Jump to content

2014-2015 NHL Jersey/Logo Changes


Chewbacca

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 5k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

The red and black Sabres stuff was just...tired. Despite it being so fresh.

The Blackhawks were, for decades, the only red and black team in the league. Then the 1991-1992 season brought the Ottawa Senators into the league. The New Jersey Devils also dropped red and green for red and black. So now we're up to three. Buffalo adopts their red and black scheme in 1996 and the Hartford Whalers move to North Carolina and become the Hurricanes a year later, adopting a red and black scheme.

Red and black was one of the most prominent trends in the 1990s, and it got a bit out of hand. While the Sabres' red and black scheme was fine in a vacuum it just failed to stand out among the rest of the league. A return to their proper colours was inevitable.

I'm not a fan of the red and black era logo either. The previous (and current) primary logo conveyed the team name without a single letter. Buffalo. Sabres. Perfect. The 90s buffalo head logo was just an overly aggressive buffalo. What does that say about the team name? It just came off as another 90s identity that tried to get way too aggressive. Aggressive colours, aggressive animal logo. Blah.

The Sabres were the first NHL team to use grey/silver with a red black and white scheme. Couple that with an unorthodox, yet restrained striping pattern and I fail to see how they could be confused with the Devils, Hawks, or Senators. Besides, the so called "classic" look is even more derivative. They copied the St Louis Blues colour scheme (to a not nearly as good effect) and ripped of the Toronto Maple Leafs striping wholesale.

As for the logo, you are right that it doesn't represent the team name on it's own and maybe should not be the primary logo. But damned if it doesn't look good on the front of the jersey as a crest. I own an Authentic black and it remains one of the favourites in my collection. The logos from a design standpoint are light years beyond the "classic" logo even if it does spell out the teams city and namesake. The striping is bold yet original while the secondary logos represent the teams namesake. A team from Buffalo having a buffalo on the front of their uniforms... Why not? Not every logo has to represent the teams namesake literally. It looked good. They had success in it.

I realize I'm not going to convert the majority who like the teams blue and gold look. But for those reasons, the Red, Black & Slate remains my favourite look for the team.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Sabres were the first NHL team to use grey/silver with a red black and white scheme. Couple that with an unorthodox, yet restrained striping pattern and I fail to see how they could be confused with the Devils, Hawks, or Senators.

I never said that anyone would confuse the red and black Sabres for anyone else. Just that the colour scheme, by that point, had become old hat in the NHL. It was the 90s equivalent of double blue and laceups.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Same- I remember wanting a Satan jersey to wear to school.

Shoot- I still want a Miroslav Satan jersey!

Too bad he never signed with the Devils.

Just like it would have been cool for Marty St-Louis to sign with the Blues.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In any event, the Sabres are in desperate need of change. Obviously the third can't be ditched soon enough but even the main set leaves much to be desired. What with the piping to nowhere, pit stains and front numbers. Removing grey all together from the striping would go a long way towards a bolder, simpler look.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The piping to nowhere is the biggest offender, in my opinion. Remove that, maybe the grey outlines around everything.

I'm hesitant to ditch the navy though. There are three teams that use the blue and gold colour scheme; The Blues, Sabres, and Predators. The Blues primarily use royal, and the Predators' dark sweaters are athletic gold. Navy and athletic gold would help the Sabres stand out among the other teams with similar schemes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Count me among the black and red supporters for the Sabres. Their original look always strikes me as uninspired. The same logo being featured three times on the jersey is a terrible flaw. Yes red and black wasn't terribly original at the time but the striping set Buffalo apart. It's still the look that pops into my head when someone talks about the Sabres.

As for the logo, it is odd that a buffalo head is the primary crest, but I give them a pass because that's become a Buffalo thing. The animal has always appeared on the crest in one way or another of their primary home and aways and the city's NFL brother wears a helmet logo that relates solely to the city name. That buffalo head crest is one of my favorites.

And Vapor XXX goal skates, yessssss. On my second pair and have a pristine pair in the closet for when these bad boys give out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

First look at the new Ducks jerseys on ice via NHL15. Who knows if it is accurate or not. The orange looks to bright IMO. Same socks... white helmets.

On another note the arenas look amazing. They have the tesla coil up in the right corner. I hope they work!

nhl-15-tampa-bay-times-forum.jpg

Uncanny valley like whoa.

♫ oh yeah, board goes on, long after the thrill of postin' is gone ♫

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Same- I remember wanting a Satan jersey to wear to school.

Shoot- I still want a Miroslav Satan jersey!

Too bad he never signed with the Devils.

Just like it would have been cool for Marty St-Louis to sign with the Blues.

It sometimes happens, like Dwight King with LA.

Use the rules of heraldry for more effective sports logos! i.e. keep it simple, use good contrast...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Same- I remember wanting a Satan jersey to wear to school.

Shoot- I still want a Miroslav Satan jersey!

Too bad he never signed with the Devils.

Just like it would have been cool for Marty St-Louis to sign with the Blues.

It sometimes happens, like Dwight King with LA.

But all too rarely, like Paul Ranger in New York

I'll respect any opinion that you can defend.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As for the logo, it is odd that a buffalo head is the primary crest, but I give them a pass because that's become a Buffalo thing. The animal has always appeared on the crest in one way or another of their primary home and aways and the city's NFL brother wears a helmet logo that relates solely to the city name. That buffalo head crest is one of my favorites.

The buffalo head that looks looks like a hereford bull dressed in drag? I can't believe anyone could look at that logo and think it looked good.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

As for the logo, it is odd that a buffalo head is the primary crest, but I give them a pass because that's become a Buffalo thing. The animal has always appeared on the crest in one way or another of their primary home and aways and the city's NFL brother wears a helmet logo that relates solely to the city name. That buffalo head crest is one of my favorites.

The buffalo head that looks looks like a hereford bull dressed in drag? I can't believe anyone could look at that logo and think it looked good.

I looked at it like it was facing left, and I thought "What the hell is that?"

Few years later, I finally noticed it was a buffalo head

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sabres fans were so willing to embrace a blue and gold team again that they bought the BuffaSlug merchandise in large enough quantities to break records. The same BuffaSlug look the team dropped because the fans hated it.

That's how popular blue and gold is among the Sabres' fanbase.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As for the logo, it is odd that a buffalo head is the primary crest, but I give them a pass because that's become a Buffalo thing. The animal has always appeared on the crest in one way or another of their primary home and aways and the city's NFL brother wears a helmet logo that relates solely to the city name. That buffalo head crest is one of my favorites.

But the whole reason that the expansion team decided to go with the name Sabres was to buck the trend of Buffalo sports teams using buffalo/bison imagery. Switching to a logo that has a total of zero sabres on it defeated the purpose of choosing that name. When I was a kid I didn't even realize that a sabre was a type of sword. I just thought that it was another name for a buffalo.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.




×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.