2023-24 NHL Jersey Changes

[WSU151]

12 hours ago, nickp91 said:

I'm sure Fanatics threw a ton of money at the NHL, but the league should've gone with a more reputable name in companies like CCM, New Balance (under the Warrior brand), or Nike

 

I would guess that Fanatics put sales data in front of the league that showed them to reputable. 

 

Fanatics sells a ton of replica jerseys, especially WC/Stadium/RR versions. 

 

Nike probably didn’t want to get involved with hockey if it couldn’t make (or put its mark on) replica jerseys (and let’s face it, Swingmans are made with ultra cheap materials these days so there’s no guarantee hockey replica jerseys would be any better (unless you love really thin, single-layer-no-stitches-except-fake-stitches heat-pressed twill))

 

This change seems like a pretty decent opportunity for the  prominent hockey concept guys on here to badger Fanatics for a design job. 

[colinturner95]

1 hour ago, WSU151 said:

 

I would guess that Fanatics put sales data in front of the league that showed them to reputable. 

 

Fanatics sells a ton of replica jerseys, especially WC/Stadium/RR versions. 

 

Nike probably didn’t want to get involved with hockey if it couldn’t make (or put its mark on) replica jerseys (and let’s face it, Swingmans are made with ultra cheap materials these days so there’s no guarantee hockey replica jerseys would be any better (unless you love really thin, single-layer-no-stitches-except-fake-stitches heat-pressed twill))

 

This change seems like a pretty decent opportunity for the  prominent hockey concept guys on here to badger Fanatics for a design job. 

I mean I applied 3 times for a Fanatics job before they finally got sick of seeing my name pop up. 

[WSU151]

6 minutes ago, colinturner95 said:

I mean I applied 3 times for a Fanatics job before they finally got sick of seeing my name pop up. 

 

That was before they had to design on-ice jerseys though!

 

Maybe Fanatics will pull people from adidas, maybe they’ll look for new talent. All I’m saying is this is probably one of the best opportunities to get a foot in the door. 

[colinturner95]

Just now, WSU151 said:

 

That was before they had to design on-ice jerseys though!

they still let me in the door though. for obvious reasons I can't say a lot, and I know there's a lot of dissenting opinion on this move, but I'm at least excited to see the process through. 

[WSU151]

4 minutes ago, colinturner95 said:

they still let me in the door though. for obvious reasons I can't say a lot, and I know there's a lot of dissenting opinion on this move, but I'm at least excited to see the process through. 

 

Excellent! I’m happy for you and can’t wait to see/hear more!

[tigerslionspistonshabs]

Anyone have any inklings as to what the Flyers are doing with their set?

[GriffinM6]

13 hours ago, officeglenn said:

 

Fanatics makes MLB player jerseys and just slaps a Nike logo on them. 

 

https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/35909210/fanatics-replacing-adidas-nhl-official-uniform-partner

 

 

Sure, technically Fanatics makes the MLB jerseys since they bought Majestic, but all of MLB still uses the same Majestic template with the side vents that was introduced ~2016.

[IceCap]

15 hours ago, officeglenn said:

 

Fanatics makes MLB player jerseys and just slaps a Nike logo on them. 

 

https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/35909210/fanatics-replacing-adidas-nhl-official-uniform-partner

 

 

The thing is Fanatics basically bought and inherited Majestic, including their factories. 

I know they're going to be using the Quebec factory for NHL on-ice stuff but they're still going to have to use their own fabrics and, eventually, templates. And unlike with baseball they didn't by a hockey apparel company to acquire that stuff. They're going to have to learn by doing which means mistakes will be made. 

[mcj882000]

In a way, NHL & Fanatics are a perfect match: the least competent jersey manufacturer partnering with the least competent sports league!

[tBBP]

While we're on the topic of hockey jerseys, for any of you who own an adidas-branded versus Fanatics-branded NHL "authentic" jersey (bcuz I know none of them are fully authentic): what is the difference, if any, between the two? I got my hands on some of the Fanatics-branded jerseys (I don't know whether what I was holding was classified as a replica or "authentic", but thin, brittle, and cheap is what I'd call the NOB/number fake-kiss cut/twill treatment); it's been a while since I held an adidas replithentic or any other kind. 

 

Asking for a friend...who drives large five-axle combo vehicles...before he drops another ungodly sum on personalized merchandise...

[tohasbo]

On 3/21/2023 at 7:19 PM, BrySmalls said:

Perhaps the only positive aspect of this situation is that Fanatics may improve the design of the Capitals' jersey, which was inherited from Reebok.

Or may do a complete re-brand as well.  The 2024-25 season will also be the 50th anniversary season for the Capitals and now I HIGHLY doubt a special jersey will be made to honour it.

 

But in the end, a  Capitals re-branding will have to happen at some point.  Whether it be with Ovi chasing the record or not

[flyersfan]

The baseball fanatics thing is a perfect example. I have a jersey from the majestic era, and one from the fanatics era. The majestic one is miles better in quality and it isn’t close. 

[Nordiks_19]

13 hours ago, tohasbo said:

Or may do a complete re-brand as well.  The 2024-25 season will also be the 50th anniversary season for the Capitals and now I HIGHLY doubt a special jersey will be made to honour it.

 

But in the end, a  Capitals re-branding will have to happen at some point.  Whether it be with Ovi chasing the record or not

Pretty sure they'll rebrand after Ovi retires, since they'll want to associate this look with the greatest goal scorer of this generation. The only thing they won't be able to change is that Ovechkin scored his 802nd goal wearing their RR. Otherwise, their current look will forever be associated with Ovechkin, and they'll want you to remember that, no matter how bad it is

[spartacat_12]

14 hours ago, tohasbo said:

But in the end, a  Capitals re-branding will have to happen at some point.  Whether it be with Ovi chasing the record or not

 

Yeah, not a chance they do any sort of rebrand while Ovi is still playing.

[tohasbo]

More than likely that is also the case.  But who the hell knows what will happen.  Didn't think the Flyers would ever retire their iconic look either but here we are.

[logo-maker]

20 hours ago, tBBP said:

While we're on the topic of hockey jerseys, for any of you who own an adidas-branded versus Fanatics-branded NHL "authentic" jersey (bcuz I know none of them are fully authentic): what is the difference, if any, between the two? I got my hands on some of the Fanatics-branded jerseys (I don't know whether what I was holding was classified as a replica or "authentic", but thin, brittle, and cheap is what I'd call the NOB/number fake-kiss cut/twill treatment); it's been a while since I held an adidas replithentic or any other kind. 

 

Asking for a friend...who drives large five-axle combo vehicles...before he drops another ungodly sum on personalized merchandise...

So, looking at the Avs Adidas Climalite "authentic" jersey I have:

 

- All stripes and logos are stitched on the jersey

- The logos are embroidered and the tackle twill is a bit lighter in thickness than my CCM replicas

- The NHL logo on the collar is shiny plastic and glued on (the color part on the front is double thickness to hide the backing for the NHL logo

- Has a double stitched fight strap

- The mesh fabric for the jersey is finer and lighter than my CCM replicas

(FWIW, I bought the jersey on sale ($130 + tax/shipping) before Adidas moved to their more resent fabric change).

 

Hope this helps your friend make the correct decision when looking into purchasing a new jersey .

[spartacat_12]

21 hours ago, tBBP said:

While we're on the topic of hockey jerseys, for any of you who own an adidas-branded versus Fanatics-branded NHL "authentic" jersey (bcuz I know none of them are fully authentic): what is the difference, if any, between the two? I got my hands on some of the Fanatics-branded jerseys (I don't know whether what I was holding was classified as a replica or "authentic", but thin, brittle, and cheap is what I'd call the NOB/number fake-kiss cut/twill treatment); it's been a while since I held an adidas replithentic or any other kind. 

 

Asking for a friend...who drives large five-axle combo vehicles...before he drops another ungodly sum on personalized merchandise...

 

Right now anything that is Fanatics branded is not considered authentic. They'll only handle the replica jerseys until the switchover after next season. There's a good, detailed comparison between the Fanatics replicas, the Adidas retail authentics, and the actual MiC game-worn authentics here:

 

https://libertybelljerseys.com/comparisons/adidas-mic-v-retail-v-fanatics

[M4One]

21 hours ago, tohasbo said:

Or may do a complete re-brand as well.  The 2024-25 season will also be the 50th anniversary season for the Capitals and now I HIGHLY doubt a special jersey will be made to honour it.

 

But in the end, a  Capitals re-branding will have to happen at some point.  Whether it be with Ovi chasing the record or not

 

They can still do a one-off special anniversary jersey, just not the full rebrand until after Fanatics figures out how their template is going to look.  From the ESPN article, they say the jerseys won't look any different from the Adidas jerseys now for a couple of years, just maybe with different fabrics.  

[tp49]

On 3/22/2023 at 5:49 PM, tBBP said:

While we're on the topic of hockey jerseys, for any of you who own an adidas-branded versus Fanatics-branded NHL "authentic" jersey (bcuz I know none of them are fully authentic): what is the difference, if any, between the two? I got my hands on some of the Fanatics-branded jerseys (I don't know whether what I was holding was classified as a replica or "authentic", but thin, brittle, and cheap is what I'd call the NOB/number fake-kiss cut/twill treatment); it's been a while since I held an adidas replithentic or any other kind. 

 

Asking for a friend...who drives large five-axle combo vehicles...before he drops another ungodly sum on personalized merchandise...

If your "friend" wants to go a slightly different route what he could do is purchase blank Adidas "authentic" jerseys from whatever source he chooses, then send that jersey off to the place that customizes them for the team.  That's what I find myself doing, and outside of one jersey, I've had no problems and some very quick turnarounds (under two weeks).

[The_Admiral]

On 3/22/2023 at 11:25 AM, IceCap said:

The thing is Fanatics basically bought and inherited Majestic, including their factories. 

I know they're going to be using the Quebec factory for NHL on-ice stuff but they're still going to have to use their own fabrics and, eventually, templates. And unlike with baseball they didn't by a hockey apparel company to acquire that stuff. They're going to have to learn by doing which means mistakes will be made. 

 

Quebec, good place to grow the garment.