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Red(head) Alert

redhead.jpg

So I’m watching football and looking at old magazines the other day with Uni Watch design director Scott M.X. Turner, and I tell him how reader Byron Wages recently sent me a bunch of photos from his parents’ old high school yearbooks. “Look at this one,” I say. “What the hell is going on there?”

“Oh,” says Scott, all nonchalant and matter-of-fact. “Those are the Redheads.”

As I quickly learned, the All-American Redheads were a barnstorming women’s hoops team that played from 1936 through 1986, competing exclusively against men’s teams (and supposedly winning about 70% of their games). The yearbook photo apparently shows them playing against Byron’s father’s high school men’s team.

I’d never heard of the Redheads before, but man did they wear some cool uniforms over the years. They started out looking like this, then used some really nice color blocking, and then went a bit stripe-happy, as you can see here, here, and here. This shot, from the 1970s, appears to match up with the yearbook photo. At one point they even wore vertically striped socks (additional views here and here), so I’ll have to add them to our list of teams with longitudinally trimmed hosiery.

Most of these photos, incidentally, come from this page, which has lots of additional info and photos. There’s some additional Redheads info here.

Meanwhile, as long as we’re talking about Byron’s parents’ yearbooks, here his rundown of the other photos he sent, along with some my commentary on a few of them:

My dad’s alma mater was Duluth High School. Now, their main color was purple, but these photos are b&w so you don’t need to worry about your eyes.

• Here are some shots of players with tearaway jerseys, which were still legal [and were basically just T-shirts — PL].

• Here’s a shot of some nice hoisery, and the phenomenon of thigh-taping. [As an aside, notice the thin piping on the defensive team — looks sooooo much better than some of the garishly thick piping we see nowadays. — PL]

• A rare shot of a football player wearin’ specs.

• I’ve never seen a forearm pad like this. The water bottle is odd, too. [I don’t know about the bottle, but it sure has a long straw. Also: Brace face! Does that tear up the mouthguard? — PL]

• Now we move on to basketball. This is the only pic I could find of Duluth’s famed Indiana-style purple warmup pants.

• Then we have closer pics of the uniform. The coolest thing is the different sides of the shorts.

• Here’s a look at the women’s team. Note the collars and the socks. Here’s a side view of the even cooler side-short design. [Also noteworthy: The jerseys are designed to be untucked, like the old Marquette uni.]

• Next I found two pics of my mom’s alma mater, Headland High. Here’s a shot of the girls’ team. The socks rock. [Note that those socks are actually stirrups, as was fairly common for hoops hosiery in the 1950s-’70s. Also: Dig those jersey sashes! — PL]

• Here’s another pic which shows off the uniform’s nice Maryland-esque trim.

Big thanks to Byron for snooping through his parents’ stuff sharing these cool photos, and to Scott for the Redheads primer. I love it when things come together like this.

Raffle Redux: Today’s the last day to enter this month’s raffle for a Distant Replays $250 gift card. If you haven’t already entered, send an e-mail to uniraffle at earthlink dot net by 10pm Eastern Time tonight. Only one entry per person, yadda-yadda-yadda. I’ll announce the winner on Friday.

san diego greetings.jpeg

Left Coast Leftovers: Tuesday’s entry about San Diego uni history prompted a good follow-up note from Richard Craig, as follows:

• Total coincidence: When Ted Williams played for the Pacific Coast League Padres in 1936-’37, he wore No. 19, just like Tony Gwynn did many years later. Williams’ Padres uniform number had supposedly been lost to history until a photo of him was recently discovered. It had been used on the front cover of game programs as part of a collage.

• It’s fairly well documented that while Gwynn wore No. 19 for his whole
Padres career, he actually wore #53 in spring training, as shown in his Topps rookie card. What’s not as well-known is that Gwynn’s first actual appearance in a Padres uniform was in a silly TV ad for the Padres featuring car dealer
Cal Worthington and the San Diego Chicken. Gwynn was a student at San
Diego State at the time, and the team recruited a bunch of guys to wear
Padres uniforms and stand in the stadium parking lot like used cars. He wore Broderick Perkins’s uniform, No. 15.

• Perhaps even less well-known is that in Ozzie Smith’s first-ever
appearance in a big-league stadium, he wore No. 32, in an exhibition at
Jack Murphy Stadium against the Minnesota Twins. I was there, but I’ve
never seen any photos of it since for verification. Maybe someone out
there has a photo.

Uni Watch News Ticker: Add another sport to the list of games afflicted by streakers: snooker (with “thanks” to Denis Hurley). ”¦ “UL-Monroe has changed its nickname from the Indians to the Warhawks, so all of the school’s teams were forced to get new uniforms this school year,” reports Chris Mycoskie. “Most of the teams look alright, but the baseball team looks incredible.” ”¦ According to the Boston Globe Bruins goalie Hannu Toivonen’s new mask is very Boston-centric, with “graphics of Tedy Bruschi and David Ortiz on the left side of the mask, matched on the right with head shots of Larry Bird and Ray Bourque. There are logos of the teams pasted around the mask, along with a basketball player and a hockey player in action.” No photos yet, but Jeff Israel‘s gonna try to provide one when Toivonen starts tonight. “The best part is, he’s had a terrible year and has been the subject of trade proposals all season long,” says Israel. “That mask would look quite strange on another team.” ”¦ Update, 10am: Lindsay Oliver has provided photos of Toivonen’s mask. Look here, here, and here. … For those who like old historical uni photos, Bob Andrews has sent along links to some good collegiate archives: For Oberlin, go here and put the terms “baseball” or “football” (or whatever) in the search field (here’s a typical result); for early Princeton football pics, look here (note the sophisticated training methods used way back when); this page leads you to great pics of North Carolina’s basketball, football, and cheerleading squads; and literally thousands of Michigan football photos are available here. ”¦ Speaking of historical photos, last night’s Comments section included this mind-bending shot of the 1930 U. of Wisconsin hockey team (who also wore some goggles that looked a lot like the gear worn by women’s lacrosse teams). … And look what Percy LeSueur of the original Ottawa Senators used to wear (hat trick for Jonathan Goupil).

 
  
 
Comments (164)

    Love the Redheads info and pics, but had never previously heard of them. This is surprising, since they were around for fifty years. Were there other obscure, but long-lived, barnstorming teams as well?

    I know they’ve been wearing them for a while, but I want increased exposure for a very important cause… Notre Dame needs to be added to the list of teams that seriously need to link. Wore them again last night, got creamed in them, and looked awful in play AND style. Mike Brey likes ’em, but how do you like something whose colors have absolutely nothing to do with your school (black) and are notoriously bad luck whenever they’re worn (green)?

    Do the right thing… ditch the black!

    Looks like the USA Today article on the new NHL unis is up. link

    The quote at the bottom is kind of odd. Some teams may have a more vertical look? Please Ted, no Washington Monument on the jersey!

    [quote comment=”42893″]Looks like the USA Today article on the new NHL unis is up. link
    [/quote]

    Thanks for the link. I love Scott Hannan’s quote.

    [quote comment=”42893″]Looks like the USA Today article on the new NHL unis is up. link

    The quote at the bottom is kind of odd. Some teams may have a more vertical look? Please Ted, no Washington Monument on the jersey![/quote]

    i have to say, aside from the all star jerseys being ugly, the fit etc of the new uniforms don’t seem too bad, at least not as bad as i thought they would do. i do think the logo’s might be noticibly smaller judging by the all star one.

    what happened to he press embargo?

    [quote comment=”42907″]what happened to he press embargo?[/quote]

    Apparently USA Today got an exemption. I had been told that their piece would be a “business article,” but that’s obviously not the case.

    Is it just me or does it look like Tony Gwynn’s hat in that baseball card has a raised logo like today’s modern cap designs have?

    [quote comment=”42907″]
    i have to say, aside from the all star jerseys being ugly, the fit etc of the new uniforms don’t seem too bad, at least not as bad as i thought they would do. i do think the logo’s might be noticibly smaller judging by the all star one.

    what happened to he press embargo?[/quote]

    I believe Paul mentioned that USA Today was allowed to run an article on the business of the new unis, but not actual descriptions of the unis.

    i remember reading that, but there still seems to be alot of info about the actual jerseys, but hey, i guess thats the power of mass media.

    Didn’t the embargo only cover new NHL uniforms? I thought the All-Star uniforms (at least the jerseys) were publicly released months ago.

    Today’s NY Times obit section has an amazing picture of the woman supposedly played by Madonna in “A League of Their Own.”

    [quote comment=”42924″]Today’s NY Times obit section has an amazing picture of the woman supposedly played by Madonna in “A League of Their Own.”[/quote]

    Actually, the obit says that Madonna did not play a character based on this woman, Betty Trezza. link.

    It’s not tucked in.

    Thank the Lord, the sweater’s not tucked in.

    The single league-wide template remains an issue for me, but I’m willing to wait and see individual team designs to judge on that.

    Vincent Lecavalier, the Tampa Bay Lightning star and CCM endorser, says the uniforms make him feel quicker on the ice.


    Hopefully the Bolts will change their uni’s. As a Lightning fan, I’m one of the few that views this as a positive…

    Being from Montreal and being a big hockey tradionalist, I have to say the jerseys are all that bad. As long as the NHL gives the option for some teams to keep the jerseys as they wish, especially some of the more classic jerseys (original six mostly). The socks are a little bit decieving. The look nice from the front, but the stripes slope down toward the back into the skate. Again not terrible, but let some team like the Habs to keep the jersey as is!!

    I kind of like the new NHL unis. Well, the All-Star ones at least. Okay, okay, maybe I just like Sid the Kid.

    As for the death of Betty Trezza, I propose an official Uni Watch viewing of “A League of Their Own” in her honor.

    [quote comment=”42893″]Looks like the USA Today article on the new NHL unis is up. link[/quote]
    Not too shabby. I like the socks. They appear to “droop” over the tops of the skates. I’ll overlook that underarm jumble. And no tucking!

    I really don’t have the money, but I guess if I want a decent MN Wild sweater I should pony up soon.

    I wonder how sweater sales affect their decision. I surely wouldn’t buy something that doesn’t look like a hockey sweater should look.

    I wonder how the Buffaslug sweater sales are. I’m guessing they sell more of the original design, but I’m not from Buffalo.

    I remember those football forearm pads during the late 70’s and early 80’s. I think they were called J-Pads. They were foam rubber on the outside with elastic straps to hold it in place. They came in the full hand and forearm as the picture shows and also seperate hand and forearm pieces. All the ones I ever saw came in beige. I’m not sure if they made any other colors.

    San Jose Sharks defenseman Kyle McLaren worried opponents will have “a birds-eye view” of where his equipment stops and tape from an injury begins…You come back from an injury, and they can see it because you’re all taped up.”

    Looks like every square inch of skin is covered from the neck down. Where exactly would tape be visible? All in all they look OK. To bad the demo design was the ugly all-star uni. I’d prefer to know what an everyday team’s getup would look like.

    Looks like the Beckham will wear dark blue with the Galaxy.
    link
    (Scroll down to the end of the page.)

    [quote comment=”42932″]The single league-wide template remains an issue for me, but I’m willing to wait and see individual team designs to judge on that.[/quote]

    How about link for the Caps???

    Correct on the J-pads. They were manufactured by Cramer, which also made athletic tape, Cramergesic, which was the hottest analgesic balm I ever used, salt tablets, etc. They were the exact color of Band-Aids, and were very uncomfortable in hot weather. Before these came out, we would use cloth-covered pads that would get soggy when wet and were impossible to clean. These wiped clean on the sideline in muddy conditions, but was the only positive I could remember. They were similar in composition to what kick boxers wear on their feet.

    Rudy wears J-Pads in the movie of the same name.

    i recall them only coming in flesh color also.

    [quote comment=”42947″]Photos of Hannu Toivonen’s new mask:

    link
    link
    link
    link[/quote]

    I was excited to find Larry Bird on the helmet, as was stated in the Uni Watch News Ticker. Unfortunately it’s either a really bad drawing of Larry Legend or there isn’t one at all and they put someone else on the side with Ray Bourque. Any better pictures of that right side?

    Gilbert Arenas of the Wizards wore yellow shoes in the first half of last nights game vs. the Knicks…then a blue pair in the second half. I only have a pic of the yellow ones though.

    Arenas

    [quote comment=”42958″][quote comment=”42947″]Photos of Hannu Toivonen’s new mask:

    link
    link
    link
    link[/quote]

    I was excited to find Larry Bird on the helmet, as was stated in the Uni Watch News Ticker. Unfortunately it’s either a really bad drawing of Larry Legend or there isn’t one at all and they put someone else on the side with Ray Bourque. Any better pictures of that right side?[/quote]

    Bird’s the photo on the top, above Ray’s head, and I believe there’s a Celtic next to the Patriots’ logo too.

    [quote comment=”42961″][quote comment=”42955″]
    How about link for the Caps???[/quote]
    Wow![/quote]

    Sid? or the Jersey?

    “But the jerseys have incredible technology that allows players to perform better.”

    It seems like every article about the new NHL jerseys brags about performance-enhancing uniforms with incredible technology. Every time I hear it, I think of the battle suits from link.

    Those NHL unis look fine as far as the way the jersey fits. I just hope teams aren’t forced to change for no reason. The Canadiens shouldn’t have to chance a single thing, just fit the old style to the new unis. It hardly looks like it would be difficult.

    I really hate the idea of no horizontal stripes on the bottom of the jersey. It’s a distinctively classic look for hockey, and they need to keep that. It provided a great contrast to the pants which are often the same color as the jerseys (with some notable excepetions like the Rangers and Habs).

    I wonder how the Buffaslug sweater sales are. I’m guessing they sell more of the original design, but I’m not from Buffalo.

    From the reports I’ve seen, the new Buffalo sweater is actually among the highest selling in the NHL – if not the highest. And people wonder why the rest of the world hates us…

    [quote comment=”42963″][quote comment=”42961″][quote comment=”42955″]
    How about link for the Caps???[/quote]
    Wow![/quote]

    Sid? or the Jersey?[/quote]

    It had to be Sid…it’s the only pic I had!

    OK…sacrilige over here. I will probably be purchasing one of these new Reebok NHL jerseys when they become available. If only to complete my collection of Islanders jerseys.

    My first concern, after not having to worry about wearing this in the summer and having my sweating weigh me down, is the cost. The authentics now run in the $200 range, without customizing, of course. So what will these new ones with all their grand technology cost? I’m dreading seeing a price tag of $250 or more hanging from the sleeve.

    Next up…for McLaren…wear tape that matches the color of the jersey you are wearing. Jeez.

    When they say “vertical striping”, I’m thinking (praying) they mean from the underarm to the waist. A-la..link. But even that is getting carried away a bit.

    Oh yes, when I think of bespectacled gridiron stars, I think of link

    Since the NHL All-Star jerseys are worn once per season, I’m taking that USA Today article with a grain of salt. There’s no guarantee that the teams’ jerseys will look like that, and Paul yesterday alluded to them possibly being eyesores.

    However, knowing there is a Uni Watch ESPN article coming out Monday at 2pm Eastern, I’ll make it through the weekend with anticipation of this report.

    As an aside, Paul, did the NHL indicate where you can get photos of the new jerseys for your article? I’m not asking for myself, but I was wondering how you’re going to link photos if there is a gag order until 2pm Monday? Pictures are worth a thousand words, dry heaves, whatever. :o)

    I just got an e-mail from the NHL store saying that the new jerseys ar available for purchase. You can see them at the link.

    I’m with you on that, Joe. The Caps could go back to that look and, with a little tweaking, shoot to damn near the top of the list. I’m not holding my breath though.

    [quote comment=”42969″][quote comment=”42963″][quote comment=”42961″][quote comment=”42955″]
    How about link for the Caps???[/quote]
    Wow![/quote]

    Sid? or the Jersey?[/quote]

    It had to be Sid…it’s the only pic I had![/quote]

    [quote comment=”42976″]I just got an e-mail from the NHL store saying that the new jerseys ar available for purchase. You can see them at the link.[/quote]

    This may have answered my question…the plain authentic is $349.99. Ugh.

    I’m a fan of the NHL All Star Game Uni. Though as a hockey player I was the guy that tucked it in all the way around except the front. Only because when I was little there was a guy from LSSU that did it and I thought he looked sweet. Socks look good, something different, but I’m the only man in America that actually liked the Gorton’s Fish guy sweaters and logo from the Isles.

    Two final things….
    1) Caps mock up = awesome
    2) Why can’t the Seahawks wear white pants with the blue unis? It’d look so much better and I wouldn’t be ashamed to be a ‘Hawks fan…Rick Mirer jersey aside.

    [quote comment=”42962″][quote comment=”42958″][quote comment=”42947″]Photos of Hannu Toivonen’s new mask:

    link
    link
    link
    link[/quote]

    I was excited to find Larry Bird on the helmet, as was stated in the Uni Watch News Ticker. Unfortunately it’s either a really bad drawing of Larry Legend or there isn’t one at all and they put someone else on the side with Ray Bourque. Any better pictures of that right side?[/quote]

    Bird’s the photo on the top, above Ray’s head, and I believe there’s a Celtic next to the Patriots’ logo too.[/quote]

    So what you are saying is that it’s a really awful drawing of the Legend. It’s just a generic basketball player next to the Pats logo. Lucky the Leprechaun is above the pats logo next to “Larry.”

    [quote comment=”42980″][quote comment=”42962″][quote comment=”42958″][quote comment=”42947″]Photos of Hannu Toivonen’s new mask:

    link
    link
    link
    link[/quote]

    I was excited to find Larry Bird on the helmet, as was stated in the Uni Watch News Ticker. Unfortunately it’s either a really bad drawing of Larry Legend or there isn’t one at all and they put someone else on the side with Ray Bourque. Any better pictures of that right side?[/quote]

    Bird’s the photo on the top, above Ray’s head, and I believe there’s a Celtic next to the Patriots’ logo too.[/quote]

    So what you are saying is that it’s a really awful drawing of the Legend. It’s just a generic basketball player next to the Pats logo. Lucky the Leprechaun is above the pats logo next to “Larry.”[/quote]

    that’s what it looks like from the photos.

    [quote comment=”42969″][quote comment=”42963″][quote comment=”42961″][quote comment=”42955″]
    How about link for the Caps???[/quote]
    Wow![/quote]

    Sid? or the Jersey?[/quote]

    It had to be Sid…it’s the only pic I had![/quote]

    That would look great! I would love it if they would bring back the classic design to counter the new-look unis.

    (…and who needs Sid when you have Ovechkin! It’s obvious both of those guys are going to leave their mark on this sport.)

    [quote comment=”42943″]I really don’t have the money, but I guess if I want a decent MN Wild sweater I should pony up soon.

    I wonder how sweater sales affect their decision. I surely wouldn’t buy something that doesn’t look like a hockey sweater should look.

    I wonder how the Buffaslug sweater sales are. I’m guessing they sell more of the original design, but I’m not from Buffalo.[/quote]

    Acording to this link the Buffaslug is not only doing well, but leading the league in sales.

    [quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote]

    I’M BLIND!!!! Why didn’t you warn us?!?

    [quote comment=”42978″][quote comment=”42976″]I just got an e-mail from the NHL store saying that the new jerseys ar available for purchase. You can see them at the link.[/quote]

    This may have answered my question…the plain authentic is $349.99. Ugh.[/quote]

    but the replica is only $184.99! *Sigh* I hope regular jerseys don’t get that expensive.

    [quote comment=”42987″][quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote]

    I’M BLIND!!!! Why didn’t you warn us?!?[/quote]

    it IS suitable for work, so I didn’t think I needed a warning. Next time, we’ll put a “SUNGLASSES NEEDED” warning

    Strange minor league hockey uniform happening last night. In the ECHL all-star game each team wore two completely different style link. This was a result of the ECHL having two licensed uniform suppliers, Reebok and SP apparel. Each side designed one of the jerseys and the result was two un-matching jerseys which I have not seen before. Despite having two cracks at design, neither team was able to come up with a decent jersey though. No game photos, sorry.

    Is that a Super Bowl XXXVIII logo tattooed (or possibly temp-tattooed) on the arm of the snooker streaker? Bizarre. I would like to know the story behind that.

    On second thought, actually, I wouldn’t.

    [quote comment=”42979″]I’m a fan of the NHL All Star Game Uni. Though as a hockey player I was the guy that tucked it in all the way around except the front. Only because when I was little there was a guy from LSSU that did it and I thought he looked sweet. Socks look good, something different, but I’m the only man in America that actually liked the Gorton’s Fish guy sweaters and logo from the Isles.
    [/quote]

    And I might be the only Canadian. In fact, I own a pro Islanders Fisherman jersey, completely customized. Check link out. If I can, I’ll take a picture of the front. The 25th Anniversary patch is on the right shoulder. :o)

    I love that jersey.

    [quote comment=”42978″][quote comment=”42976″]I just got an e-mail from the NHL store saying that the new jerseys ar available for purchase. You can see them at the link.[/quote]

    This may have answered my question…the plain authentic is $349.99. Ugh.[/quote]

    $429.99 for a personalized sweater?? That’s ridiculous! What is wrong with Reebok? It’s still just mesh material. Plus $75 seems a bit steep for personalization.

    [quote comment=”42986″][quote comment=”42943″]I really don’t have the money, but I guess if I want a decent MN Wild sweater I should pony up soon.

    I wonder how sweater sales affect their decision. I surely wouldn’t buy something that doesn’t look like a hockey sweater should look.

    I wonder how the Buffaslug sweater sales are. I’m guessing they sell more of the original design, but I’m not from Buffalo.[/quote]

    Acording to this link the Buffaslug is not only doing well, but leading the league in sales.[/quote]

    That is so sad. The Sabres, Ducks and Sharks all have some of the worst sweaters in hockey.

    [quote comment=”42997″]$429.99 for a personalized sweater?? That’s ridiculous! What is wrong with Reebok? It’s still just mesh material. Plus $75 seems a bit steep for personalization.[/quote]

    yeah it is rediculous, but as it goes, All-Star game apparel is generally more expensive than regular merchandise.

    Am I in left field with this, or should the new NHL unis be referred to as jerseys and not sweaters anymore?

    if the NHL is so gung ho about changing to the jersey, why dont they just mandate they use the new material. You can keep the exact same design and use the new material for moisture control. If they did that no one would complain.

    [quote comment=”42996″]And I might be the only Canadian. In fact, I own a pro Islanders Fisherman jersey, completely customized. Check link out. If I can, I’ll take a picture of the front. The 25th Anniversary patch is on the right shoulder. :o)

    I love that jersey.[/quote]

    Back in my jersey making days I customized one of those for my buddy from Long Island. I’ll see if he has a pic of it. What a nightmare drawing out and hand cutting that lettering!!! There were no templates available at the time. And I have been looking for that patch to give to him!!!

    Thinking further about these “new” jerseys.

    It’s a shame Gretzky was weighed down by that heavy jersey he wore back then. Imagine the goals he could’ve scored? (*eyes thouroughly rolling*)

    [quote comment=”43002″]
    Back in my jersey making days I customized one of those for my buddy from Long Island. I’ll see if he has a pic of it. What a nightmare drawing out and hand cutting that lettering!!! There were no templates available at the time. And I have been looking for that patch to give to him!!![/quote]

    When I worked at link, I had that jersey done. The company that does the customizing had a template because they did jersey cutomization for all NHL teams.

    Speaking of RCS, you can buy the patch there. I believe it was $35.00. Check the linked website above.

    Oh, how that site brings back memories of working there, and jersey-related mistakes. :o)

    All this talk of more “vertical designs” tells me that we’re going to see lots of teams using alternate colors for the accent piping and probably quite a few different colored side panels as well. In other words, the MLB BP jerseys come to hockey.

    Boo!

    [quote comment=”42992″]Is that a Super Bowl XXXVIII logo tattooed (or possibly temp-tattooed) on the arm of the snooker streaker? Bizarre. I would like to know the story behind that.

    On second thought, actually, I wouldn’t.[/quote]

    Could be tatooed on him. Maybe it’s the same guy that streaked in that Super Bowl (Pats-Panthers). In that Super Bowl right before one of the kickoffs a guy streaked onto the field and was laid out by Matt Chatham (or maybe it was Larry Izzo?). Maybe this guy is just trying to remember his time in the spotlight.

    [quote comment=”42955″][quote comment=”42932″]The single league-wide template remains an issue for me, but I’m willing to wait and see individual team designs to judge on that.[/quote]

    How about link for the Caps???[/quote]

    That looks really, really good. Nice job.

    I remember those football forearm pads during the late 70’s and early 80’s. I think they were called J-Pads. They were foam rubber on the outside with elastic straps to hold it in place. They came in the full hand and forearm as the picture shows and also seperate hand and forearm pieces. All the ones I ever saw came in beige. I’m not sure if they made any other colors.

    I was out high school’s football manager (’89-’92) and I remember still having those lying around. By then we had graduated to white pads that were covered in a stretchy fabric (still by Cramer I believe) that got waterlogged really badly on wet days. The linemen liked them though because they could give the other team hockey style facewashes in big pileups.

    [quote comment=”43001″]if the NHL is so gung ho about changing to the jersey, why dont they just mandate they use the new material. You can keep the exact same design and use the new material for moisture control. If they did that no one would complain.[/quote]

    Because the way things are today, a subtle material change cannot go unnoticed without a full-fledged design change tacted on. Basically the massive ego of these design companies. It’s like the new MLB caps, the material change wasn’t enough, but they had to 3-D the outline on the MLB logo on the back to prove more (pointless) emphasis.

    [quote comment=”42968″] From the reports I’ve seen, the new Buffalo sweater is actually among the highest selling in the NHL – if not the highest. And people wonder why the rest of the world hates us… [/quote]
    I can’t speak for the rest of the civilized world, but I totally hate the Sabres because they have one of the highest selling jerseys in the NHL. It really burns me up.

    I’ll just walk away now and struggle with the haunting memories of my team’s Stanley Cup win, holding back the tears, anger, and resentment over never having seen my team triumphantly raise a Jersey Cup banner. Well done, Buffalo!

    Oh, well, there’s always next year. :-(

    Weird quote from the USA Today article

    Impact tests indicate the uniform’s new “core body protector,” or new hockey pants, generates 61% more hip protection.

    Interesting to see if they mean a shell with extra hip protection (my guess) or if everyone will have to wear RBK/CCM pants.

    Usually I tend to skim over the hockey talk, but I did read the article about jersey sales. I had to check out the Edmonton Oilers’ jerseys, since after making the Stanley Cup finals, sales are way up. I’m glad to see they haven’t changed their traditional jerseys too much, but I guess I missed the memo on their link. I don’t know what to think of those…

    [quote comment=”42947″]Photos of Hannu Toivonen’s new mask:

    link
    link
    link
    link[/quote]
    Good looking out!

    I argued he should get one with Ernie Digregorio and Eric Williams on it. Providence’s finest!

    [quote comment=”43000″][quote comment=”42997″]$429.99 for a personalized sweater?? That’s ridiculous! What is wrong with Reebok? It’s still just mesh material. Plus $75 seems a bit steep for personalization.[/quote]

    yeah it is rediculous, but as it goes, All-Star game apparel is generally more expensive than regular merchandise.

    Am I in left field with this, or should the new NHL unis be referred to as jerseys and not sweaters anymore?[/quote]

    Agreed. Pretty much all of the essence of the old sweaters is dead. Seems like everything has been transformed new, MLB jerseys (Cool Base) & caps & some helmets, football jerseys (sleeves) & some helmets, basketball jerseys & shorts (the ridiculous satin finish), hockey jerseys.

    [quote comment=”43021″]Usually I tend to skim over the hockey talk, but I did read the article about jersey sales. I had to check out the Edmonton Oilers’ jerseys, since after making the Stanley Cup finals, sales are way up. I’m glad to see they haven’t changed their traditional jerseys too much, but I guess I missed the memo on their link. I don’t know what to think of those…[/quote]

    The Todd MacFarlane jerseys outsell the other two jerseys 2-1 at least. The guy I get my jerseys from says that people pass by the home and roads for Edmonton’s alternates all the time.

    [quote comment=”43021″]Usually I tend to skim over the hockey talk, but I did read the article about jersey sales. I had to check out the Edmonton Oilers’ jerseys, since after making the Stanley Cup finals, sales are way up. I’m glad to see they haven’t changed their traditional jerseys too much, but I guess I missed the memo on their link. I don’t know what to think of those…[/quote]

    Todd MacFarland designed the logo, right?

    [quote comment=”43021″]but I guess I missed the memo on their link. I don’t know what to think of those…[/quote]
    part owner/comic book big-wig, Todd McFarlane designed the alternate logo link

    [quote comment=”42989″][quote comment=”42987″][quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote]

    I’M BLIND!!!! Why didn’t you warn us?!?[/quote]

    it IS suitable for work, so I didn’t think I needed a warning. Next time, we’ll put a “SUNGLASSES NEEDED” warning[/quote]

    Atleast they don’t have the stupid steel-plate looking things (ala football shoulders and knees) on their uni’s. A small plus, but a plus indeed.

    [quote comment=”43025″]
    Todd MacFarland designed the logo, right?[/quote]

    He’s also one of the owners of the Oilers. It’s much less expensive to design a logo if you own a team, rather than hiring a design team. :o)

    Teebz, I just lost all respect for you for rocking that Islanders jersey :) Just kiddin bro. But next year, does this mean that my Canucks can’t wear the vintage because they are scrapping 3rd jersies? Because although those are our retro jersies, they are also our third as we replaced our bleeding jerseys for them. And how come no other goalies in the league have matching retro pads unlike Luongo? It just makes him that much sicker, plus Johnny Canuck logo is the best ever made

    [quote comment=”43017″]Sorry to venture WAY off-topic like this, but link has to be the ugliest hat I’ve ever seen![/quote]


    Ahem.

    link
    link
    link

    But the thing is they could have been cool. You make them fitted, even flex fit (which I despise). You take away the white stripe across the front of the bill. You take away the Superbowl logo from the front of the bill, maybe put it on the back instead of that stupid “For(ty) one” thing. (how much money did the NFL waste on that slogan and design?) After that you’ve got yourself a pretty cool hat except for the fact that wearing an AFC Champions hat or NFC champions hat is lame unless you actually won said championship.

    [quote comment=”43030″]
    Ahem.

    link
    link
    link

    But the thing is they could have been cool. You make them fitted, even flex fit (which I despise). You take away the white stripe across the front of the bill. You take away the Superbowl logo from the front of the bill, maybe put it on the back instead of that stupid “For(ty) one” thing. (how much money did the NFL waste on that slogan and design?) After that you’ve got yourself a pretty cool hat except for the fact that wearing an AFC Champions hat or NFC champions hat is lame unless you actually won said championship.[/quote]
    Are they made out of sweatpants?

    The goalie on the ’30 Wisconsin hockey team (the one without the striped sweater, natch) is enormous!! At least a head taller than all his teammates, and wider too. He’s like 110% the size of the next biggest guy, and 125% the size of the rest of them. Could they not find a striped sweater big enough to fit him?

    Also, the Betty Trezza obit in tiday’s NYTimes is a really good read.

    Joe Hilseberg
    As someone mentioned, you can get that patch through River City Sports… link is the link.

    As for those Isles jerseys, I didn’t mind them (I have a replica blue), but they were too busy. A busy logo, combined with a VERY busy sweater is just too much. If they toned it down, it wouldn’t have been so bad.

    Check out the video in linkarticle…The Pistons warm-ups have only the players first name on them. Also, you get to see some of Chris Webber in his #84 jersey (which looks like it is too big for him).

    Man, that YouTube video of Todd McFarlane drawing the Oilers’ alternate sweater was really cool. I used to not like the logo on that one, but the fact that he drew it and (as he said) the colors just work so well really draws me to it. The logo might not be the best, but it’s miles above my Caps’ logos.

    [quote comment=”42987″][quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote]

    I’M BLIND!!!! Why didn’t you warn us?!?[/quote]

    Just make sure your favorite school doesn’t decide to embrace their second color, Tom. The only thing in Morgantown that needs to be yellow is the “WV” logo.

    [quote comment=”43031″][quote comment=”43030″]
    Ahem.

    link
    link
    link

    But the thing is they could have been cool. You make them fitted, even flex fit (which I despise). You take away the white stripe across the front of the bill. You take away the Superbowl logo from the front of the bill, maybe put it on the back instead of that stupid “For(ty) one” thing. (how much money did the NFL waste on that slogan and design?) After that you’ve got yourself a pretty cool hat except for the fact that wearing an AFC Champions hat or NFC champions hat is lame unless you actually won said championship.[/quote]
    Are they made out of sweatpants?[/quote]

    That’s what I kind of like about them.

    [quote comment=”42959″]Gilbert Arenas of the Wizards wore yellow shoes in the first half of last nights game vs. the Knicks…then a blue pair in the second half. I only have a pic of the yellow ones though.

    link[/quote]

    DC Sports Bog is on the story: link

    Says they were green and are Arena’s All-Star Gil Zeroes. Then he changed to normal shoes.

    [quote comment=”42978″][quote comment=”42976″]I just got an e-mail from the NHL store saying that the new jerseys ar available for purchase. You can see them at the link.[/quote]

    This may have answered my question…the plain authentic is $349.99. Ugh.[/quote]
    Twill applique lettering… Does this mean they’re going to use link, like in the Premiership? That would be so cool, I love the feel of that on my Spurs shirt.

    [quote comment=”43046″][quote comment=”42978″][quote comment=”42976″]I just got an e-mail from the NHL store saying that the new jerseys ar available for purchase. You can see them at the link.[/quote]

    This may have answered my question…the plain authentic is $349.99. Ugh.[/quote]
    Twill applique lettering… Does this mean they’re going to use link, like in the Premiership? That would be so cool, I love the feel of that on my Spurs shirt.[/quote]

    My senior year of high school we got new soccer uniforms with that style of numbering. On game day our coach decided that we had to wear the jersey during school and it was super annoying. The numbering was so soft I would sometimes sit there in class and rub the number. The feel of it was so different than any other number.

    [quote comment=”43046″]
    Twill applique lettering… Does this mean they’re going to use link, like in the Premiership? That would be so cool, I love the feel of that on my Spurs shirt.[/quote]
    I’m not familiar with this, is it similar to link lettering?

    [quote comment=”43029″]Teebz, I just lost all respect for you for rocking that Islanders jersey :) Just kiddin bro. But next year, does this mean that my Canucks can’t wear the vintage because they are scrapping 3rd jersies? Because although those are our retro jersies, they are also our third as we replaced our bleeding jerseys for them. And how come no other goalies in the league have matching retro pads unlike Luongo? It just makes him that much sicker, plus Johnny Canuck logo is the best ever made[/quote]

    Ouch. :o)

    From what the NHL has indicated, the alternate jerseys will not be used. I know Paul can’t comment on this yet, but perhaps we’ll find out on Monday. I, personally, like the alternate Canucks jerseys better than their current design.

    The NHL Uni’s look exactly the same. You could have put those on the ice without all the hoopla and no one would have noticed.

    [quote comment=”43021″]Usually I tend to skim over the hockey talk, but I did read the article about jersey sales. I had to check out the Edmonton Oilers’ jerseys, since after making the Stanley Cup finals, sales are way up. I’m glad to see they haven’t changed their traditional jerseys too much, but I guess I missed the memo on their link. I don’t know what to think of those…[/quote]

    Those are almost as bad as the Oregon unis

    [quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote]

    Did anyone else notice the Super Bowl 38 tattoo on that streaker from the snooker match’s arm? Not that I was looking too closely it just caught my eye.

    one design element that I personally really like from the alternate NHL uni’s (and some primary uni’s) is the lace-up at the neck. I think it looks sharp. I hope the new uni’s are able to have this option.

    [quote comment=”42893″]Looks like the USA Today article on the new NHL unis is up. link

    The quote at the bottom is kind of odd. Some teams may have a more vertical look? Please Ted, no Washington Monument on the jersey![/quote]

    The NHL is going to the link?

    David Ortiz on a hockey mask, how can you not love the B’s?

    Besides that they’re dead last in the division and traded off last season’s eventual top scorer/MVP.

    [quote comment=”43062″]The NHL Uni’s look exactly the same. You could have put those on the ice without all the hoopla and no one would have noticed.[/quote]

    Are you serious? If you don’t see any difference this blog is not for you!

    [quote comment=”43053″]From what the NHL has indicated, the alternate jerseys will not be used. I know Paul can’t comment on this yet, but perhaps we’ll find out on Monday. I, personally, like the alternate Canucks jerseys better than their current design.[/quote]

    I do too, and I think most people agree. It’s a viable possibility that the “Canuckleheads” will use the old stick-and-rink design as their primary jersey starting next season, since I don’t think Orca Bay (source of the current whale logo) owns the team anymore.

    From the ‘Someone needs to point this out’ file:

    The Sabres lead the league in merch sales BECAUSE THEY CHANGED THEIR UNIFORMS. Not because people like the new design. Want to increase sales? Change your logo. Many fans will decide they need a new jersey to match the players. I’m probably gonna get a new Stars jersey next year because they’re changing the link (which I love).

    I’ll also get a Caps jersey (#8, obviously) if it looks like Joe’s mockup. Wonderful job on that!

    If the new Sabres logo is going over so well with their fans, why do they still wear the old logo (link) on the jersey and why do they wear link at so many home games?

    [quote comment=”43066″]
    Those are almost as bad as the Oregon unis[/quote]

    Of all the alternate jerseys, those are the probably the best of the bunch. They are compleyely different, and look very slick. I can understand if you’re not a fan of them personally, but they are a very popular alternate jersey.

    OK, after digesting that $429.00 price on the customized NHL All-Star authentic….Does this disturb anyone else? Understanding it’s an authentic and customized…but isn’t that a little steep for a “one shot deal jersey”? Man, when will it end?

    [quote comment=”43083″]They are compleyely different, and look very slick.[/quote]

    I’m giving up on typing. That should be “completely”.

    [quote comment=”43084″]OK, after digesting that $429.00 price on the customized NHL All-Star authentic….Does this disturb anyone else? Understanding it’s an authentic and customized…but isn’t that a little steep for a “one shot deal jersey”? Man, when will it end?[/quote]

    Well, usually the All-Star jerseys are hideous things that I wouldn’t want to wear anyway, so it doesn’t really bother me. Plus considering how long it takes Reebok to make the jerseys, they might not want people ordering them either.

    [quote comment=”43084″]OK, after digesting that $429.00 price on the customized NHL All-Star authentic….Does this disturb anyone else? Understanding it’s an authentic and customized…but isn’t that a little steep for a “one shot deal jersey”? Man, when will it end?[/quote]

    Never.

    [quote comment=”43031″][quote comment=”43030″]
    Ahem.

    link
    link
    link

    But the thing is they could have been cool. You make them fitted, even flex fit (which I despise). You take away the white stripe across the front of the bill. You take away the Superbowl logo from the front of the bill, maybe put it on the back instead of that stupid “For(ty) one” thing. (how much money did the NFL waste on that slogan and design?) After that you’ve got yourself a pretty cool hat except for the fact that wearing an AFC Champions hat or NFC champions hat is lame unless you actually won said championship.[/quote]
    Are they made out of sweatpants?[/quote]

    Not sweatpants . . .the remnants of Bill Belichick’s link

    [quote comment=”43030″][quote comment=”43017″]Sorry to venture WAY off-topic like this, but link has to be the ugliest hat I’ve ever seen![/quote]


    Ahem.

    link
    link
    link

    But the thing is they could have been cool. You make them fitted, even flex fit (which I despise). You take away the white stripe across the front of the bill. You take away the Superbowl logo from the front of the bill, maybe put it on the back instead of that stupid “For(ty) one” thing. (how much money did the NFL waste on that slogan and design?) After that you’ve got yourself a pretty cool hat except for the fact that wearing an AFC Champions hat or NFC champions hat is lame unless you actually won said championship.[/quote]
    Wow, I’ve never seen those before. I’m not sure whether or not to thank you?!?!

    That being said, BOTH designs are hideous. “Urban-Camo” patterns should be banned from being used in any sports-related apparrel. As for the NFL hats…I was just thinking to myself the other day that I wish they made a sweatshirt for me head.

    [quote comment=”43081″][quote comment=”43053″]From what the NHL has indicated, the alternate jerseys will not be used. I know Paul can’t comment on this yet, but perhaps we’ll find out on Monday. I, personally, like the alternate Canucks jerseys better than their current design.[/quote]

    I do too, and I think most people agree. It’s a viable possibility that the “Canuckleheads” will use the old stick-and-rink design as their primary jersey starting next season, since I don’t think Orca Bay (source of the current whale logo) owns the team anymore.

    From the ‘Someone needs to point this out’ file:

    The Sabres lead the league in merch sales BECAUSE THEY CHANGED THEIR UNIFORMS. Not because people like the new design. Want to increase sales? Change your logo. Many fans will decide they need a new jersey to match the players. I’m probably gonna get a new Stars jersey next year because they’re changing the link (which I love).

    I’ll also get a Caps jersey (#8, obviously) if it looks like Joe’s mockup. Wonderful job on that!

    If the new Sabres logo is going over so well with their fans, why do they still wear the old logo (link) on the jersey and why do they wear link at so many home games?[/quote]

    They ocra company was bought out earlier this season

    [quote comment=”43039″]Man, that YouTube video of Todd McFarlane drawing the Oilers’ alternate sweater was really cool. I used to not like the logo on that one, but the fact that he drew it and (as he said) the colors just work so well really draws me to it. The logo might not be the best, but it’s miles above my Caps’ logos.

    [quote comment=”42987″][quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote]

    I’M BLIND!!!! Why didn’t you warn us?!?[/quote]

    Just make sure your favorite school doesn’t decide to embrace their second color, Tom. The only thing in Morgantown that needs to be yellow is the “WV” logo.[/quote]

    Totally agree–We already got a chance to see what it would look like when Cal wore yellow jerseys this year (Cal wears a very similar football uni template), and it’s not a look I want to associate with!

    Officially, the “Flying WV” should always be gold on blue background, but it is occaisonally reversed.

    [quote comment=”42891″]I know they’ve been wearing them for a while, but I want increased exposure for a very important cause… Notre Dame needs to be added to the list of teams that seriously need to link. Wore them again last night, got creamed in them, and looked awful in play AND style. Mike Brey likes ’em, but how do you like something whose colors have absolutely nothing to do with your school (black) and are notoriously bad luck whenever they’re worn (green)?

    Do the right thing… ditch the black![/quote]
    You know what the worst part about this is? Navy and emerald green is perhaps the best looking color combination I can think of, and nobody uses it! Notre Dame basketball has the perfect opportunity to use it, since they already have navy as an official school color and they are the one ND team that likes to use green.

    [quote comment=”43071″][quote comment=”42893″]Looks like the USA Today article on the new NHL unis is up. link

    The quote at the bottom is kind of odd. Some teams may have a more vertical look? Please Ted, no Washington Monument on the jersey![/quote]

    The NHL is going to the link?[/quote]

    That picture is great. Peyton even throws picks in the Pro Bowl. Imagine what he’ll do this Sunday when the game counts.

    Too bad Hannu Toivonen sucks this season, we may only have one chance to see the new helmet before he gets demoted or traded.

    [quote comment=”43102″][quote comment=”42891″]I know they’ve been wearing them for a while, but I want increased exposure for a very important cause… Notre Dame needs to be added to the list of teams that seriously need to link. Wore them again last night, got creamed in them, and looked awful in play AND style. Mike Brey likes ’em, but how do you like something whose colors have absolutely nothing to do with your school (black) and are notoriously bad luck whenever they’re worn (green)?

    Do the right thing… ditch the black![/quote]
    You know what the worst part about this is? Navy and emerald green is perhaps the best looking color combination I can think of, and nobody uses it! Notre Dame basketball has the perfect opportunity to use it, since they already have navy as an official school color and they are the one ND team that likes to use green.[/quote]

    Paul has created a monster! (I mean that in a good way). “Ditch the Black” campaigns are needed for more teams than ever!

    I know “Ditch the Black” is officially aimed at the Mets, and I’m really curious to see if it works. There are definately a few things that I feel should be rightfully changed on my favorite teams’ unis–if only I had an audience with the power to make a change.

    #1 on my list, put “Baltimore” back on the O’s road jerseys. With the Nats competing for market share, now’s a better time than ever to identify with the Baltimore faithful.

    [quote comment=”43112″]
    #1 on my list, put “Baltimore” back on the O’s road jerseys. With the Nats competing for market share, now’s a better time than ever to identify with the Baltimore faithful.[/quote]

    Preach on my man!!! Best O’s link!!! Ecept with the sleeve patch from link.

    The NHL needs to do an “Un-ditch the Black” campaign. Through the early ’90s, there wasn’t a better looking jersey in hockey than the black/orange/white All-Star duds. This new color scheme is laughable, and the NHL shield has been stripped of its colors in an effort to make it more modern – all during an age where “vintage” is “in.”

    [quote comment=”43114″][quote comment=”43112″]
    #1 on my list, put “Baltimore” back on the O’s road jerseys. With the Nats competing for market share, now’s a better time than ever to identify with the Baltimore faithful.[/quote]

    Preach on my man!!! Best O’s link!!! Ecept with the sleeve patch from link.[/quote]

    The ’62 unis are great on their own (IMO)–what are the chances we would ever see socks like that make an appearance on todays playing field.

    [quote comment=”43114″][quote comment=”43112″]
    #1 on my list, put “Baltimore” back on the O’s road jerseys. With the Nats competing for market share, now’s a better time than ever to identify with the Baltimore faithful.[/quote]

    Preach on my man!!! Best O’s link!!! Ecept with the sleeve patch from link.[/quote]

    I agree with the best O’s uni comments. I can’t wait for the day i can buy a road O’s jersey that says Baltimore. I wish the O’s would go back to orange striped stirrups (not that you would see them in most player’s unis) I love the old shoulder patch too. I fear we will have to wait for the birds to be sold before this may occur.

    [quote comment=”43119″]
    The ’62 unis are great on their own (IMO)–what are the chances we would ever see socks like that make an appearance on todays playing field.[/quote]

    They’re not bad, but I like the “Orioles” without the tail under it and the orange and black neck trim….much like the current link.

    [quote comment=”43080″][quote comment=”43062″]The NHL Uni’s look exactly the same. You could have put those on the ice without all the hoopla and no one would have noticed.[/quote]

    Are you serious? If you don’t see any difference this blog is not for you![/quote]

    A slightly slimer fit, that goes more towards the traditional fit of a hockey sweater, and you can see the shape of the shinguards through the socks. This is hardly a radical redesign that people have been fretting about. It looks like a hockey uniform.

    And I don’t think the personal shot was necessary.
    If you disagree with my opinion, fine, and give me reasons, telling me I shouldn’t be here is uncalled for.

    Jeff – If you know my history on this blog you know I don’t take personal shots, and that one wasn’t.

    This site is subtitled “The Obsessive Study of Athletic Aesthetics.” That means if you are a reader, you “obsess” over changes to uniforms…even the most subtle.

    You stated, “The NHL Uni’s look exactly the same,” so I was asking if you really didn’t see a difference. And if you don’t see one, I still hold steadfast that, “If you don’t see any difference this blog is not for you!” That’s not a personal shot and I apologize if you viewed it as one.

    [quote comment=”43081″][quote comment=”43053″]From what the NHL has indicated, the alternate jerseys will not be used. I know Paul can’t comment on this yet, but perhaps we’ll find out on Monday. I, personally, like the alternate Canucks jerseys better than their current design.[/quote]

    I do too, and I think most people agree. It’s a viable possibility that the “Canuckleheads” will use the old stick-and-rink design as their primary jersey starting next season, since I don’t think Orca Bay (source of the current whale logo) owns the team anymore.

    From the ‘Someone needs to point this out’ file:

    The Sabres lead the league in merch sales BECAUSE THEY CHANGED THEIR UNIFORMS. Not because people like the new design. Want to increase sales? Change your logo. Many fans will decide they need a new jersey to match the players. I’m probably gonna get a new Stars jersey next year because they’re changing the link (which I love).

    I’ll also get a Caps jersey (#8, obviously) if it looks like Joe’s mockup. Wonderful job on that!

    If the new Sabres logo is going over so well with their fans, why do they still wear the old logo (link) on the jersey and why do they wear link at so many home games?[/quote]

    I agree with everything you said there. It also helps that the team is playing amazing. If they sucked, you might hear more of an uproar.

    One note: The old logo is in the current color scheme… or am I missing your point?

    [quote comment=”43126″]Jeff – If you know my history on this blog you know I don’t take personal shots, and that one wasn’t.

    This site is subtitled “The Obsessive Study of Athletic Aesthetics.” That means if you are a reader, you “obsess” over changes to uniforms…even the most subtle.

    You stated, “The NHL Uni’s look exactly the same,” so I was asking if you really didn’t see a difference. And if you don’t see one, I still hold steadfast that, “If you don’t see any difference this blog is not for you!” That’s not a personal shot and I apologize if you viewed it as one.[/quote]

    I think I’m gonna agree with Jeff on this one. The uniform looks pretty much the same as the current uniform, with a slightly slimmer jersey/sweater. The only big change is that they moved to a new material (which you can’t tell by looking at them) and that they templated the thing…otherwise it still looks like what is used now. I think the point Jeff was making was that if they didn’t tell anyone they were changing anything the casual hockey fan would not have noticed. We being uniform obsessed would have noticed and did notice the differences.

    [quote comment=”43126″]Jeff – If you know my history on this blog you know I don’t take personal shots, and that one wasn’t.

    This site is subtitled “The Obsessive Study of Athletic Aesthetics.” That means if you are a reader, you “obsess” over changes to uniforms…even the most subtle.

    You stated, “The NHL Uni’s look exactly the same,” so I was asking if you really didn’t see a difference. And if you don’t see one, I still hold steadfast that, “If you don’t see any difference this blog is not for you!” That’s not a personal shot and I apologize if you viewed it as one.[/quote]

    I do see a difference and as the new designs come out, there is sure to be a lot to discuss. My point was comparing the pseudo hysteria that was building before this picture came out because of “tucked jerseys” and “Breaking with Tradition” and all that, and the actual changes, which in reality, are relatively subtle.

    There just seemed to be an awful lot of hand wringing over nothing.

    [quote comment=”43128″]
    I think I’m gonna agree with Jeff on this one. The uniform looks pretty much the same as the current uniform, with a slightly slimmer jersey/sweater. The only big change is that they moved to a new material (which you can’t tell by looking at them) and that they templated the thing…otherwise it still looks like what is used now. I think the point Jeff was making was that if they didn’t tell anyone they were changing anything the casual hockey fan would not have noticed. We being uniform obsessed would have noticed and did notice the differences.[/quote]

    I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree. I think the uniform is noticeably different with the higher sleeve numbers, angled sock strips, extraneous piping and side color panels. Being a loyal reader of this blog those changes are obvious.

    And again I was questioning him not seeing the difference himself as a reader of this blog…not the casual fan. No harm..no malice…just deep concern. (that’s supposed to be very tongue in cheek) I think most casual fans wouldn’t notice 20% of the topics we cover on this blog.

    [quote comment=”43133″]
    I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree. I think the uniform is noticeably different with the higher sleeve numbers, angled sock strips, extraneous piping and side color panels. Being a loyal reader of this blog those changes are obvious.

    And again I was questioning him not seeing the difference himself as a reader of this blog…not the casual fan. No harm..no malice…just deep concern. (that’s supposed to be very tongue in cheek) I think most casual fans wouldn’t notice 20% of the topics we cover on this blog.[/quote]

    I think you are jumping the gun on what you think every teams jersey will look like. The “higher sleeve numbers, angled sock strips, extraneous piping and side color panels” are elements of this particular All-Star jersey. It would be wise to assume that all these elements may be different on a team by team basis. The only things that we know for sure will be different on every teams jersey is the slimmer fit, the material and the jersey structure(the way it is sewn together). Keeping this in mind, for example apply the Rangers current jersey to this new reebok jersey and you get pretty much the same thing but with the stitching in different places.

    [quote comment=”42955″][quote comment=”42932″]The single league-wide template remains an issue for me, but I’m willing to wait and see individual team designs to judge on that.[/quote]

    How about link for the Caps???[/quote]

    OOOH! Not that this is great. It aint bad either but it does beg the question…

    Where are all the fake Photoshop make-ups?

    Lets go people. If I was better at it, I would whip up a Rangers one.

    Hopefully more of these will come out. Paul, why not have a mock up contest using the new uni template design?

    Just saying.

    I guess it depends what you’re comparing the All-star uniform too. I was speaking only about fit and general style of the re-design. You mention items specific to the All Star uniform, which don’t necessarily translate to any other team uniform. It’s impossible to tell at this point whether any of those design elements will roll over to next year’s team jerseys, so my comments were based on the elements that definately carry over.

    I think most casual fans wouldn’t notice 20% of the topics we cover on this blog.[/quote]

    I couldn’t agree more…my experience in graphic design/ web development tells me the casual fan couldn’t discern (assuming they even cared) most if not all of the subtle visual elements discussed here (not blowing smoke up our collective skirts, just the truth). That’s what makes this blog so good.

    [quote comment=”43140″]I think most casual fans wouldn’t notice 20% of the topics we cover on this blog.[/quote]

    I couldn’t agree more…my experience in graphic design/ web development tells me the casual fan couldn’t discern (assuming they even cared) most if not all of the subtle visual elements discussed here (not blowing smoke up our collective skirts, just the truth). That’s what makes this blog so good.[/quote]

    I do agree. When I complain about the Sabres’ new logo and front number (along with the front number on the throwback jerseys), my friend in Buffalo gives me nothing but a “Wha?” in response. And she did buy a new jersey recently. (“At least it’s in the old colors,” she said.)

    My sister. . . a graphic designer . . . only really gives her opinions on sports jerseys when I ask, though she does notice. (She likes the Atlanta Falcons’ splash of red over the all-black, but doesn’t like the TN Titans’ blue-on-blue. No word yet on, say, the Spawn Oilers threads.)

    [quote comment=”43139″]I guess it depends what you’re comparing the All-star uniform too. I was speaking only about fit and general style of the re-design. You mention items specific to the All Star uniform, which don’t necessarily translate to any other team uniform. It’s impossible to tell at this point whether any of those design elements will roll over to next year’s team jerseys, so my comments were based on the elements that definately carry over.[/quote]

    great minds think alike (see comment #131)

    [quote comment=”43141″]Wow Chad, you beat me too it, almost word for word. We are creepily in synch.[/quote]

    haha, you beat me to the in synch comment

    [quote comment=”43105″][quote comment=”43071″][quote comment=”42893″]Looks like the USA Today article on the new NHL unis is up. link

    The quote at the bottom is kind of odd. Some teams may have a more vertical look? Please Ted, no Washington Monument on the jersey![/quote]

    The NHL is going to the link?[/quote]

    That picture is great. Peyton even throws picks in the Pro Bowl. Imagine what he’ll do this Sunday when the game counts.[/quo
    ……..LOSE….AGAIN! LOL

    [quote comment=”42987″][quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote]

    I’M BLIND!!!! Why didn’t you warn us?!?[/quote]

    I saw this. Nice to know they are consistently ugly in all sports.

    [quote comment=”43109″]link

    Check out the logo on the sock stripes![/quote]

    There is logo creep there? I may be slow, but can someone point it out to me, I’m missing it!

    [quote comment=”43066″][quote comment=”43021″]Usually I tend to skim over the hockey talk, but I did read the article about jersey sales. I had to check out the Edmonton Oilers’ jerseys, since after making the Stanley Cup finals, sales are way up. I’m glad to see they haven’t changed their traditional jerseys too much, but I guess I missed the memo on their link. I don’t know what to think of those…[/quote]

    Those are almost as bad as the Oregon unis

    [quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote][/quote]

    wow! forget the yellow (although i’d love to have a pair of the authentic yellow game shorts) check out brooks air money’s!!! those are from 95!

    Wow, i read the NHL article and it mentioned the Flyers Cooperall long pants. reminds me of the first email i ever sent to Paul, well before this page started; maybe over a year ago. (and he also responded to me)

    Those precious memories will never be forgotten.

    “bats eyes”

    now that the NHL is going to “streamlined” unis, perhaps the NBA should go back to the “streamlined” short shorts they used to wear? :-)

    How did the Wisconsin basketball uni shorts go un-commented upon? I love the reference to the U.S. Bicentennial incorporating the “76,” (maybe) the flag all inside an outline of the state of Wisconsin, while at the same time “Bucky” is on the opposite leg.

    Oakland University keeps wearing the mismatched tops and shorts, wearing black shorts with white tops during tonight’s home game.

    Yesterday I went to photograph a Dexter hockey game, and when I walked into the arena, I saw two posters put out by USA Hockey. I thought there would be some here who would appreciate them. In particular, I thought Paul might enjoy the stripes in the second one.

    link
    link

    [quote comment=”43118″]The NHL needs to do an “Un-ditch the Black” campaign. Through the early ’90s, there wasn’t a better looking jersey in hockey than the black/orange/white All-Star duds. This new color scheme is laughable, and the NHL shield has been stripped of its colors in an effort to make it more modern – all during an age where “vintage” is “in.”[/quote]
    Switching the colours on the shield was given the official reason of the Stanley Cup is silver coloured so maybe the league’s logo should be too. Dumb reason, but I’m sure it sounds decent in Bettman’s head.
    Personally I loved the 2004 allstar jerseys, just so simple and so awesome.

    [quote comment=”43169″]Yesterday I went to photograph a Dexter hockey game, and when I walked into the arena, I saw two posters put out by USA Hockey. I thought there would be some here who would appreciate them. In particular, I thought Paul might enjoy the stripes in the second one.

    link
    link[/quote]

    Burrill, both of those are available on Hockey Canada’s website, along with some hilarious videos and a third poster. You can view the 2003-04 announcements link, and the 2002-03 announcements link. The Public Service Announcements were a joint initiative of both Hockey Canada and USA Hockey. Classic commercials. :o)

    Oh, and apparently the Sidney Crosby photo in the new duds was a release by Reebok. TSN is running a very interesting story with some Bettman quotes, as well as Matt O’Toole’s quotes. O’Toole is the brains behind the new Reebok design. You can read it link.

    [quote comment=”43173″]Burrill, both of those are available on Hockey Canada’s website, along with some hilarious videos and a third poster. You can view the 2003-04 announcements link, and the 2002-03 announcements link. The Public Service Announcements were a joint initiative of both Hockey Canada and USA Hockey. Classic commercials. :o)[/quote]

    I figured you’d have more on those, Teebz. Thanks. I loved the posters the minute I saw them.

    The thing that made me laugh is that before the game, not twenty feet from those posters, I listened to a hockey dad talk about how after the last game he’d caught up to one of the referees to tell him just how much he didn’t like one of his calls. (“You know, for $40 a game, you could ref these games,” said the ref. “For $40 a game, you could grow some skin,” said the dad. This according to the dad.)

    [quote comment=”43178″]
    I figured you’d have more on those, Teebz. Thanks. I loved the posters the minute I saw them.

    The thing that made me laugh is that before the game, not twenty feet from those posters, I listened to a hockey dad talk about how after the last game he’d caught up to one of the referees to tell him just how much he didn’t like one of his calls. (“You know, for $40 a game, you could ref these games,” said the ref. “For $40 a game, you could grow some skin,” said the dad. This according to the dad.)[/quote]

    Those commercials are a testament to the dads like that. Relax, dad… it’s just a game!

    I know some parents who go to minor hockey games here get really psyched because their kid is “the next Crosby or Gretzky”. I’m like, “um, your kid is 9. He can’t even tie his own skates yet”. They usually just stare me down until I walk away after that kind of comment. The sad part is that it’s totally the truth. :o)

    I used to wear a set of J-Pads when I was in high school back in the mid-80s. I had the hand pads and the elbow pads. I got them from a kid across the street. Traded a hamster for them. They were pretty comfortable but fairly useless as I was a 4th string DE. They were made of the same material as wrestling mats. Comparing the color to bandaids was spot-on. I was even thinking that before I read that.

    [quote comment=”43179″]I know some parents who go to minor hockey games here get really psyched because their kid is “the next Crosby or Gretzky”. I’m like, “um, your kid is 9. He can’t even tie his own skates yet”. They usually just stare me down until I walk away after that kind of comment. The sad part is that it’s totally the truth. :o)[/quote]

    It’s not quite like that for local high school hockey here; actually, the local scene is relatively new (our local program is about ten years old as a varsity sport). We don’t put out pro players, so that sort of attitude isn’t too prevalent among the area high schools.

    However, there are plenty of high school parents who get too competitive when it comes to their kids’ sports. I mean, I love to see involved parents, but some do go over the top. I spend a lot of time around local high school sports, and among the very good parents, there are parents to whom I just want to say hey, relax and enjoy these games.

    Our football program has actually turned out a few division 1-A college players in recent years (along with our first drafted NFL player this past year), and in the middle of last season I wrote a letter to the local paper, pointing out the problems in the attitudes our football crowds had been displaying (primarily toward the officials), and basically just saying hey, this is high school football, relax and support your own players, and represent your city with some pride and some class. Surprisingly, they printed the whole thing. I wasn’t sure it made much of a difference, even though I got several comments on it, until later, when I heard a story of one dad who stood up and started to yell something at a referee. The woman in front of him turned around and said, “Hey! Remember Burrill’s letter?”

    Anyway, this has gone way, way off-topic, but you know. The conversation went that direction.

    [quote comment=”43153″][quote comment=”43109″]link

    Check out the logo on the sock stripes![/quote]

    There is logo creep there? I may be slow, but can someone point it out to me, I’m missing it![/quote]

    The logo’s on the eye black.

    Speaking of hockey unis, check out the link on the SI Sportscard. Pretty funny.

    P.S. I don’t like the mock-up of the Caps’ uni, Joe—go ahead and shoot me now.

    [quote comment=”43169″]Yesterday I went to photograph a Dexter hockey game, and when I walked into the arena, I saw two posters put out by USA Hockey. I thought there would be some here who would appreciate them. In particular, I thought Paul might enjoy the stripes in the second one.

    link
    link[/quote]

    Oh my god, Burrill! Those are so cute; thanks for sharing. Usually, the only things I think are cute are my niece and nephews, kittens and puppies. Um, did I say that outloud? I love the striped socks and the donwcast look on the kid’s face in the second one.

    [quote comment=”43207″][quote comment=”43169″]Yesterday I went to photograph a Dexter hockey game, and when I walked into the arena, I saw two posters put out by USA Hockey. I thought there would be some here who would appreciate them. In particular, I thought Paul might enjoy the stripes in the second one.

    link
    link[/quote]

    Oh my god, Burrill! Those are so cute; thanks for sharing. Usually, the only things I think are cute are my niece and nephews, kittens and puppies. Um, did I say that outloud? I love the striped socks and the donwcast look on the kid’s face in the second one.[/quote]

    Downcast. I can’t type, either.

    Interesting about the Oberlin archive. I go to Oberlin and they have the pictures of all the varsity teams in a hallway in the athletics department. These pictures go back to Moses Fleetwood Walker’s varsity team. The pictures shwon here are not up in the building…some pretty amazing stuff up there though, should be digital…

    [quote comment=”43154″][quote comment=”43066″][quote comment=”43021″]Usually I tend to skim over the hockey talk, but I did read the article about jersey sales. I had to check out the Edmonton Oilers’ jerseys, since after making the Stanley Cup finals, sales are way up. I’m glad to see they haven’t changed their traditional jerseys too much, but I guess I missed the memo on their link. I don’t know what to think of those…[/quote]

    Those are almost as bad as the Oregon unis

    [quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote][/quote]

    wow! forget the yellow (although i’d love to have a pair of the authentic yellow game shorts) check out brooks air money’s!!! those are from 95![/quote]

    the ducks could be wearing purple and i wouldn’t care cuz they’d still be 17-1

    Beautifully composed link c.1928 from this NYTimes link (you may need nytimes account). Love seeing old action photos. Notice the paneling of the old football, and obviously the hat (which seems to be glued on).

    [quote comment=”43223″][quote comment=”43154″][quote comment=”43066″][quote comment=”43021″]Usually I tend to skim over the hockey talk, but I did read the article about jersey sales. I had to check out the Edmonton Oilers’ jerseys, since after making the Stanley Cup finals, sales are way up. I’m glad to see they haven’t changed their traditional jerseys too much, but I guess I missed the memo on their link. I don’t know what to think of those…[/quote]

    Those are almost as bad as the Oregon unis

    [quote comment=”42984″]i think link says enough for itself…[/quote][/quote]

    wow! forget the yellow (although i’d love to have a pair of the authentic yellow game shorts) check out brooks air money’s!!! those are from 95![/quote]

    the ducks could be wearing purple and i wouldn’t care cuz they’d still be 17-1[/quote]

    I’m still getting used to the new Ducks’ uni.

    I saw Sharks vs. Phoenix last night and thought both teams dress well. I was a but put off by the anniversary patch on Phoenix’s jersey.

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