What if the NHL absorbed 8 teams from the WHA? A Hockey Week Alternate History - Sportslogos page NHL 2015

[biscuit faces of them]

Are the seals NoCal or SoCal in this case

[hockey week]

2002-03

The third jersey, which is a huge seller and the toast of sports communities, is redesignated as the road jersey and a matching home is created.

2003-04

The NHL Vintage Series is sweeping the league, and the Seals don't want to be left out. This is their big chance to claim their former history and spread around that, yes, they're one of the old boys in this old boys club.

Many of you are probably wondering why not use the 1972-74 jerseys, which match the colors of the team? As I found in research, the split between Charley O'Finley and the NHL was much less than amicable, so much so that the NHL switched the jerseys to the teal and yellow just to eliminate every remnant of his time with the league. The NHL strongly encouraged this set rather than the green/gold with white skates.

2005-07

The Vintage Series jersey is dropped following the lockout

2007-11

The RBK Edge jerseys GUT the Seals look. Just destroyed it. This set is lamented from coast to coast, but the team insists it sells well and people like it. They even gut the logo, removing the wordmark for a sleeker look and .17% faster speed!

2011-13

The Seals introduce a "vintage" third jersey that is essentially useless. It sells well, for some reason, but everyone on boards like this knows that it's a bunch of crap.

2013-present

When everyone was rolling their eyes at the mention that the California Seals were changing up their look, they go and blow our minds. A vintage look that seems freshly modern, a logo that looks tough and sleek (and yes, a little Sharks-esque, again, some things are inevitable), and a color set to own.

Overall, I think I had the most fun with this set. Again, we had a real history to go against, and it was one that had a lot of interesting twists and turns. The Stars never truly lost the North Stars look, and the Seals wouldn't either. It's an evolution, not a revolution, and that's what makes it fun.

Up next, the Indianapolis Racers!

Are the seals NoCal or SoCal in this case

they replace the San Jose Sharks (no need for expansion, the NHL is already 4 teams heavier than it was in our history), so NoCal in this case.

[Morgan33]

The North Stars/Stars franchise houses one of my favorite identity's in all of hockey, so this alternate history was extra enjoyable for me. For starters I like how, even though it's an alternate reality, the team essentially goes through the same motions as the actual Dallas Stars. They start with traditional uniforms, make colour changes (positive unlike the real Stars that year), transition to a more distinctive look full time (all star set), get butchered in the Edge Era and come full circle with a fantastic new look.

My favorite of the teams uniform iterations however, is the set below. Kelly Green, Black and Metallic Gold is a terribly underrated scheme and the logo and striping are on point. Inaugural patch is also a nice touch.

Overall this is a spectacular concept and the best of the series.

[BBallSuperFan]

I agree with Morgo. That logo is the sharpest of them all.

[YelichGraphics]

Wow! just wow. incredible work nice job. Looking forward to seeing more

[bleuet]

X - SEL - LENT!

I LOVE when guys here try logos. All great stuff, merveilleux, fantastique!

[CanucksBrad]

LOL I followed ecah post and each line with such anticipation!

Wasn't a fan of the first edition. Loved the original green 3rd introduction, and was upset when the were taken away. Didn't much care for the waves at the bottom. But alas, you bring back the green and finish with easily the best of the set. Well done!

[cubsfan2015]

The Seals look perfect! I loved the Seals from the late 60's,and you made them into perfection!

[1insaneguy]

wish the seals actually existed that would be one of the coolest identities in the NHL and I am not even a fan warm weather teams!

[hockey week]

The Indianapolis Racers

This was perhaps the toughest team. The Racers never changed their uniforms, despite having one of the worst logos I've ever seen...it's tombstone shaped, for crying out loud! But, they won with it, and they had a rabid fanbase. There's still a lot of pride in the Racers if you do some research. I was rather shocked.

But I think the fate of the team lies entirely with its owner: Nelson Skalbania.

Skalbania was one of the earliest "flip this property" kind of guys, he'd buy things cheap, turn them around, and sell for profit. That's exactly what he did with the Racers and his young phenom Wayne Gretzky.

The premise with this team is for Skalbania to wait on selling Gretzky and the Racers. The NHL is much more willing to deal (obviously, they let in 8 teams), so Skalbania holds on and waits for the big sell.

But, he's still Nelson Skalbania, and he can only hold on to that kind of stability for so long, and he went bankrupt in our history in 1982. I'm hoping that a big NHL deal, a successful team, and the sell of Wayne Gretzky will postpone that a few years, but as I always say, some things are inevitable.

I actually had some real problems with this one, I went back and re-did some things, added more history to it, and paid a lot more attention to my fonts, which admittedly, are usually an afterthought.

This alternate history, submitted for your approval:

Indianapolis Racers,

Last days of the WHA

1979-82

The Racers had an iconic look, and everyone loved them. But nobody in the NHL had a lace-up collar in 1979, and so the team dropped theirs, not wanting to look like a minor league club.

1982-83

Skalbara is cheap, and his other investments in the Montreal Alouettes were draining his bank account, and if he can save on buying socks and pants, he does it. With the initial success of the Flyers, the Whalers and Racers introduce Cooperalls to their teams

1983-84

Cooperalls were then banned by the NHL for safety reasons. The Racers' stripes shrink. It is believed that these jerseys were ordered with a full integration to a Cooperall style expected, but destroyed by the new league rules. With the jerseys already made and paid for, they were used for the season.

Skalbara is drowning in debt, and he sells superstar and the reasons why the Racers won a Stanley Cup, to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a ridiculous sum of money. (In our history, the Leafs offered to trade the Oilers roster-for-roster plus a ton of cash. Obviously Peter Pocklington turned them down. So this is not that far-fetched.) Gretzky would go on to have tremendous success in Toronto.

1984-86

The team goes back to their original striping.

1986 The Carolina Racers

Skalbara's debts are too much, and (four years later than in our own history) he declares bankruptcy, which means selling the Racers franchise. Despite the great fanbase in Indianapolis and the success seen there, there are no investors willing to continue the franchise there. The best offer comes from a group in Charlotte, North Carolina, who sees that there is great sports potential in their growing city and knows a bargain when they see one. The team keeps the name and the look, because it is well known, and North Carolina has a rich auto-racing history as well.

1986-88

The look remains pretty intact, but with a new logo and the stripes beefed up. If it ain't broke...

1988-94

A secondary logo is introduced, playing up the relation between a racing helmet and a goalie mask

To be continued...

I can't post anything more because the board is combining multiple posts, so until someone else posts, or that stops, the fate of the Racers is in limbo. Sorry!

TO BE CONTINUED!

[1908_Cubs]

I like the move from Indianapolis to Carolina. We all know the Whale moved there, plus, the name is fairly fitting for a team from Carolina with their strong Nascar support.

Pretty neat secondary logo too. All of it has a very "race" feel to it.

[hockey week]

1994-2007

The 90s ruins everything. The logo makes a change to a more NASCAR-like car to appeal to more fans, and a checkered flag becomes a major part of the uniform. (It looks a lot more like the Carolina Hurricanes' jerseys in our own timeline, with checkered flags replacing hurricane flags. This was on purpose. Give the fans what they want, eh?)

2007-Present

The Carolina Racers decide to re-invent themselves with the Edge switchover. They introduce a new, more abstract logo. Is it a track? Is it a car tire? Is it a type of helmet? Is it speed? Is it just two letters and a flag? Yes. They also introduce a secondary that is meant to bring in more support from South Carolina, as the name deliberately leaves out the separation of the two states. The jerseys are meant to look a lot more like a NASCAR fire-suit, though without all the extra logos on it and keeping their iconic shoulders. They sell well, people like the idea, and people want to be Racers. It's a look they latch on to, and decide to never muddy up the brand with a third.

This was a very tough team to do, and it actually wasn't done until today because I wasn't pleased with how it turned out. It's very Washington Capitals/Carolina Hurricanes in its setup, and I wanted not to go too crazy with any of it...but I couldn't leave things exactly the same for 20 years...they're not Detroit lol.

But with the Racers moving to Carolina, the Hartford Whalers can't move there, so where do they go?

[1908_Cubs]

I like the move from Indianapolis to Carolina. We all know the Whale moved there, plus, the name is fairly fitting for a team from Carolina with their strong Nascar support.

Pretty neat secondary logo too. All of it has a very "race" feel to it.

Hah. Must be psychic, eh?

Cool integration with the Nascar thing. Especially for our southern NHL friends, probably important to tie into current things they like. Fits with what very likley could have happened.

[Burmy]

VERY nice identity for the Carolina Racers! Quite a brand (do I detect some Charlotte Checkers homages?) they got.

Still hope the NHL returns to Indy during this concept series...

[Keel]

This whole series has just been incredible thus far. I can't wait to see what else you do with this, especially with Hampton Roads.

[seancarter]

like Carolina Racers concept wish Carolina Hurricanes would go with that name

[neo_prankster]

In this scenario, would the Racers share the Hive with the old Hornets, or would they play at another arena somewhere in the Carolinas?

[hockey week]

In this scenario, would the Racers share the Hive with the old Hornets, or would they play at another arena somewhere in the Carolinas?

uh...

well, they predate the Hornets by two years, so they build a hockey rink that you can put a court on top of?

Is this what JK Rowling feels like when people ask questions far deeper than she ever thought when she wrote the books? lol

I don't know Charlotte, the Hornets, or arena design well enough to answer this. In fact, I had them moving to Raleigh until I did more research about 1980s North Carolina this morning.

[biscuit faces of them]

In this scenario, would the Racers share the Hive with the old Hornets, or would they play at another arena somewhere in the Carolinas?

uh...

well, they predate the Hornets by two years, so they build a hockey rink that you can put a court on top of?

Is this what JK Rowling feels like when people ask questions far deeper than she ever thought when she wrote the books? lol

I don't know Charlotte, the Hornets, or arena design well enough to answer this. In fact, I had them moving to Raleigh until I did more research about 1980s North Carolina this morning.

I heard that they played at the Charlotte Motor Speedway frontstretch for 2 games in 1993

[hockey week]

The Hartford Whalers

The Hartford Whalers obviously joined the league om 1979-80 with the rest, and enjoyed their typical history. However, when 1996-97 rolled around and the Whalers were ready to move, the Carolinas were no longer an option, as the Racers had beaten them there.

Whalers owner Peter Karmanos chose the name Hurricanes on his own, and I plan on him doing the same with the new city.

The Hurricanes also resisted changing their uniforms until the edge switchover, and even then did very little. They were among the last to adopt a third jersey. Stoicism is a major part of the ownership and that isn't going to change.

1992-97

1997 The Nashville Pioneers

The NHL was looking to expand to Nashville eventually, and moving the financially-struggling Hartford Whalers would help that along. Karmanos looked at the history of Nashville, Tennessee and figured the best way to appeal to the crowds was to push the rustic experience of the original frontier, along with nice nods to the music scene.

The logo itself is a mix between Davy Crockett and Andrew Jackson, famous Tennesseeans that fans can be proud of.

1997-2003

A unique color scheme of leather brown, tanned canvas, and gold, and a safe, thoroughly-meaning-filled logo set are added to unique, but traditional jerseys

2003-07

As everything gets darker in the NHL, and vintage becomes cool and a fauxback is introduced.

2007-08

The Nashville Pioneers avoid most of the changes of the edge jersey switch, but get some piping forced on them.

2008-present

The Pioneers introduce a third jersey that focuses a bit more on the pride of Nashville music and their guitar-string stripes and the very popular fauxback logo set. It does well and stays around through the present

Overall, this was a short history. The toughest idea was coming up with a name that wasn't the Predators. The Whalers/Hurricanes didn't change things often, and I had to make sure I didn't do that either. Once I found a look I liked, I didn't want to change it anyway, it just seemed fitting. And I'll be honest, I've always wanted a Sepia-toned team...seemed like a cool idea and this was my chance to try it. I don't expect this one to be as popular, but hey, not everything can be a winner.

Next Up: The Birmingham Bulls