Toronto Maple Leafs concept

[IceCap]

Alright, so that topic by mikerson in the Sports Logos forum got me thinking about the Toronto Maple Leafs and their need for a new logo, and to be honest new uniforms as well.

The current Ballard leaf just seems to sterile to me. It's to blocky, stretches what can be considered a "maple leaf" design wise, and just seems to abstract and modern for a team with as much history as the Leafs have. The Kabel Bold font has the same problem. I just don't see it as the type of font that a team with as much tradition as the maple leafs would use. That, and it just seems dated.

So I replaced it with a leaf I've used in previous Leafs concepts. The Ballard leaf does have one thing going for it, it's an iconic one colour on one mark, much like the Indianapolis Colts horseshoe. This is one reason I choose this particular leaf over the more classic design others prefer. It has more character, and more of a "classic" look, while still being a one colour-on-one iconic logo. The text was the same used in the '67 leaf mark.

Speaking of the '67 Leafs, I opted to use their jersey design as the basis for the uniforms here. Yes, it does call back to the last time the team won the Stanley Cup, but aesthetics also played a part in the choice. The classic Leafs sock striping pattern of three stripes isn't going anywhere. It's an iconic part of the Leafs' look. I did, however, want to achieve a level of consistency, so the classic two stripe pattern the Leafs have traditionally used on their jerseys were replaced by the '67 pattern, which matched the traditional sock design.

I opted not to go for an alternate for a simple reason. I wanted to create an iconic look, something that could possibly last for years to come. I saw no need to dilute the brand I had come up with by using the 60's throwback or a green St. Pats inspired sweater.

This design, I feel, was designed in a way that a throwback would not be necessary. It's meant to be simple and classic on its own, representing a new tradition being built on the legacies of former Leafs teams.

So that's my Toronto Maple Leafs concept, and some background behind it. As always, C&C is most welcome.

[STL FANATIC]

Obviously there's not a lot of creativity points to be handed out, but nonetheless you've put together a good looking set with history, and one that finally is consistent throughout the set. I like it alot.

The one qualm? Phoenix essentially wears the jersey in brick (though they dropped the torso stripes). But I think I could get over that given the Leafs history with the pattern.

[MikePho3niX]

Reminds me of a Toronto Marlies Set that i made up!

[sparkychewbarky]

I love it Cap.

The logo's a definite improvement.

I might lose the waist stripes on the white sweater;

And I'm not a big fan of white collars...They get real dirty-looking real quick.

(Oh God, I'm soundin' like my mother.)

But overall, it looks right-on. The Leafs should see these.

[IceCap]

Obviously there's not a lot of creativity points to be handed out, but nonetheless you've put together a good looking set with history, and one that finally is consistent throughout the set. I like it alot.

The one qualm? Phoenix essentially wears the jersey in brick (though they dropped the torso stripes). But I think I could get over that given the Leafs history with the pattern.

Yeah, I thought about getting rid of the blue yoke on the white sweater to lessen the similarities to Phoenix, but in my ideal world the 'Yotes would be the ones to lose the coloured yoke.

Actually, in retrospect I should have released this along with the rest of my NHL concepts, to be honest. You're right, creatively speaking it doesn't amount to much, and seeing it alongside some other concepts, including a white shouldered Phoenix might have helped it. Eh, oh well.

I love it Cap.

The logo's a definite improvement.

I might lose the waist stripes on the white sweater;

And I'm not a big fan of white collars...They get real dirty-looking real quick.

(Oh God, I'm soundin' like my mother.)

But overall, it looks right-on. The Leafs should see these.

Yeah, I went with the white collar to reference the '67 look, but you do bring up a good point about practicality....I'll see how it looks in blue.

Reminds me of a Toronto Marlies Set that i made up!

Very nice! Great minds think alike!

I really like the two blue and white alternates, though I'm not sure what the black and silver one's about.

One suggestion though, use the Leaf/Crown logo as alternate marks on the home and road set.

[IceCap]

Ok, some changes. I edited the first post to show a very slight revamp. All I did was change the shade of blue (I realized I had made it to dark) and increase the size of the logo a little.

Here's a second version with a white shoulder yoke on the road sweater and a blue collar on the home.

[sparkychewbarky]

Beautiful!

[MikePho3niX]

Obviously there's not a lot of creativity points to be handed out, but nonetheless you've put together a good looking set with history, and one that finally is consistent throughout the set. I like it alot.

The one qualm? Phoenix essentially wears the jersey in brick (though they dropped the torso stripes). But I think I could get over that given the Leafs history with the pattern.

Yeah, I thought about getting rid of the blue yoke on the white sweater to lessen the similarities to Phoenix, but in my ideal world the 'Yotes would be the ones to lose the coloured yoke.

Actually, in retrospect I should have released this along with the rest of my NHL concepts, to be honest. You're right, creatively speaking it doesn't amount to much, and seeing it alongside some other concepts, including a white shouldered Phoenix might have helped it. Eh, oh well.

I love it Cap.

The logo's a definite improvement.

I might lose the waist stripes on the white sweater;

And I'm not a big fan of white collars...They get real dirty-looking real quick.

(Oh God, I'm soundin' like my mother.)

But overall, it looks right-on. The Leafs should see these.

Yeah, I went with the white collar to reference the '67 look, but you do bring up a good point about practicality....I'll see how it looks in blue.

Reminds me of a Toronto Marlies Set that i made up!

Very nice! Great minds think alike!

I really like the two blue and white alternates, though I'm not sure what the black and silver one's about.

One suggestion though, use the Leaf/Crown logo as alternate marks on the home and road set.

I would say so!

the black and silver one Jersey's where in the Talks. I know some people in there and i made up a few concepts for them to a new 3rd they got rid of the DOG logo from last year.

As for the shoulders. League rules is that the affiliate teams logo must be on the shoulder.

[TornadoGTS]

Ok, some changes. I edited the first post to show a very slight revamp. All I did was change the shade of blue (I realized I had made it to dark) and increase the size of the logo a little.

Here's a second version with a white shoulder yoke on the road sweater and a blue collar on the home.

Just a quick heads up, you forgot to change the home uni's collar on the back view to blue.

[IceCap]

Ok, some changes. I edited the first post to show a very slight revamp. All I did was change the shade of blue (I realized I had made it to dark) and increase the size of the logo a little.

Here's a second version with a white shoulder yoke on the road sweater and a blue collar on the home.

Just a quick heads up, you forgot to change the home uni's collar on the back view to blue.

Thanks! It's been fixed.

Beautiful!

Thank you. It's much appreciated.

the black and silver one Jersey's where in the Talks. I know some people in there and i made up a few concepts for them to a new 3rd they got rid of the DOG logo from last year.

As for the shoulders. League rules is that the affiliate teams logo must be on the shoulder.

Black and silver were really considered? Weird. Though anything is better then the dog.

Really? I did not know that. Though now that you mention it, it seems extremely obvious. It's a shame though. The crown/leaf logo was awesome.

[Jer15]

The '67 jersey was my all time fave Leafs jersey, as was that logo.

This look is a great update to that look. As much as i'm usually a fan of shoulder yolks (and I don't know why) I'm glad you steered away from them for this concept as the Leafs really don't have a history of using them BESIDES the jersey they currently use as their throwback alternate.

Great work.

Lord knows at the very least the Leafs need to bring back waist stripes.

[Bigboy1083]

As for the shoulders. League rules is that the affiliate teams logo must be on the shoulder.

I think that the states the they have to wear the affiliate teams logo on one shoulder, because the Manchester Monarchs have the crown on their left shoulder, and their M logo on their right one. Also the I think it's cool but weird that the Hartford Wolf Pack still uses the Rangers Liberty-head logo.

Picture evidence:

[slapshot]

The Lowell Devils do not wear any patches on their jerseys, and I'm pretty sure the Providence Bruins don't have Boston Bruins patches either.

[IceCap]

As for the shoulders. League rules is that the affiliate teams logo must be on the shoulder.

I think that the states the they have to wear the affiliate teams logo on one shoulder, because the Manchester Monarchs have the crown on their left shoulder, and their M logo on their right one. Also the I think it's cool but weird that the Hartford Wolf Pack still uses the Rangers Liberty-head logo.

Picture evidence:

That's pretty cool, considering it goes better with their current look then the standard Rangers shield would.

[aci]

The Lowell Devils do not wear any patches on their jerseys, and I'm pretty sure the Providence Bruins don't have Boston Bruins patches either.

I'm going to theorize that it has to do with the teams sharing a nickname. If someone can't figure out that the Lowell Devils are an affiliate of the New Jersey Devils, they should probably be sterilized for the good of humankind.

Then again, I suppose the same thing could be said about the Manchester Monarchs and the Los Angeles Kings...

[IceCap]

The Lowell Devils do not wear any patches on their jerseys, and I'm pretty sure the Providence Bruins don't have Boston Bruins patches either.

I'm going to theorize that it has to do with the teams sharing a nickname. If someone can't figure out that the Lowell Devils are an affiliate of the New Jersey Devils, they should probably be sterilized for the good of humankind.

Then again, I suppose the same thing could be said about the Manchester Monarchs and the Los Angeles Kings...

Also the Toronto Marlies and Toronto Maple Leafs actually.

EDIT-

N/M, Marlies concept coming later.

[IceCap]

*bump*

[IceCap]

Alright, sorry about that, I had posted a Marlies concept to go along with my Leafs concept, but almost as soon as I had posted it I had thought of ways to improve it, so I took it down. Anyway here's the finished product.....

*NOTE* Yes, I know I used the same names/numbers from my Leafs concept, but the fact is that when RC's site went down I lost my source of NHL name/number fonts, and STAJAN 14 and KABERLE 15 A are all I have in the way of the Leafs' font. Anyway you still get the idea.

The logo returns to Marlies basics, the crown inside of the Leafs' logo. In this case I used the same leaf as I used in my Leafs concept because they're from the same "series." I went with a modified version of the Marlies alternate template here, as I was going for a modern take on the classic looking template I used for the Leafs. I figured that while the Leafs would stay traditional, the Marlies would be able to mix it up.

My version of the Maple Leafs logo serves as the alternate to complete the look.

[MikePho3niX]

i do like this

[mcrosby]

I really like the Marlies, it's a real good mix of new and old. You do really good work with just two colors, blue and white. I've been working on my WCHA redesign/edgification and I find it really hard to make things look good with a limited color palette.