Wednesday: Ducks and More

Last week STLSnake commented on my post that I was being too critical of the concepts.  After giving it some thought, I think he may have been right.  It has never been my intention to be overly critical, I was just trying to give my honest thoughts on each concept.  From now on I'll try to find a better balance of giving helpful constructive criticism, without being overly critical.  I apologize to anyone I offended with my comments.

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There are a couple of votes this week, including the very important COTY Semi-Finals.  Anyone can vote.

COTY 2012 Semi-Finals votes (end Friday @ 11:59pm EST)

COTW Jan 14-20 vote (ends Friday @ 11:59pm EST)

AHL Outdoor Classic entry deadline (Friday @ 11:59pm EST)

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Here are the entries for the 2014 AHL Outdoor Classic Competition...

(by Andrew G.)

(by Colin M.)

(by Darren H.)

(by Kevin P.)

(by Kyle C.)

(by Steven G.)

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Anaheim Ducks (by FrozenFaceoff)

It seems like a lot of people want the Ducks to use more orange.  This concept does just that, dropping the gold from their colour scheme completely.  The Ducks have always had quite modern uniforms, so these would be a nice change for fans of traditional jerseys.  Execution notes, the black in the logo is a different shade than the jersey, also it would be nice to see TV numbers.  7/10

Binghamton Senators (by Mike S.)

This was Mike's entry into the Binghamton senators competition.  It uses a mix of the modern Senators identity (laurel-leaves, lots of gold), with the barber-pole pattern pattern from the original Senators.  There are a few execution errors, the TV numbers are on the wrong side (right now it be #16), and they don't appear on the back view of the jersey.  The shoulder logo also should be on the back view, and the primary logo could be lowered just a bit.  7/10

CSKA Moscow (by Luis G.)

Luis designed this as a vintage concept.  It is very close to being good in my opinion.  I'd suggest removing the silver.  I never think of silver as vintage, and the way it's used here is almost like piping, which isn't very vintage either.  Also the wordmark in the logo should be curved better, look at the way the Stars wordmark is curved on their jersey.  Other than that this is good, I especially like how realistic it is by using advertisement patches.  7/10

Toronto Maple Leafs (by Joey A.)

If I'm guessing correct, this is a mix of the Leafs 1970-92 jerseys and their 1927-34 jerseys.  Two very different eras, but their actually combine quite well.  I think it could be improved with a few changes though, first by removing the blue piping from the full-length shoulder yoke, and also by continuing that yoke all the way to the end of the sleeves.  I'd also add an outline to the TV numbers, so that their match everything else better.  Speaking of the TV numbers, they should really be cut in half and also appear on the back view.  The Sandy Hook Elementary School ribbon is a nice touch.  7/10

Hamburgh Freezers (by Bastian)

First of all I want to comment on how weird this team's logo is, I don't know if I like it or hate it, but those eyes are really creepy.  The actual concept is good, I really like the double stripes on the arm.  I would like them on the hem too, but how the piping cuts them off doesn't look good in my opinion.  The font for the name and numbers look great, they're unique but not tacky like some custom fonts.  8/10

2014 Winter Classic (by Stephen T.)

We will probably start seeing a lot of concept for the Winter Classic after the T-shirts shown here were leaked in early January.  I like both the choices Stephen made here, especially the leafs jersey which is a blue version of their 1934-37 white jersey (I was actually going to make the same concept, but was too lazy).  The red wings jersey is good too, and will probably be very similar to what they end up wearing.  One thing I noticed is that the logos, names, and numbers aren't properly centered.  Doing a quick check after finishing a concept will help catch execution errors like those.  7/10

New Jersey Devils (by Steven W.)

As soon as I saw these jerseys I thought they would be great for a college team or even the Devils farm team in the AHL.  That's not to say that they wouldn't be good in the NHL, I just got a "college hockey" vibe from them (probably because of the wordmark, or the CCM template).  My favourite part of these are the arm-bands that are behind the TV numbers, it's a unique feature that I think would look really good.  The black numbers on the red jersey might be hard to read, but I like that they're a different colour than the wordmark, so I don't know what to suggest to do.  8/10


Binghamton Senators (by Avi S.)

This was not Avi's entry into the B-Sens comp, but it was made at the same time.  It appears to be a white version of these two jerseys, with some minor changes.  The changes include having the laurel leaves facing the center, and changing up the number font.  Both changes look good.  In my opinion, this striping pattern would make a great road jersey for either the Binghamton Senators or even the Ottawa Senators.  8/10


Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg (by Luis G.)

Wow this team has a long name, and it seems like they always have very modern uniforms.  This jersey keeps a somewhat modern design, but is much simpler than what they've worn before.  I'm glad Luis used a simpler design, because I think they're current jerseys are too busy.  My only negative comment here is that the black stripe along the front hem should continue on the back.  That's a very minor complaint though.  8/10

Montreal Canadiens (by Bastian S.)

The Habs home jersey is famous for it's chest stripe, but there's normally only one not two.  Although it might look odd at first, I actually think it is very well done.  It has a very vintage look to it, especially with the lack of a name on the back.  I'll suggest colouring the sleeve cuffs blue (also the bottom of the socks), to better match the two blue chest stripes.  Also I'd remove the extra white outline around the logo, so it's like it is on their current home jersey (a very minor complaint, but something that always bugs me).  Overall though, a very good concept for a team that we don't normally see a lot of unique concepts for.  9/10

Anaheim Ducks (by Dylan A.)

If you know me, you know I love the colour green, and I would love if the Ducks used this colour scheme.  Google "mallard duck" and you'll realize how much this colour scheme makes sense.  The striping is good too, yeah it's a bit like the Flyers, but it's different enough not to be a problem.  I also like how the home jersey has no white, it works really good in this situation.  The yellow jersey is a bit too bright in my opinion, but I do like how it matches the primary jersey's.  COTW nomination from me!!!  9/10