Saturday, October 11, 2008

New Third Jersey Rumors!

I know the real reason you're here checking Icethetics tonight. It's to see if I've got any new third jersey scoop. It's your lucky night. I've got some new information to share regarding what some of the yet unreleased sweaters will look like.

As always, the source shall remain anonymous — so take it for what it is. But how many times have I lied to you?

This person got a look at the jersey designs on a piece of paper and compared what he saw with what Howard Berger saw. There's some interesting stuff here.

Is this the logo that will be on the front of the San Jose Sharks' third jersey? I'm told that it will indeed be black but instead of featuring just the full-body shark logo, it will actually be the new shield logo introduced last year — which includes the full-body shark.

My source writes, "This jersey disappointed me, it isnt just the black with the traditional shark. It is black, yes, but it uses the full body shark inside the shield design. With the orange and black script reading 'San Jose' across the top with the sun design."

Personally, I loved this logo from the moment it was first unveiled last year and would be thrilled to see it front and center on its own jersey. Is this true? I don't know. But I sure hope so.

We're continuing to hear that the Los Angeles Kings' third jersey will in fact be black and white with this logo — in black and white, no purple. I'm a little worried it's going to look boring, but they pulled off the look well in the '90s.

That's not all...

The Dallas Stars' third jersey will be white — basically the opposite of the regular black jersey. DALLAS will be arched above the player's jersey number in black text with a green outline instead of gold.

The interesting thing about this is that, like Toronto, wearing it at home forces the visiting team to carry twice as many jerseys with them on their road trip.

The Vancouver Canucks will wear their secondary "stick-in-rink" logo on the front of their blue third jersey. However, this latest source claims it will actually be a white version of the logo currently used as a shoulder patch. It certainly stands out more.

My hope is that the new Johnny Canuck logo will find its way onto, say, the shoulders of this jersey. It seems all of the images being seen by our "leakers" are small and grainy making it difficult to see details — such as shoulder decoration.

And that brings us to the Ottawa Senators. What I wouldn't give to see that team wear this logo, but there's been no word on that. If anything, it might be a shoulder patch, but this is just wishful thinking — I have nothing to back that up.

What I do have on the Sens from my source is this: "The jersey is not black, its that odd gold colour that the sens use. The word "SENS" isnt laid out in the common slanting downward fashion, its close together in white, with the red and black outlines, slightly slanting upwards (think Washington Wizards of the NBA, gold alternates). Very different from the concept illustration."

Gold, eh? That's... unusual. I'm not so sure about that but the main thing to take away from this information is that the upward slant of the text will not make it look like it says SNES as many have worried. In fact, I've put together a few concept renderings what what this may look like.

It's a simple upward slant that I've done but the actual jersey may feature more stylized or curved text. First, on a gold jersey, as this rumor suggests.



That's just standard block letter text, but they may also use something similar to the numbering style seen on their current home and road sweaters.



This serif text is also used for the C and A on the captains' sweaters. But if you want my opinion, I still think it'll be a black jersey — and this is the more likely look for the text.



And here are a couple of other options — one including gold.



Which one do you guys like best?

By the way, just a blog note here. I've updated the Atlanta Thrashers' third jersey logo in the sidebar. Their new sweater features the bird-head only logo on the shoulders — obviously no logo on the front as we all know.

That's all for tonight. Hope that satisfies your third jersey rumor thirst for now.

Canucks Remember Bourdon

The Vancouver Canucks are remembering the late Luc Bourdon this season with a special decal on the back of their helmets. The 21-year-old defenseman was killed in a motorcycle accident in May.

I didn't know about this tribute logo when I wrote about the new specialty logos for the Icethetics Season Preview or I would've included it with that batch.

Thanks to Joshua for sending in the graphic.

IceHL Northeast: Final Names

The final names for the IceHL's Northeast Division are in! Hundreds of you made your voice heard by rating the finalists for each franchise. So here are the winners.
  • Boston COLONIALS
    average rating 3.84/5 by 479 people

  • Hamilton STEELCATS
    average rating 3.03/5 by 321 people

  • Montreal OLYMPIQUES
    average rating 3.47/5 by 371 people

  • New York GUARDIANS
    average rating 2.99/5 by 309 people

  • Quebec ARMADA
    average rating 3.26/5 by 347 people

Based on these names, your task — should you choose to accept it — is to brand the franchise. You choose the color scheme and design primary, secondary and script logos around that. Additional logos may or may not be included in the voting process.

Submit your logo art by email to me at icethetics@gmail.com. Do not post links to artwork in the comments. They will be deleted and not considered for use in this project. I'm also outlining guidelines for submissions below. If you don't follow them, your work will probably not be included.

Northeast logo submission deadline: November 1

If you want your submission included, follow these instructions:
  • DO NOT STEAL ARTWORK. Logos copied or adapted from professional trademarked logos will not be permitted.

  • Submit three (3) logos: primary, secondary and script. Use a white background. If your logo requires a white outline (think Lightning or Capitals), then use a gray background with the white outline included. ALL 3 LOGOS will be used in the voting process. If you leave out one, your work may be disqualified.

  • Submit vector art if possible. I will accept .ai, .psd and .pdf files. If you cannot submit vector art, you must be able to provide high quality images in .jpg or .png files ONLY. All other file types may be disqualified.

  • You must include your credit within the graphic itself as well as the email. This can be your real name or a pseudonym. I need them in both places so I can easily search my email to find your artwork and email address. Failure to do so may result in disqualification.

  • By submitting your own original artwork to any Icethetics email address, you agree to grant permission of its use for online or print publication by Icethetics. Do not watermark your logos or they will be disqualified.

  • No jersey concepts, please. That will be a later step in this process.

I tried to be specific here but I'm happy to answer any additional questions you may have via email. I was very clear about this but keep in mind that if you do not properly follow the instructions above, your work will likely be disqualified. So read them carefully.

Just so everyone is aware, when it comes time to choose a logo for each team, the process will work basically the same as the name ratings. Logo rating pages will be posted for each team and up to 20 logo submissions will be available to rate. I'm sorry I can't include more but this assures that all worthy submissions will get a fair shake.

The difference here is that once the rating period has ended, there will be a vote on Icethetics of the top 3 rated logos for each team. This assures that we choose the logo everyone wants.

Start submitting your logos!

IceHL Northeast: Runoff Poll

I was tallying up the ratings to determine the names for the IceHL's Northeast Division teams when something strange happened. Two names on the Toronto page tied for the top rating. So how do we solve that?

There's a new poll the IceHL section of the pollbar. Choose between the Hamilton Steelcats and Toronto Tritons for the name of that team. It will be open until Wednesday. Shortly, I'll post the other names for this division.

By the way, in the event this poll ends in an exact tie... I don't know. I may just have to flip a coin. Happy voting!

Where's The Puck?!

The newest incarnation of the IHL isn't exactly rolling in the dough — and neither is its member clubs. What makes me say that?



That is an actual picture of the ice rink of the Fort Wayne Komets from their official web site. I count 18 logos on the ice — not including the Komets' own at center ice.

Personally, I'd be concerned with not being able to follow the puck from the stands, let alone on TV — not that IHL games are broadcast on TV or anything.

Anyway, the real kicker in that photo is the complete lack of any ads or anything at all on the boards. Hopefully they're in the process of adding something.

Thanks to David for sending in the picture.