Tampa Bay Lightning Uniform Question

[gimmick]

Like a lot of people, I've never been a big fan of the Lightning's current main uniform set.

While I like a classic looking uniform as much as anyone, I think their current set goes beyond classic to just bland.

It's hard to argue with the success they've had in these uniforms, but just from an aesthetic point of view, they could look so much better.

I have my preferences, but I'd like to hear what other uniform "enthusiasts" would like to see them wear (I'm only talking about their main home and road set - not alts)

I'd particularly like to hear what Lightning fans prefer.

[TBGKon]

As a Lightning fan, I'm fine with the jerseys as is but they can be tweaked slightly in my mind to be even better.  I think a small amount of black striping could be added to the existing striping.  Maybe a black stripe about 1/4 of the width of the current stripes on top and bottom would be a good add.  I also feel black pants for both home and road would also tie in well to these new stripes.

[dont care]

Color swap the black and blue on the inaugural uniforms and put the 07 logo on it and you have the perfect lightning uniform.

[VikWings]

Just switching to black pants and helmets would go a long way.

[Morgan33]

Hated them when they were released in 2011, hate them even more now.  Everything that gave their previous uniforms character was scrubbed away so they could they could jump on the retro bandwagon.  Losing black and metallic silver was as unforgivable as the laughably bland logos.

The perfect Lightning identity is right here...

[CaliforniaGlowin]

Change to midnight blue and silver and stop with the damn Toronto colors.

[ManillaToad]

I think they look better now than they ever have

[Sport]

I said this very recently, but I'll say it again. They're the LIGHTNING, they should be the Chargers of the NHL, but have always opted instead for boring straight stripes (outside of the pants). I don't know why they're afraid to do something like that. Put some damn lightning bolts on the jerseys! Get nuts and use a bright color like yellow to offset the dark black and blue color scheme! It's not hard. 

[BBTV]

If ever there was a team that should be using volt. 

[Morgan33]

The Lightning's original colour scheme was actually a perfect representation for that namesake*
 

*Even if I aesthetically prefer the Reverse Retro.



- Black base to represent a stormy sky.
- White used as a secondary to represent the Lightning itself.
- Blue used sparingly to to represent highlights.

- Metallic Silver that "flashes" under the right light.

The current look has none of that and could represent any generic identity trying to look like the Leafs.

[AFirestormToPurify]

On 12/20/2021 at 11:11 PM, CaliforniaGlowin said:

Change to Hawaiian/electric/bright/Detroit Lions blue and silver and stop with the damn Toronto colors.

Agreed

 

21 hours ago, Sport said:

I said this very recently, but I'll say it again. They're the LIGHTNING, they should be the Chargers of the NHL, but have always opted instead for boring straight stripes (outside of the pants). I don't know why they're afraid to do something like that. Put some damn lightning bolts on the jerseys! Get nuts and use a bright color like yellow to offset the dark black and blue color scheme! It's not hard. 

What works in football wouldn't necessarily work in hockey (see white pants), lightning bolt stripes would look incredibly cheesy and gimmicky on a hockey jersey. Between the logo on the chest, shoulder logos and the two lightning bolts on the pants, they have more than enough (5!) lightning bolts, anything more than that and they'll just look like the Power Rangers or those corny Chevy thunder Nascar shirts from the 90s

 

I personally think they should just go back to their original black, Hawaiian blue and silver jerseys with minor adjustments (logo, font, stripe thickness, colour priority, it's a good uniform but it could be better). Or just promote the RR (but again, in HAWAIIAN BLUE, we already have more than enough dark royal teams in this league) and make a matching road jersey. I could also live with their current uniforms but with black gear at the very least, that would make them different enough from the Leafs. No more intrasquad scrimmage vibes when they play each other

[CaliforniaGlowin]

Yeah Lions colors would work too.

[Sport]

2 hours ago, AFirestormToPurify said:

 

What works in football wouldn't necessarily work in hockey (see white pants),

 

 

Yeah, but what works for the Chargers would absolutely work for the Lightning (see the awesome pants the Lightning have worn since day one). 

 

2 hours ago, AFirestormToPurify said:

lightning bolt stripes would look incredibly cheesy and gimmicky on a hockey jersey.

 

 

Only if you're afraid of looking awesome. 

 

[AFirestormToPurify]

6 minutes ago, Sport said:

 

Yeah, but what works for the Chargers would absolutely work for the Lightning (see the awesome pants the Lightning have worn since day one). 

 

 

Only if you're afraid of looking awesome. 

 

I would usually agree with you that a 90s expansion team should look like one and not go all in with faux retro uniforms but the bolts on the pants are just the right amount of 90s cheese imo

I can't see how they could pull off lightning bolt stripes on their jerseys without looking like a beer league or semi-pro team. If you have any concepts to share of what you had in mind, I'd be glad to be proven wrong lol

[TBGKon]

The lightning bolt on the pants won't go anywhere.  When they rebranded to the current design, it was originally intended to be without the bolt on the pants.  Here's a pic from the release event, note Stamkos' pants. (note the lack of black outlines on numbering too)

 

 

And this is what they went to after fan backlash

 

[spartacat_12]

On 12/20/2021 at 9:51 PM, Morgan33 said:

Hated them when they were released in 2011, hate them even more now.  Everything that gave their previous uniforms character was scrubbed away so they could they could jump on the retro bandwagon.  Losing black and metallic silver was as unforgivable as the laughably bland logos.

The perfect Lightning identity is right here...

 

This is close to perfect, but I would make the Florida map shoulder patch the primary logo. The mis-matching fonts on the original have not aged very well. 

[logo-maker]

16 minutes ago, TBGKon said:

The lightning bolt on the pants won't go anywhere.  When they rebranded to the current design, it was originally intended to be without the bolt on the pants.  Here's a pic from the release event, note Stamkos' pants. (note the lack of black outlines on numbering too)

 

 

And this is what they went to after fan backlash

 

 

They also added a black (and white) outline around the numbers.

[gosioux76]

This is a really interesting discussion, because were the Toronto Maple Leafs not a thing, I think this Lightning set would be heralded as among the best in the NHL.

 

The Lightning logo is significantly better than the original. And it's a strong enough mark to carry a uniform without needing a lot of additional adornments. The uniform is beautiful in its simplicity. The bolt on the pants gives it a subtle hit of character without coming off as a novelty.

 

Its only issue is that it looks almost identical to a team that's been around for nearly a century. 

 

To me, the solution comes down to colors, but even that could get complicated. It could do more with black, but then you begin to muddy up the simplicity of the uniform. Some people have suggested a lighter shade of blue, which could work, though it could tread onto Nordiques territory (should the NHL ever let Quebec's dreams come true.) 

 

Anyway, it's a vexing challenge for sure. 

[Ridleylash]

The easy solution to me is to just push the team back to being black/blue/white instead of blue/white/black; Tampa's problem is they overcorrected and went too simple after the Edge set, and the uniforms suffered for it. Add in heavily minimizing the use of their distinctive color in favor of the blue and white of one of the most well-established looks in the NHL and it's a uniform design that just kinda feels a little bleh.

 

Lightening the blue back to the original shade and going for a colored hem and cuffs instead of just the one stripe would make the jerseys immediately a bit more visually interesting and distance themselves more from the Red Wings/Leafs comparisons. Could go even further and try a much louder shade, closer to an electric blue.