love that you put the shoulder patch on both shoulders, it';s a great design and it frustrates me that the Preds only use it on one shoulder.  I like the use of the regular main crest, but the wordmark above it just seems superfluous.  My main issue with this set is the color balance, blue is dominant in the breezers, but the rest of the set uses it very sparingly, I might fix that by making the collar blue.  Final verdict: an ambitious design for the Preds, but it just doesn't work for me.  6.5/10

Ben S.- New York Islanders

Ben's second design of the day is another entry in his Thirds series, this time for the Islanders.  I must admit, I'm a big fan of the fisherman logo and color scheme, so I love the idea of including it in an alternate for the Isles.  I love the striping pattern, especially with the teal as the main color.  It's a great way to pull in the color scheme from the logo, and I think it's much more palatable to the detractors of the original fisherman jersey.  That being said, I'm not so sure that I like it as a chest stripe, I might move it to the hem and eliminate the orange and white on the hem, cuffs, and shoulders.  Gear looks great, and I actually really like that font choice, it fits well with the vibe of this jersey.  Final verdict: a good looking alternate for the Isles, and a more traditional layout would make it even better.  8.5/10 and my COTW NOMINEE!!!!!

Joe D.- Hartford Whalers

Our final concept of the day is Joe D.'s design for the Hartford Whalers.  Here, Joe seems to try to combine the color schemes of the NHL and WHA iterations of the Whalers.  I really like the white cuffs and hem, it's a good look that the Whalers pulled off well.  The simple striping pattern is also a good call, a classic team like the Whalers should have a more traditional look.  While I love the use of Pucky the Whale on the shoulders, I don't agree with the use of the modified WHA logo as the main crest.  The Whalers' logo during their tenure in the NHL is one of the greatest logos in the history of sports, and leaving it out of a Whalers concept just seems like a wasted opportunity.  I'm also not sold on the combination of the color schemes, while each of them works great on their own, they're not working as well when combined.  Final verdict: an interesting idea for the Whalers, but I'm not quite sold on it.  7/10

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