Tuesday, July 24, 2007

New Lightning Logo Concept Design

I just came across this fan-created concept logo for the Tampa Bay Lightning while surfing the web.



It makes use of the skyline and a palm tree, which I like, only the Bolts can't do it because stinkin' Panther fans would cry foul and say it was stolen. (Though if you guys recall, you did steal the broken stick thing from the Sharks. Don't know if you remember that bit.)

Anyway, kudos for the sharp work by the artist, but it's not my favorite because of the wordmark in it, but I could see it as a shoulder patch or on a hat or something. What do you think?

No Islanders Jerseys Until September

Today we've got news on the New York Islanders and when we can expect to see a new uniform for them. You might remember about a month ago I posted what appeared to be a cell phone photo of the new Isles unis. Only time will tell whether those are legitimate designs. One would hope they aren't though. They were quite awful to look at.

Newsday's Isles beat writer Greg Logan posted some news regarding the team's new Reebok duds.

Many of you keep asking about the unveiling of the Islanders’ new jerseys. Three teams were permitted to display theirs at the recent NHL draft, but the rest of the league will put them on for the first time in September. Reebok won’t be able to deliver a full complement of uniforms until then. The exact date is uncertain, but the Islanders anticipate unveiling their jersey either just before they leave for training camp on Sept. 13 or just after they return on Sept. 22.

You can read his full post here.

I'm trying to keep my bases covered league-wide so if you guys notice I'm blatantly leaving any teams out, let me know. Though I'm trying to post as much information as I can as I find it. That said, if you've seen any uniform or logo news worth posting, please tell me about it. I'd be happy to spread the word.

Tournament Analysis: Six Weeks

This has been a big day what with the unveiling of the new San Jose Sharks logo. As a reminder, that new logo will take effect in the tournament beginning with the Sharks' next match which is August 9. Now, with things winding down it's time for an update on where we are in the tourney.

The Late Leaders

With just one game to play in the final two weeks of the tournament, the Devils have a commanding lead over the league with 32 points. The Avalanche follow with 26, just ahead of the Hurricanes with 25. The Wild and Panthers each have 23 points followed by the Predators with 20. The top 8 rounds out with the Flames and Canadiens who currently sit with 18 poins. Most notably are the top 3 teams, each of who have swept 7 matches — that's exactly half of all their games in the tournament. These are impressive logos. Keep them in mind next time you're designing a logo for your fantasy hockey team. What's weird is how many of those teams use red as their primary color. Hmmm.

If The Playoffs Were Tomorrow...
We're winding down in the competition here so you can almost tell who will likely be in the Championship Tournament. If you need a refresher on how to determine who moves on to the next tournament, read this.

EAST

The Flyers and Devils are still at the top of the Atlantic Division while the Canadiens and Senators continue to ride the top of the Northeast. The Hurricanes and Panthers still sit atop the Southeast as well, so the East is still looking pretty much the same as it did two weeks ago. As for the wild card spot, the Thrashers have a 5-point hold on that with 17 points. So if the playoffs began tomorrow, the following teams would move on from the Eastern Conference: the Flyers, Devils, Canadiens, Senators, Hurricanes, Panthers, and Thrashers.

WEST

The Predators and Blue Jackets are leading the Central Division. High atop the Northwest are the Avalanche and Wild. And leading the Pacific Division are the Kings and Sharks, each with 17 points. The top 2 teams in each division of the West have changed since two weeks ago, in stark comparison with the East. Claiming the wild card spot with 18 points would be the Flames. The Blue Jackets and Kings have knocked the Blues and Stars out of contention since two weeks ago. If the playoffs started tomorrow, the following Western Conference teams would be eligible: the Predators, Blue Jackets, Avalanche, Wild, Kings, Sharks, and Flames.

But of course, it's not over until it's over. This is a marathon tournament and there is still a ways to go. But if you're team hasn't made a good showing by now, the chances of catching up are slim with only a handful of matches remaining.

The Good, The Bad...


Shockingly, at this stage of the tournament, there are still two teams who have yet to lose a match. The Hurricanes and Wild remain undefeated and could theoretically finish their schedule that way. That's how you know a good logo — when none of the others can beat it. Not surprisingly, none of the teams remain winless at this point. But there are a handful who have won only once. The Islanders, Maple Leafs, Oilers and Ducks each have just a single tally in the W column. Shame about that.

...And The Ugly

This tournament awards points to teams even when they lose a match. If you lose 2-1, you still get that one point. But if you lose 3-0, you obviously get no points. The Ducks still have the league's worst logo, despite having picked up three points in the last two weeks. The Penguins and Maple Leafs aren't doing much better sitting with just 6 points after 9 and 11 matches, respectively. The Oilers and Islanders are the only other teams who haven't broke double-digits in points. The Oilers have 8 and the Islanders have 9, each in 11 matches. Those logos are pretty basically bottom-of-the-barrel at this point with very bad odds of nabbing a playoff spot. Maybe a redesign will give them a better chance next time around.

Late Summary
The Southeast and Central Divisions appear to be the strongest, as they're the only two in which all five teams have hit double-digits in points. I'd almost be willing to bet on a Hurricanes vs. Wild final if the playoff tournament worked that way. I really am led to wonder whether whther it will come down to this two based on their performance so far.

What we'll have to wait on, though, is how these teams perform against the opposing conference. It's an exciting time right now. It almost reminds me of the feeling I get in March when the real season is winding down. I can't wait for the playoffs!

I'm thrilled to report that over the past several days, traffic here on this blog has skyrocketed in a way I never would've imagined. Just a few weeks ago I was averaging 60, maybe 70 hits a day. But late last week, some of you who've visited the site posted links on several hockey message boards around cyberspace. I hit a record of 758 hits in one day last week. Then just yesterday, an all-time high was reached at 2,716. Can you imagine?

Since Friday, the NHL Tournament of Logos has been averaging 2,000 hits a day thanks in large part to the news I've been keeping up with regarding new logos (Sharks) and uniforms as the league makes the switch to the Rbk EDGE jerseys this fall. Regardless of why you're visiting, I'd just like to thank everyone who's stopped by. And if there's anything you think I can do to improve the blog, please don't hesitate to let me know.

What's To Come?
I posted a poll in the sidebar asking if visitors to the blog would be interested in participating in the next cycle of the tournament. I recently surpassed my goal of getting 100 votes, more than 90 of which answered "yes." So when this tournament ends, stick around if you want to be involved in decided the best of the NHL's logos. Because after all, who really cares about my opinion anyway? It should be decided by you all!

Sharks Unveil New Logo!

It's here and it's real. The leak proved right. This is the new logo of the San Jose Sharks.



For my money, it's a huge improvement on a good logo that needed a little help. While I don't love the hockey stick in the logo, I understand the team didn't want to completely revamp their image, merely improve upon what they already had. At the press conference, the Sharks only unveiled the new logo set, no uniforms have been shown at this point.



The club also unveiled a bunch of secondary marks including the new shoulder patch and shield, seen above. All of these logos and more can be seen on the the Sharks new web site.



We've had a few weeks to ponder it thanks to the leak, but now that it's official, what are your thoughts? Did the Sharks make the right choice by updating what they had? Or would they have been better off revamping the look altogether? Comment below.

Penguins vs Panthers


vs
PENGUINS
PANTHERS
2-6
8-1


The Aesthetics
The Panthers logo looks downright scary, let's just be clear on that. The Penguins logo makes an attempt at looking mean but it's feeble at best. I don't think it should be carrying a hockey stick and wearing old-fashioned gloves. I also think the secondary logo would be an improvement, which it was for a time until the Pens returned to this one.
Panthers

The Nickname
A Panther could eat a Penguin for lunch without even trying that hard.
Panthers

The Analysis
Both logos depict their namesake well without bothering to indicate the home town. It's not necessary for the Panthers, but it wouldn't hurt the Penguins. Now if the penguin could just put that annoying stick down we'd all be better off. The Panthers logo engages in quite a bit of minutia and it would be nice if they had a simpler version of the cat. Failing that, it's still a winner. The Panthers logo should be around for a long time. It's become a great hockey symbol in its 14 years.
Panthers


WINNER
3-0

 

Avalanche vs Blues


vs
AVALANCHE
BLUES
8-1
4-6


The Aesthetics
It's been hard for any team to beat the Avalanche in this category but the Blues logo serves as stiff competition. I'm a fan of the two-toned blue in the Blues logo but with that subtle puck at the end of the Avalanche logo, I'm tempted to lean more in that direction. It's a tough call but it's gotta be made.
Avalanche

The Nickname
Not only would a Blues musician be inconsequential to an Avalanche, but you could argue that a trumpet if played loud enough could cause one. You'd have to be in a Wile E. Coyote/Road Runner cartoon, but you could.
Avalanche

The Analysis
I'm still none the wiser as to the reason for a wing being attached to a blue musical note in the Blues logo. I get it in the Flyers logo but I don't get it here. Don't misunderstand, I think it's a great logo but it leaves me with questions which must be asked in this section. I can hardly think of a single complaint or question for the Avs logo. It's that good. What's sad is I don't know how the Blues logo got swept in this match.
Avalanche


WINNER
3-0

 

Devils vs Canadiens


vs
DEVILS
CANADIENS
11-1
7-2


The Aesthetics
With only a single match remaining after today, the Devils have proven to be a real contender among the NHL's best logos. I'm rather impressed, actually. It's difficult to say which logo should get this point. The color schemes are very appropriate to each and feature cool, subtle letters. The reason I'm going with the Devils logo is that its subtle letters actually form the devil. That's the makings of a good logo.
Devils

The Nickname
We've discussed what an evil bastard the Devil is. Even Canadiens aren't exempt from the wrath of his wretchedness.
Devils

The Analysis
While it could be open to discussion as to which logo really earned this point, I'm going to say the Canadiens logo deserves it. The mysterious "H" inside the "C" was finally revealed recently by a reader. I was hoping to save it for the Canadiens' last match of the tournament, but we can give it up here in number 10. It stands for "Les Habitants," a French message for the fans dating back to the club's early days. Where's the subtle message in the Devils' logo?
Canadiens


WINNER
2-1