NHL Team Name Origins

[Mac the Knife]

If the Flyers came in the league about a decade later and ran a fan naming contest, there's no doubt in my mind that the population of Philly would have called them the Rocky Balboas.

It could be worse... they could be the Philadelphia Fast Eddie Rendell's...

[Mac the Knife]

"Buffalo Sabres ? When the city of Buffalo was awarded a franchise, the owners, brothers Seymour and Northrup Knox, had a few criteria for what they wanted in a name. They were looking for one that was not in use by any other professional franchise, could be easily used in their marketing campaigns and stayed away from the traditional Buffalo references like Bills, Bison or Braves. A contest was held and from over 13,000 entries, only four offered Sabres. But, the name was exactly what the team wanted."

Yet every primary logo they've EVER had features a ****ing Buffalo in it. What a crock of ****.

Well, except their current one, of course.

[1_ILWT_1]

Pittsburgh Penguins ? Other than a fondness for the cold and ice, the penguin has no real connection to hockey and definitely none to this western Pennsylvania city, other than perhaps the local zoo. But like their cross-state rival in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh was also given an NHL franchise in 1967, and they held a name-the-team contest as well. From that, the offering of Penguins caught the eye of the search committee, mainly because they too, liked how the word sounded after their city?s name.

According to what I read in "Tales From the Pittsburgh Penguins" by Joe Starkey, long time pens writer for the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, the true origin of the name is somewhat unknown, (it was suggested a few times in the name-the-team contest - partly aso because even back then the Civic Arena was called the Igloo) but one of the more well known theories also is that it was suggested by the wife of an investor of the team, who liked the idea of purely black and white jerseys.

yet they came into the league wearing powder blue jerseys...lol

[YELDARBfield]

Nashville Predators ? While Predators was the name selected through fan balloting by an overwhelming two-to-one margin, the real story for this team is their logo, which features a saber-toothed tiger. Back in May of 1971, excavation began on the 28-story First American Center in downtown Nashville. During drilling, workers discovered a cave containing a nine-inch fang and a foreleg bone of a saber-toothed tiger, only the fifth discovery of its kind in North America. As a result, the team has honored a one-time predator that roamed the Nashville region.

OK, one more misconception dispelled. I had been under the impression that the sabretooth remains were found at the construction site of the Predators' arena itself.

Not quite...

The remains of the sabre-toothed tiger (Smilodon fatalis) were "found in August 1971, in a cave during the excavation for the Regions (First American/AmSouth) Center in downtown Nashville." (Wikipedia) This building is the regional headquarters of Regions Bank (formerly First American National Bank and AmSouth Bank.) It was completed in 1974.

The Nashville Arena/Gaylord Entertainment Center/Sommet Center, where the Predators play, was not completed until 1996.

[Brick]

In the name the team contest for the Capitals, the fans' favorite choice was Pandas. Capitals was a much better choice.

[spyboy1]

Contrary to what the article says, I remember that there was a display at the arena in Greensboro, NC that talked about how the team was named the Hurricanes to honor the many residents of the Carolinas who had died in hurricanes, and, more specifically, Hurricane Fran. Hurrican Fran hit the Carolinas the year before the team moved there.

On a side note, I always thought it was funny that the jersey doesn't even have the correct nautical flags on the shoulders.

Not to mention the stupid puck in the logo is upside down, which bugs me to no end.

[Dolphins1972]

Contrary to what the article says, I remember that there was a display at the arena in Greensboro, NC that talked about how the team was named the Hurricanes to honor the many residents of the Carolinas who had died in hurricanes, and, more specifically, Hurricane Fran. Hurrican Fran hit the Carolinas the year before the team moved there.

I tried finding an article to support this online but couldn't. I did call a friend who took the trip down with me to root on our Whalers and when I asked her about the "Hurricanes" name, she gave the same story with no prompting. I may have a picture of the display; I'll keep looking.

On a side note, I always thought it was funny that the jersey doesn't even have the correct nautical flags on the shoulders.

Rob

Here in Charleston,SC ,we changed the name of our baseball team in 93 from the Rainbows to the RiverDogs. A name the team contest was held. Two of the most popular names submitted were the Charleston Hurricanes and the Charleston Hugos. Three years earlier, the eye of hurricane Hugo touched down in Charleston and caused millions in damage. The last thing the people of Charleston want to be reminded of is a hurricane. This has always made me wonder why Carolina chose this as thier nickname.

[Dolphins1972]

Yet every primary logo they've EVER had features a ****ing Buffalo in it. What a crock of ****.

I know...they aren't the "Buffalo Buffaloes". Just what does "Bills" mean? Reference to the old wild-west, cowboy show guy, Buffalo Bill? Shouldn't he be on the helmet? Just kidding.

Love the Sabres throwbacks. While they did have a Buffalo on it, they featured sabres, actual swords! Imagine that.

The story I read somewhere was that back in the 40's,Buffalo had a team in the AAFC called the Bills. They were either sponsored or owned by the Frontier Oil Company which had a cartoon Buffalo Bill Cody as thier mascot. When the city was awarded a franchise in the AFL,they chose to use the name of thier former pro football team. Maybe a Buffalo resident out there can confirm or correct this. On a side note,as a Miami Dolphins fan, I have plenty of reasons to dislike the Bills but I must admit,those throwback unis they wear a couple of times a year look pretty sharp.

[YELDARBfield]

Nashville Predators ? While Predators was the name selected through fan balloting by an overwhelming two-to-one margin, the real story for this team is their logo, which features a saber-toothed tiger. Back in May of 1971, excavation began on the 28-story First American Center in downtown Nashville. During drilling, workers discovered a cave containing a nine-inch fang and a foreleg bone of a saber-toothed tiger, only the fifth discovery of its kind in North America. As a result, the team has honored a one-time predator that roamed the Nashville region.

OK, one more misconception dispelled. I had been under the impression that the sabretooth remains were found at the construction site of the Predators' arena itself.

Not quite...

The remains of the sabre-toothed tiger (Smilodon fatalis) were "found in August 1971, in a cave during the excavation for the Regions (First American/AmSouth) Center in downtown Nashville." (Wikipedia) This building is the regional headquarters of Regions Bank (formerly First American National Bank and AmSouth Bank.) It was completed in 1974.

The Nashville Arena/Gaylord Entertainment Center/Sommet Center, where the Predators play, was not completed until 1996.

If you'll go here, hit "Our Work," then "Sports" on the left, and watch the video under "Original Open (Nashville Predators)," you'll see the Predators first in-arena intro video. The tiger actually comes up from under the then First American Building at the very beginning of the video.