Saturday: Collections and series galore!

Alright, it's clear that I need to bump up the difficulty on NHL 14. My first NHL game was a 24-9 blowout of the Avalanche by the Blackhawks. Also, in Live the Life, my player (first line left wing for the Calgary Hitmen) leads the league in goals and PIMs. This is too easy for someone who's never played the game before. Of course, seeing all those empty spaces where the NHL uniforms should be makes me somewhat excited and also nervous for when those uniforms yet to be unveiled are unveiled.

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Czech Republic (by Caleb)

There isn't all that much to say about this design. It's a conservative design that puts the recently unveiled Olympic designs to shame and the striping design is far from over-the-top. I'd change the numbers to single-color. The gray on the white jersey seems unnecessary and the double outline on the red jersey gets lost. The red just doesn't stand out well between the blue and white. Overall, I'll give it a 7/10.

Anaheim Ducks (by Dylan A.)

I really regret not being able to enter my Nike NHL Ducks entry into the redesign contest, because I thought of using the unused colors before that contest even started, but none of my Nike jerseys are anywhere close to being ready for presentation here on the site due to my mild uniform OCD. Needless to say, my design looks nothing like this and this one looks great. I really like this color scheme and Dylan's presentation is great. I'm not sure about the template (the lines are a bit too hard for my tastes) but overall it's a fantastic look. I don't think the Ducks would ever look quite right in a conservative old-school look so this one works for them. Overall, I'll give it an 8.5/10.

Estonia (by Jake88)

And here we have Jake going in a slightly different European direction than his usual fare. This one features a jersey design feature common to football jerseys but rare when it comes to hockey jerseys: vertical yoke stripes. It's a feature that I've always thought would look good on a hockey jersey and this is no exception. The color scheme is Estonia's normal colors, which work as always, and the design is great all-around. Overall, I'll give it an 8.5/10.

Toronto Marlies (by Jake88)

While the Marlies are the only AHL team to be in the same city as their parent team, I certainly approve of attempts to set them apart from the Leafs. Of course, you can't go too far since the Marlies have almost the exact same color scheme as the Leafs, but this concept works really well. I really like the barberpole design, but I'd like it more if it extended all the way around the sleeve. I also like the simplification of the color scheme. Double blue isn't inherently bad but here, removing the lighter blue works. Overall, I'll give it an 8/10.

Colorado Avalanche (by Justin)

And now we have a second de-Edge series. It seems like Reebok has hit a nerve with some of our readers. Now Justin is taking a shot at melding past and present. I have to say, I really like this one. While I think that restoring the mountain striping would have been a better choice, I really like the decision to put the Colorado script on both jerseys. Their logo isn't bad by any means but using the script on both jerseys really works well. In fact, I may have to steal that idea when I work on the Avs for my Nike series. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, after all. Overall, I'll give it an 8.5/10.

Nashville Predators (by Justin)

Another solid design by Justin. He's taken the Perds' current colors and combined them with their pre-Edge jersey design and it works really well in large part because it's simpler than what it used to be, just like how their current logo is an improvement over what they used to use. I even like the subtle throwback to the original logos with the navy blue triangle behind the logo on the white jersey. However, since the dark jersey is gold, not blue, you could have included the triangle on that one too. Overall, I'll give it an 8/10.

Dallas Stars (by Matt)

Interesting. Very interesting. Here Matt has given us a combination of a team's two separate eras in a stripe design that matches neither of them. I applaud Matt for going outside the box on this one, but I would have added at least a little bit of black trim to the jerseys. The green and yellow are very bright on a white jersey and would benefit from some black trim to enhance the contrast. Overall, I'll give it a 7/10.

Hmm, I wonder where Matt is from. I can't quite put my finger on it. Great collection, despite being full of jersey from those Cup-less rivals of ours from north of the border. I'm so glad to see that you don't have a Flying V jersey, because that'd just ruin the aesthetics of what is a really nice collection. I especially applaud Matt for getting several of those jerseys signed. Well done. I'll have my collection up on here someday. Of course, I need more than one jersey for it to count as a collection of course. If you have a jersey collection of your own that you'd like us to showcase, please don't hesitate to send it along!

Orlando Solar Bears (by Mike)

First of all, congratulations are in order to Mike for finishing his ECHL series. It's nice to see someone set out to complete a series and actually follow through on it. His tenacity and persistence should be applauded. As for the concept right here, I've always found judging Solar Bears concepts to be a bit difficult, even if (I believe) this is the first one I've judged as an actual writer for HJC. Why, might you ask? Well, it's such an unusual color scheme. Purple and blue is strange. At the same time though, it works because it's Florida. Bright and flashy color schemes work for Florida. The slight orange trim works really well and I love the logo choice. The hockey stick-OSB is a great logo. Overall, I'll give it an 8/10.

Tampa Bay Lightning (by Steven)

Steven's own de-Edge series continues and we remain in the same state. This is the direction the Lightning need to go in, concept series or not. They need to go back to a black jersey ASAP. Drop this Original Six dress-up garbage, Stevie. Steven's concept takes the Lightning in a different direction than the ones they've gone in the past and I have to say, it works really well. The sharp edges of the stripes fit the name and look, and the restoration of the black jersey is a huge step forward. Overall, I'll give it an 8/10.