Caps to wear red white and blue

[MEANS]

if you like the old red/white/blue jerseys/logos you'll love the updates.

[Wthrw]

I think "confirmed" is a little strong here; this is just the WaPo beat reporter saying the same thing he's been saying for a while, whenever anyone asks: "the Capitals haven't officially confirmed anything yet, but we're all pretty sure they'll be switching back to red, white, and blue next season." I suppose he might have some secret source that he doesn't want to divulge, but he's not really offering any new information.

And I agree with many of the above thoughts on their current uniforms. Diagonal stripes are very mid-nineties. The font is ugly, and hard to read on television. The dome logo has way too many elements (dome, hockey sticks, puck, shooting stars, AND a giant wordmark). The bronze on the dark jerseys is sharp, but it's a completely different color from the "bronze" on the white jerseys. And red, white, and blue might be somewhat overdone, but black jerseys with black pants is even more overdone.

[BallWonk]

The blue jersey was good. The numbering's always been bad. The black jersey has a horrible color balance. And that dome logo is just plain over-busy and putrid.

And please, please, please, do not return to the clown suits.

Too right. I could have done with much less black, but the thing is that you can pretty much tell whether someone actually spends much time in or in fact has any firsthand knowledge of Washington, DC, by their reaction to the current Caps color scheme. People who don't recognize blue and goldish as natural Washington colors are generally speaking known as "tourists." Now, not everyone who lives here will like the color scheme, but there's an important difference between saying that you don't think a color scheme is pretty and saying that it's not appropriate for a given city.

Still, as ugly as the dome logo is when stuck on a shirt (I'd never seen a logo before that is both too busy and too static to use on a jersey) and as poor as the lettering and contrast issues are on two of the jerseys, the worst aspects of the current uniform set are far superior to anything the Caps have ever worn before. The old sweaters were clownish, baroque, and generic in every way. Possibly the worst logo in the history of professional sports to boot. I mean, really, lettering that says "Capilals"?

[Roger Clemente]

I mourn the fact that we are about to lose the greatest set of jerseys the NHL ever had...period.

Hopefully the logo will actually use CAPITAL letters.

--Roger "Time?" Clemente.

[Shroinke]

I really can't stomach the current look. I'm probably one of the few who really like their original look (not the white shorts, though) and wouldn't mind seeing something reflecting this come back.

I'm not a caps fan, but I always thought those old uniforms were great......and really, how can a team called the Washington Capitals not be red, white, and blue?? I never understood the change to the current color scheme.....

The Sixers are just realizing the point you're making.

[dutyfree]

Possibly the worst logo in the history of professional sports to boot.

Well, I appreciate your passion. But THE worst logo in history? I'm flabbergasted.

[agentrygraphics]

<< Possibly the worst logo in the history of professional sports to boot. >>

Perhaps you haven't seen an NIFL logo lately...?

[DG_ThenNowForever]

<< Possibly the worst logo in the history of professional sports to boot. >>

Perhaps you haven't seen an NIFL logo lately...?

He clearly said "professional."

I was never in love with them, but I always thought the eagle Caps jerseys were pretty handsome. I like the diagonal stripe and the flying eagle and how it looked when the players moved on the ice. The dome logo is cute, I guess, but more appropriate for letterhead and envelopes than an actual sports jersey.

And I'll be sad to see the blue, bronze and black go. I think the color sets of the Caps and Washington Wizards are unique. A simple change to red, white and blue -- although obvious -- would take a bit away from the identity of the franchise. In my opinion, their original set was just embarrassing.

[BallWonk]

Possibly the worst logo in the history of professional sports to boot.

Well, I appreciate your passion. But THE worst logo in history? I'm flabbergasted.

As I'm sure you know, I never, ever overstate myself for dramatic effect. Plus I said "possibly."

Still, the old Caps lettering was remarkably bad. Historically bad. It's the very rare professional logo for which "amateurish" would be an improvement. Get 100 random fans to draw a new logo by hand, choose from among the selections at random, and the result would be better than the old caps logo every time.

[hrivnak]

Well, it was drawn by an amateur. I believe the jerseys were designed by the owner's wife...

[JQK]

The blue jersey was good. The numbering's always been bad. The black jersey has a horrible color balance. And that dome logo is just plain over-busy and putrid.

The Dome logo was the only thing about the sets worth a damn thing...

These are your opinions my friend. Not facts. We're entitled to ours as well, respect that. Different strokes for different folks.

Ummm... yes. No where did i say the SS was coming to hunt you down because you thought differently about the Capitals uniforms. I'm just stating my opinion. I like Red White and Blue, their current uniforms suck noodles, and the Dome logo is the only redeeming aspect of their current design.

That's all. Calm down, Chico.

[dutyfree]

As I'm sure you know, I never, ever overstate myself for dramatic effect. Plus I said "possibly."

Still, the old Caps lettering was remarkably bad. Historically bad. It's the very rare professional logo for which "amateurish" would be an improvement. Get 100 random fans to draw a new logo by hand, choose from among the selections at random, and the result would be better than the old caps logo every time.

I've been know to make the occasional overstatment, too, brother.

I don't know. I know it's not terribly inspired, but I just don't see it as being that hideous. I think that the Caps were merely mimmicking their NBA brethern, the Bullets (I can't remember if they were the Capital Bullets or Baltimore Bullets or Washington Bullets at the time...anyway). It very much reflects the period (around '75, I think) and it is clean and simple and with the stick as a T, just odd enough to take notice of. I kind of like it.

The one-legged eagle spiraling downward, to me, looks awkward.

[ZapRowsdower8]

During tonight's Pens/Caps game the Pittsburgh TV announce team said that, "from what they hear" the Caps will be switching back to red, white, and blue. Take it for what its worth.

I, for one, will be happy to see the current unis gone. Don't get me wrong, I love the blue and bronze, just never thought the jerseys looked right. I will agree with some of the other posts when I say, it doesn't matter so much as to what colors the Caps go with, they just need to find a decent logo.

[Chazberg]

I never noticed that they threw in those 2 little blue notches for the cross on the "T", my God is that bad. Why the hell wouldn't they just make the "L" the stick?? I'm starting to agree with the guy who said it's the worst pro logo there is...

[leopard88]

I think that the Caps were merely mimmicking their NBA brethern, the Bullets (I can't remember if they were the Capital Bullets or Baltimore Bullets or Washington Bullets at the time...anyway).

I don't know how I failed to make that connection over all those years.

Anyway, I always liked the Caps' old look and greatly prefer it to the current look. Put me in the camp that finds the Capitol Dome logo to be the only redeeming element of the current look.

[BallWonk]

I don't know. I know it's not terribly inspired, but I just don't see it as being that hideous. I think that the Caps were merely mimmicking their NBA brethern, the Bullets (I can't remember if they were the Capital Bullets or Baltimore Bullets or Washington Bullets at the time...anyway). It very much reflects the period (around '75, I think) and it is clean and simple and with the stick as a T, just odd enough to take notice of. I kind of like it.

The one-legged eagle spiraling downward, to me, looks awkward.

Does anyone remember when generic (or store-brand) products at the grocery store used to come in plain white or yellow boxes with black stencil lettering, like "Salt" or "Puffed Rice Cereal"? Late '70s, early '80s. About the same time as the old Caps logo looks like it was designed, except that the god-awful generic product packaging was better. At least they spelled the words "Puffed Rice Cereal" correctly.

You can add all the tiny blue wings in the world to that bright red stick and it won't change the fact that it's shaped like the letter "L". Letters are shapes. If a you have one tall vertical line connected to a shorter horizontal line that extends along the bottom to the right, that. Is. The. Letter. L. If your team is called the "Capitals" but your logo says "CapiLals", then that is a breathtakingly bad logo design.

(Spending some time looking at it now, what it really looks like is an Atari game cartridge label, what with that little low-res rectangle of a puck. Frogger, Dig-Dug, and Capilals Hockey!)

[IceCap]

It seems like everyone assumes that if the Capitals go back to red, white, and blue then the new uniforms will look like, or be based off of, the garish 70's set with the generic logo.

I'll be the first to agree that the red, white, and blue uniforms used by the Caps from 1974 to 1995 were garish, and the logo that went with them was generic. Under no circumstance should the original Capitals uniforms/logo be the bases for any Capitals re-design.

Still, that doesn't mean the Capitals can't sport a red, white, and blue uniform that isn't garish.

[Antman28]

Ballwonk, I agree but just to play devil's advocate, the letters in the old Capitals logo are lowercase. While the hockey stick does look like an uppercase "L" its shape (with the wings) also resembles a lowercase "t" with a curved bottom as shown in the Bullets logo (and the board's font for that matter).

[dutyfree]

Ballwonk, I agree but just to play devil's advocate, the letters in the old Capitals logo are lowercase. While the hockey stick does look like an uppercase "L" its shape (with the wings) also resembles a lowercase "t" with a curved bottom as shown in the Bullets logo (and the board's font for that matter).

Ballwonk, we'll just agree to disagree. I'm not suggesting it is a logo for the ages, or that they should go back to it, I'm just saying for a wordmark-type logo, it looks okay. That particular font has always appealed to me.

[BB61]

The old logo is and was definately dated. It's a pure child of the 70's, and for what it was, it wasn't bad. I would not have a problem seeing it as a throwback alternate like the Canucks have with their stick-C jerseys, but it just wouldn't work as an full time logo.

While I like the Eagle and the Dome, I was never in favor of having the dome as a primary crest, and I was never a fan of the black jerseys. I like the Eagle for a primary crest and the Dome for a shoulder logo.

I hate to pigeonhole a city into specific colors, but when you have a team such as "Washington Capitals", I think of red, white, and blue. It'd be neat to see what they come up with, and hoping that it's something new.