AHL/ECHL/Minor/Junior League Hockey Changes

[alecgoff]

 

Looks like just a "logo" reveal, an not the actual jersey

[Gothamite]

It’s fine, I guess.  But after the fridge and the skeleton, it’s a little obvious and more than a title underwhelming. 
 

[alecgoff]

Here we go. Giving me a lot of Heritage Classic Winnipeg Jets vibes with that striping pattern

 

[Ridleylash]

16 minutes ago, Gothamite said:

It’s fine, I guess.  But after the fridge and the skeleton, it’s a little obvious and more than a title underwhelming.

Eh, I like the fauxback element of it; plus, it does tie back to the franchise's original logos pretty well, since the whole skeleton motif didn't really come in until the mid-2000's. The fridge logo was fun, but sometimes it's nice to also just do a modernized take on a classic logo.

[Brass]

It's a fine jersey, but if I didn't know any better and saw it quickly, I'd think it was for the Rochester Americans.

[Brian in Boston]

1 hour ago, GFB said:

[W]hen a hawk is resting, it’s beak is closed and you don’t see the lower one... It’s only when a hawk is acting aggressive that it opens its mouth enough to the point where you can see the lower beak. 

My problem with this logo...



... is the complete lack of detail on the entirety of the hawk's lower jaw. No mouth line... no lower mandible... no detail whatsoever. Minimalism taken to the extreme.

In the photo of the hawk at rest which you shared...



... one can still discern details such as the mouth line, the separation of the upper and lower mandibles, and the feather-covered rear portion of the lower mandible. They're all plainly visible here...



While the artist who designed the Winterhawks' alternate logo had every right to design a more minimalist mark, I feel the choice - and its execution - leave something to be desired aesthetically. It strikes me as a bit too stylized. There's something "robotic" about the hawk. Certainly attractive, but not what I'd choose for a team dubbed the Winterhawks.   
 

[DEAD!]

1 hour ago, Gothamite said:

It’s fine, I guess.  But after the fridge and the skeleton, it’s a little obvious and more than a title underwhelming. 
 

 

So, an Admiral and Johnny Canuck compete in the fastest skater competition 

[Brian in Boston]

56 minutes ago, Gothamite said:

It’s fine, I guess.  But after the fridge and the skeleton, it’s a little obvious and more than a title underwhelming. 

Underwhelming? It pays homage to the "skating Admiral" logos that the team sported in the 1970s and '80s. It marries a retro vibe reminiscent of said era - indeed, it wouldn't have been out of place in the 1950s or '60s - with a more polished, modern rendering style.  It strikes me as being the best logo a hockey team dubbed the Milwaukee Admirals has ever sported, hands down. If the Admirals adopted it as their regular logo, it would - to my mind - be the best primary mark in the AHL.



This is some outstanding craftsmanship on Dan Simon's part. I've long been a fan of his work and this is no exception.  Frankly, it's one of my favorite sports logos... period. I'd love to get my hands on a jersey!

[nash61]

5 hours ago, alecgoff said:

Here we go. Giving me a lot of Heritage Classic Winnipeg Jets vibes with that striping pattern

 

Hem colours are inverted, but it's pretty close to this. Think they'll go the same helmet/pants route?

[andrewharrington]

11 hours ago, Brian in Boston said:

My problem with this logo...



... is the complete lack of detail on the entirety of the hawk's lower jaw. No mouth line... no lower mandible... no detail whatsoever. Minimalism taken to the extreme.

In the photo of the hawk at rest which you shared...



... one can still discern details such as the mouth line, the separation of the upper and lower mandibles, and the feather-covered rear portion of the lower mandible. They're all plainly visible here...



While the artist who designed the Winterhawks' alternate logo had every right to design a more minimalist mark, I feel the choice - and its execution - leave something to be desired aesthetically. It strikes me as a bit too stylized. There's something "robotic" about the hawk. Certainly attractive, but not what I'd choose for a team dubbed the Winterhawks.   
 

In my opinion, small anatomical details that you have to zoom in to see are precisely the ones you want to simplify, especially in an era where a logo’s use as a social media avatar is so critical to the team’s engagement with fans. I’m not sold on the scalability of the new one after seeing the Twitter avatar, as you lose most of the detail at that size.

 

In the old one, I read the black area under the beak as the lower beak itself (in shadow, obviously, which is why I’m not expecting to see more detail there). Honestly, I think the separation of the midtone and shadow acting as the mouth line is a little stroke of genius, giving dimension and drama to the form without adding a shred of unnecessary detail. I’m realizing the perspective of the old one—from slightly below—was one of my favorite features. You’re always looking up at a hawk, never at eye-level, and the subtlety of that made the previous one look very proud and regal to me. There’s also something really nice about the compact, ovular shape and the smooth, gestural flow from beak to feather. Is it flying overhead? Is it looking at Portland from the top of its perch on Mt. Hood? Could be either, and I really enjoyed that dynamism. I also think the four feathers and the northwest gaze in the old one are a better and clearer homage to the Chicago hand-me-down.

 

I can understand perceiving it as a robo-hawk, too. I don’t perceive it that way, but it wouldn’t bother me, either. I like the idea of “inventing” a unique Winterhawk since it’s not a term that’s tethered to a specific animal. The silver bird worked well enough to make the bird look snowy/icy, and I think it was a good choice knowing the logo had to work on red, white, and black backgrounds. It’s tough to make a primarily white logo look good on a white jersey (and also tough to avoid bald eagle comparisons).

 

Regardless, fans overwhelmingly love the new mark, and that’s ultimately what counts… even if I personally think they left something better on the table and am extremely disappointed they chose to commission a local apparel company who has a reputation for stealing art (including mine) to run the process.

 

This would have been baaad if he didn’t bring in Brian to save him. 

[Gothamite]

 

2 hours ago, andrewharrington said:

Regardless, fans overwhelmingly love the new mark, and that’s ultimately what counts… even if I personally think they left something better on the table and am extremely disappointed they chose to commission a local apparel company who has a reputation for stealing art (including mine) to run the process.

 

Yes, but let's not forget that fans tend to like almost every new logo.  Even the Buffaslug was greeted with huge merchandise sales.

 

It's how well they age, once the initial rush wears off, that matters.

 

[Gothamite]

Okay, now I'm confused.  The AHL just tweeted this graphic:

 

 

 

 

Does that mean they're going to be wearing multiple versions of it?

 

EDIT: nope.

 

 

[-kj]

6 hours ago, andrewharrington said:

a local apparel company who has a reputation for stealing art (including mine)

 

Do go on...

[Corvus]

My man is clearly skipping leg day. 

[andrewharrington]

6 hours ago, -kj said:

 

Do go on...

[packerfan21396]

Fun Fact: The Milwaukee Admirals wore green and blue for their first 2 seasons after renaming from the Wings, before going to blue and red for the next 25, so really the fauxback logo should look even more like Johnny Canuck.

[Burmy]

Alas, poor Skating Fridge...you were too good for this world.

 

[B-mer]

I love that Admirals logo. Jersey is alright, but I think it’s a perfect faux back for them. 

[Gothamite]

38 minutes ago, Burmy said:

Alas, poor Skating Fridge...you were too good for this world.

 

 

And thanks to the pandemic, he never got his moment of glory.  Real shame.

[Gothamite]

I'll say this - the traditional striping of the Fauxback makes the modern sweaters look even worse.  Love the logo, but they need to simplify the design around it.