2021-2022 NHL Jersey Changes

[AFirestormToPurify]

2 hours ago, Chromatic said:

 

Fitteds are definitely a safe choice. The biggest issue with hats is the inconsistency in sizing. Like I said earlier I have a pretty large ballhat collection, and part of the reason for that is that finding a hat that actually fits me is rare enough that I feel I'm missing out if I don't buy it.  So when I find myself trying on a hat in a store and it actually fits my head the way I like I end up buying it.

 

Snapbacks, on top of looking like you won them from a claw machine most of the time, rarely fit, and when they do its usually only backwards and then you're stuck looking like a pokemon trainer.

 

Dad hats almost always fit, but they also permanently look slouched and beaten.

 

A truly well fitting fitted hat is amazing, but its like finding a needle in a hay stack. I've had sizes up from what I normally wear be too small and sizes down too large. There is no consistency or quality control, I've ordered several 59/50s online and ultimately sent them all back.  I'll only buy them in stores if I can try them on first. I prefer New Era, but as much as people crap on Fanatics I've found their fitted hats actually consistently fit the same across the board much better than New Era. 

 

Maybe its because I'm approaching my 30s, but I've started liking the 39/30s/FlexFits more and more, which is somewhere between a dad hat and a fitted. They feel like a nice age appropriate compromise where they still have the somewhat rigid structure of a fitted with the comfort and fit of a dad hat. 

 

Thank you for coming to my TedTalk about baseball hats.

 

 

You're absolutely right, New Era's QC is NON-EXISTANT. So frustrating. Forget about ever buying hats online

[spartacat_12]

22 minutes ago, ManillaToad said:

The logo is terrible and the jerseys are sterotypically 90s in the worst way possible lol. What's the point in giving something credit for doing something new if that new sucks?

 

The primary logo was fine. It's only problem was that it replaced a treasured logo that represented a dynasty. When they replaced it with the classic logo it didn't improve the jersey at all. 

 

If you updated the colours on the lighthouse shoulder patch it would be great on the current uniforms.

 

It obviously wasn't a great jersey, but at least the designers took a chance and came up with something original. They didn't just take a bland design, slap together some marketing-speak bs, and attach a beloved former player to it to try and buy some good will.

[DTConcepts]

1 hour ago, ManillaToad said:

The logo is terrible and the jerseys are sterotypically 90s in the worst way possible lol. What's the point in giving something credit for doing something new if that new sucks?

 

$20 says that in an alternate universe where the Islanders didn't have the most dominant dynasty in hockey history, the fisherman jerseys would be looked back at just as fondly as the Caps' screaming eagle jerseys, the Mighty Ducks' inaugural jerseys, or the Coyotes' Kachina jerseys. Each of those designs are recognized as some of the best in NHL history, and they each do something outlandish and/or entirely new in the confines of jersey design.

[Mingjai]

4 hours ago, Chromatic said:

 

Fitteds are definitely a safe choice. The biggest issue with hats is the inconsistency in sizing. Like I said earlier I have a pretty large ballhat collection, and part of the reason for that is that finding a hat that actually fits me is rare enough that I feel I'm missing out if I don't buy it.  So when I find myself trying on a hat in a store and it actually fits my head the way I like I end up buying it.

 

Snapbacks, on top of looking like you won them from a claw machine most of the time, rarely fit, and when they do its usually only backwards and then you're stuck looking like a pokemon trainer.

 

Dad hats almost always fit, but they also permanently look slouched and beaten.

 

A truly well fitting fitted hat is amazing, but its like finding a needle in a hay stack. I've had sizes up from what I normally wear be too small and sizes down too large. There is no consistency or quality control, I've ordered several 59/50s online and ultimately sent them all back.  I'll only buy them in stores if I can try them on first. I prefer New Era, but as much as people crap on Fanatics I've found their fitted hats actually consistently fit the same across the board much better than New Era. 

 

Maybe its because I'm approaching my 30s, but I've started liking the 39/30s/FlexFits more and more, which is somewhere between a dad hat and a fitted. They feel like a nice age appropriate compromise where they still have the somewhat rigid structure of a fitted with the comfort and fit of a dad hat. 

 

Thank you for coming to my TedTalk about baseball hats.

 

 

This is the key to online shopping for fitted hats:

 

[Bayne]

Bit late to the party, but I don't mind the TB stadium series jersey for what it is. Seems to be the treatment that a lot of these teams go for - big and stylized so it can be seen at a distance. 

 

Not as into Nashville's.  I could see how that idea COULD maybe work but the final execution doesn't hit. I'm rarely a fan of shoulder patches being used on the front of jerseys and the guitar pick is definitely in that category. Feels to me like it was a compromise by the designers to have to include the pick.

[tp49]

1 hour ago, spartacat_12 said:

 

The primary logo was fine. It's only problem was that it replaced a treasured logo that represented a dynasty. When they replaced it with the classic logo it didn't improve the jersey at all. 

 

36 minutes ago, DTConcepts said:

 

$20 says that in an alternate universe where the Islanders didn't have the most dominant dynasty in hockey history, the fisherman jerseys would be looked back at just as fondly as the Caps' screaming eagle jerseys, the Mighty Ducks' inaugural jerseys, or the Coyotes' Kachina jerseys. 

When the primary logo causes the fans of your most bitter rival to chant "We want fish sticks" at you because it looks like the Gorton's Fisherman, it's not a good logo.  It wasn't then, and it's not now.  

[Ridleylash]

1 hour ago, DTConcepts said:

 

$20 says that in an alternate universe where the Islanders didn't have the most dominant dynasty in hockey history, the fisherman jerseys would be looked back at just as fondly as the Caps' screaming eagle jerseys, the Mighty Ducks' inaugural jerseys, or the Coyotes' Kachina jerseys. Each of those designs are recognized as some of the best in NHL history, and they each do something outlandish and/or entirely new in the confines of jersey design.

I'd say it'd be more along the lines of the Storm or Pooh Bear where people want it as an alternate because of the meme value.

[pepis21]

1 hour ago, tp49 said:

 

When the primary logo causes the fans of your most bitter rival to chant "We want fish sticks"

 

Well, all of them were a gay-fish

 

5 hours ago, Chromatic said:

Snapbacks, on top of looking like you won them from a claw machine most of the time, rarely fit, and when they do its usually only backwards and then you're stuck looking like a pokemon trainer.

 

I use hair dryer to fit my snapbacks.

[habsfan1]

19 hours ago, AFirestormToPurify said:

And to no one's surprise, they're just as underwhelming in action. The red outlines are barely visible. Too many thin stripes. It's a shame cause they were about two or three red stripes and a classic NJ logo away from being decent

 

 

So a Blackhawks heritage jersey in sorta the same colors of the Brooklyn Nets (which I assume the Jersey fanbase still has allegiances to).

 

It's decent looking. By no means does this uniform represent the Devils in any way. But If the goal is to make sales to a specific demo by repping the Nets, then I guess that's the purpose of this alt jersey design.

 

The Islanders, who aren't that far from their state area, once had a similar black jersey with white stripes. It was by design for when they were recolated to Brooklyn. That's their take on special edition colored jerseys.

[Morgan33]

At least the Fisherman looks like some thought and effort was put into it...

 

All New Jersey did was put a lame script on an existing jersey that copied the Blackhawks whole-sale.  The Newark Bulldogs played one 40 game season, in a minor-league, 54 years before the Devils existed.  The River Vale Skeeters would also copy this Blackhawk's design a decade later...

 

 

This uniform isn't New Jerseys roots, it's Chicago's...  And if there was ever a team that didn't need an alternate logo, it's the Devils.

[ManillaToad]

3 hours ago, DTConcepts said:

 

$20 says that in an alternate universe where the Islanders didn't have the most dominant dynasty in hockey history, the fisherman jerseys would be looked back at just as fondly as the Caps' screaming eagle jerseys, the Mighty Ducks' inaugural jerseys, or the Coyotes' Kachina jerseys. Each of those designs are recognized as some of the best in NHL history, and they each do something outlandish and/or entirely new in the confines of jersey design.

 

 If you're arguing that people only hated it because it replaced the dynasty logo, then that means the "trying something new" aspect you praised was literally the worst part of the uniform lol. Dynasty logos have been replaced before. People hated this uniform because it is UGLY

 

 

This is straight up minor league. It's embarrassing to look at and doesn't belong in the NHL. Comparing it to the kachinas or the screaming eagle is crazy.

[monkeypower]

Speaking of Fisherman, the Isles are selling these at UBS.

 

I think this is a neat jersey to put back into circulation.

[DTConcepts]

53 minutes ago, ManillaToad said:

This is straight up minor league. It's embarrassing to look at and doesn't belong in the NHL. Comparing it to the kachinas or the screaming eagle is crazy.

 

The screaming eagle put weirdly placed angles and wordmarks in the striping. The Kachina jerseys used abstract art for a logo and tribal patterns for the stripes. The fisherman jerseys just used the warp tool on Photoshop. They all did weird, new things and they all did it well, imo.

 

5 minutes ago, monkeypower said:

Speaking of Fisherman, the Isles are selling these at UBS.

 

I think this is a neat jersey to put back into circulation.

 

Truth be told, I think this white post-fisherman wave jersey is my favorite Isles sweater of all time.

[Discrim]

9 hours ago, Chromatic said:

Snapbacks, on top of looking like you won them from a claw machine most of the time, rarely fit, and when they do its usually only backwards and then you're stuck looking like a pokemon trainer.

I haven't worn a snapback regularly since I was a high school freshman (and that was an old Brewers gold-front cap I got at Value Village).  I don't miss wearing them.  Or trying to wear caps backwards either, given about the only adultwho looks good in a backwards cap is Ken Griffey Jr.  As you can probably tell, I am not Junior.

 

10 hours ago, Chromatic said:

A truly well fitting fitted hat is amazing, but its like finding a needle in a hay stack. I've had sizes up from what I normally wear be too small and sizes down too large. There is no consistency or quality control, I've ordered several 59/50s online and ultimately sent them all back.  I'll only buy them in stores if I can try them on first. I prefer New Era, but as much as people crap on Fanatics I've found their fitted hats actually consistently fit the same across the board much better than New Era. 

 

Maybe its because I'm approaching my 30s, but I've started liking the 39/30s/FlexFits more and more, which is somewhere between a dad hat and a fitted. They feel like a nice age appropriate compromise where they still have the somewhat rigid structure of a fitted with the comfort and fit of a dad hat. 

I have several Reebok caps from when they were doing the NFL, and their fitteds were much more consistent than New Era's.  If I still wore fitteds regularly, yeah, I'd only go with a 5950 if I could try it on in store.  I find myself preferring flexfits these days, though, 3930s seem to be far more consistent in quality than 5950s, and as far as caps I can get blank, Pacific Headwear's flexfits compare very favorably to New Era.

[gsn93]

The fisherman Islanders jerseys are the classic case of working better as being apart of the third jersey program. They probably would have been a nice curious footnote in history and fit in somewhere between the Wild Wing jersey and the Penguins third. The jersey and logos were not the problem but the fact that they replaced their long-standing set.

 

6 hours ago, Ridleylash said:

I'd say it'd be more along the lines of the Storm or Pooh Bear where people want it as an alternate because of the meme value.

 

I'm probably on a island all by myself on this one, but the storm Lightning jersey is the best jersey they ever had. One of my favorites from back in the day. Wouldn't want it as a full time home and road set though, but it was nice as a every-once-in-while way.

[IceCap]

17 hours ago, DTConcepts said:

 

$20 says that in an alternate universe where the Islanders didn't have the most dominant dynasty in hockey history, the fisherman jerseys would be looked back at just as fondly as the Caps' screaming eagle jerseys, the Mighty Ducks' inaugural jerseys, or the Coyotes' Kachina jerseys. Each of those designs are recognized as some of the best in NHL history, and they each do something outlandish and/or entirely new in the confines of jersey design.

Do Gorton's Fish Sticks not exist in this alternate timeline? 

 

Also- you're forgetting one thing. The stupid wavy name and numbers that conformed to the stupid wavy stripes. That was a step too far even by whacky 90s design, and worse than anything any of the other sweaters you listed included.  

 

9 hours ago, gsn93 said:

I'm probably on a island all by myself on this one, but the storm Lightning jersey is the best jersey they ever had.

It gets points in my book for being a blue-based Lightning sweater that uses the classic logo. It and last year's Reverse Retro. 

It's shocking the team never committed to that basic look. 

[Morgan33]

50 minutes ago, IceCap said:

It gets points in my book for being a blue-based Lightning sweater that uses the classic logo. It and last year's Reverse Retro. 

It's shocking the team never committed to that basic look. 

 

The Lightning's Reverse Retro?  Perfection.  It's exactly what the team should have done in 2007 with a matching road.  No further changes would have been necessary ever again.

[habsfan1]

4 hours ago, IceCap said:

Also- you're forgetting one thing. The stupid wavy name and numbers that conformed to the stupid wavy stripes. That was a step too far even by whacky 90s design, and worse than anything any of the other sweaters you listed included. 

 

You basically needed 2 sets of back numbers: one for the wavy bottom on the left and one for the right beside it where the wave stripe is a bit higher. More work for the sewing team who applied numbers on the backs of jerseys, they have to be careful not to get confused.

[TBGKon]

14 hours ago, gsn93 said:

I'm probably on a island all by myself on this one, but the storm Lightning jersey is the best jersey they ever had. One of my favorites from back in the day. Wouldn't want it as a full time home and road set though, but it was nice as a every-once-in-while way.

Best jersey ever, no. 

 

Best alternate they've had, yes.  I would give anything to see a modern version of the storm alternate.

[IceCap]

23 minutes ago, TBGKon said:

I would give anything to see a modern version of the storm alternate.

I think that was the intent behind their black "gradient" sweaters, but they really missed the mark. G-d those are awful. 

 

 

 

On 12/9/2021 at 12:41 AM, AFirestormToPurify said:

Hmm. I dunno, I think they just jumped on the stealth bandwagon. Or possibly a Color Rush attempt to gain the approval of NFL/Cowboys fans, which was even more obvious with the mono white RR. But I'm curious, I'd like hear your opinion on that

I don't think the NFL has anything to do with it. I think the all white RR look was just going for something sleek and futuristic. That seems to be the team's direction, branding wise. 

 

The reason I think the neon green alternate is a meme jersey is because...well...the Stars have embraced being a meme franchise. It started with internet snark invading their jumbotron graphics. And evolved into them being one of the first pro teams to go full internet humour/meme culture on social media. 

 

Factor in that neon green is just the sort of dumb teenagers love and I'm convinced that the entire black/neon green sweater was an attempt to get something that would resonate in the meme-o-sphere.