Last Mon. of Mar.

Hey There Hi There HJCers. Some big things are brewing up for HJC, the teams are set and the Pairs competition has begun. Not as big of a turnout as last year's pairs competition but that doesn't mean we just may see the best work we'll see all year. Last year's Pairs Comp. pumped out some of the best work of the year that was noticed and shared all around the web. So here's to the great work we've come to expect!

Before we jump into things I'll point out the ONE vote this week. This week's COTW vote is basically the Christian L. Show with a couple guest stars.

COTW Mar 22-28 vote (ends Friday @ 11:59pm Eastern)

I have declared my love for headwear on this site before. And I'll do it again. I love hats. I have too many of them. It's a weakness. Especially hockey hats. A style of hat has recently come onto my radar and it appears to be either very new and only a few teams are currently available or a few months old and sold out everywhere. HJCers, say hello to Reebok's "Jersey Hook" line.

Lids.com

I love when a team uses their jersey striping on merchandise. The best Blackhawks shirts currently in my closet have arm stripes and "shoulder patches". I'm surprised that a team's jersey stripes aren't utilized on merchandise more often. I'm not a Penguins fan, but that hat up there looks so good to me I'd wear it and not care.

Unfortunately for me, I cannot track down a Blackhawks hat from that Jersey Hook line. Hopefully one turns up, and if any of you find one, you let me know ASAP!

Any of you readers own any hats/shirts/jackets/etc. that feature jersey stripes? Please do share.

Speaking of jersey stripes, they look good on jerseys too. Let's see some jersey concepts, stripes included!

Ottawa Senators Alternate Jersey Concept - Ben B.

I'd like to start with a presentation note, the text at the bottom of the image does not need to be that big, or have the white outline. Feature the jersey concept and keep the other stuff, except your name of course, smaller at the bottom. Now, for the jersey, a mish mash of some eras here. Logo is meh, I don't like the wings. The shoulder patches don't belong. It looks like 3 different shades of red were used between the logos and jersey. I don't like the arm striping going all the way to the shoulders. The back numbers are too small. If the laurel leaves were rotated 90 degrees it would improve this a little bit. Definitely stick with one era from their past and thin out the stripes.

Rating: 4/10


Team Jamaica Concept - Luke B.

First off, let's all agree. If Jamaica was to get a chance to play hockey in the Olympics, they'd have the wildest jerseys. Maybe not this wild, but if Nike kept everyone else as tame as they kept most teams last year, they wouldn't have to do much. This is a bit too far outside the box. There's too many greens used. The green on the flag seems to be nowhere on the jersey except maybe the gradients on the logo. Also, don't do gradients in the logo, it would look bad wen embroidered and a printed logo, much like the Stadium Series crests, would look dumb.

If the sublimated pattern was more subtle and not done throughout the entire jersey, but instead only on the back, or in the numbers, or wherever...just contained in one or two spots, it would look a lot better. The collar insert wouldn't be on a Nike jersey, but oh well, this is a concept. And the inside of the jersey where the Olympic Rings are should be green.

Rating: 4/10


Wolfenstein: The New Order Concept - Mario A.

I'm not familiar with the Wolfenstein games but I do know this past one looked neat. The jerseys are pretty basic but with just a few small tweaks they'd be better. Some white to separate the black and red on the black jersey would be good, same with the brown and green on the other jersey. The numbers should be smaller. The logos on both jerseys are huge. I did notice that "Death's Head" should be Deathshead, so there's that. I also know that the game involves some Nazi imagry, I understand the red stripes on the arms for the black jersey, but if these were for purchase or to promote the game, you should probably steer clear of the red stripes, even if on both arms like they are here.

Overall, the jerseys are dark and lack contrast. The game's branding was BOLD Red/Black/White. High contrast. Try to work that into the jerseys.

Rating: 5.5/10


Team Finland Concept - Ryley C.

Ryley pairs Finland up with a jersey that says "Old School Pittsburgh Penguins" to me. I think a jersey like this would go over pretty well. I really like the striping pattern, always have, but I think it'd look better with the white and navy swapped. I also feel like the yoke should have an outline. White helmet looks odd too, go navy. The blue in the logo isn't anywhere else on the jersey, so that should be changed. It'd be nice to see a different logo perhaps. Something bold with thicker lines would pair well with the jersey design.

Rating: 6/10


Utica Comets Concept - Ryan C.

Has anyone noticed or mentioned that Vancouver is the only team out West not moving their AHL affiliate out West? That JUST occurred to me....Hmm...

Ryan would like to see the Comets use a jersey template different from their parent team's. This new jersey set has Reebok-y, Pittsburgh-Ottawa sleeves with a classic striping pattern on the hem/pants/socks.. Not a good mix to me. If you absolutely had to keep the sleeve pattern, add a bold blue outline to the white/green section. Lately I've grown somewhat fond of the color on the inside of the sleeve so this isn't lookin' bad to me. Maybe tweak the sleeves to make them more unique to the team and find a new hem pattern that goes with the modernized sleeves better.

Rating: 7/10


Edmonton Oilers Alternate Jersey Concept - Christian L.

Christian has 4 concepts in the COTW vote this week, and it looks like he's going for more this week. Going to be hard to try and beat him this year as revenge for this past COTY..... I'm usually against wordmarks on hockey jerseys, but damn, this wordmark looks great. I don't think it'd look good on the ice, at least in the NHL. But if the Oiler's were to name one of their minor league affiliates "Oilers" this would fit so well. The only thing I really don't care for is the white pants stripe.

Rating: 9/10 and a reluctant COTW nom.


And that's it. That last concept above is the last concept that will ever be posted on a Monday in March 2015 EVER..... Think about that. Now tell me how you feel about just witnessing history.