Welcome BNG, and Some Ivan Hlinka Talk

Hey everyone, so today I'm going to keep this short and sweet, as I have a few things to take care of.

First of all, I just want to say thank you to Ricky Mazella of Buffalo Nickel Graphics for featuring this blog on his "Friends of BNG" page.  Ricky is a weekly writer for HockeyJerseyConcepts.com, and runs his own blog featuring his own concepts and concepts from other artists.  He has already reviewed my work on HJC once, and I look forward to seeing him review my work in the future.

I've also included a link to his blog on my "Links" page.  Or, for those time-efficient folk, you click the link here to go to http://rmconcepts.blogspot.ca right now.  He has some really cool designs, so it's worth a look.

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So I've been following the 2013 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament for the past few days, and wondering why I haven't been as excited for the tournament before as I am now.

This is the stepping stone for all of the world's best young hockey players.  Essentially, its the Under-18 World Championships.  The difficulty in large, hockey-mad countries like Canada and Russia are that the talent pool is so spread out, its hard to pick out the best players available.  Hockey Canada scouts are searching the country constantly just trying to find the best players.  The ones who eventually make it are often the stars of tomorrow.  In last year's tournament, the Canadian team had MacKinnon, Drouin, Domi, Fucale, Nurse, and Horvat, just to name a few of the top draft picks from last years draft.  Some of this year's team is expected to be first round picks in next year's draft.

Historically, this is a tournament that Canada has dominated, winning the tournament 17 times in it's 22 year history, including winning the last 5 tournaments.  The tournament is held in the summer, meaning many junior players who are busy on their junior teams during the official World Championship events are available for this tournament, so Canada usually sends a better team to this tournament than the IIHF World U18 Tournament.

The tournament started in 1991, being hosted by Japan for 4 out of its first 5 years (and Mexico the other year).  The tournament only contained 3 or 4 teams (Canada, USA, Russia and Japan), until 1997 when the tournament grew to 8 countries, the amount competing today.  In 1997, the tournament was hosted in Nelson/Castlegar, B.C.  After 1997, the tournament was hosted in Czech Republic and Slovakia every year.

This year, parity between the 8 top nations in hockey has never been more clear.  After the group stage, Canada, Czech Republic, and Switzerland are all tied in their group, with Switzerland being relegated due to goal differential, along with last place Sweden.  Yes, Sweden came in last, even after beating Canada in the round robin.  In the other group, USA, Russia, and Finland all finished within 2 points of each other, with Finland being relegated alongside winless Slovakia.

The semi-finals pit Canada against Russia, and the Czechs against the USA.  The Czechs are coming off a huge 5-2 win over Sweden in a must-win game to advance, while USA is coming off 2 straight wins while losing the tournament opener to Finland in OT.  Canada won the group despite losing to Sweden and being forced to OT by Switzerland, and take on Russia who's only loss so far has been against USA.

Should be interesting to see who comes out on top after the semis, but irregardless it should make for some exciting hockey.  At least there is something to watch this summer.

Time to Celebrate

Sorry for missing my post yesterday.  Don't exactly have a reason, just had things to do and ran out of day to write anything.

Admittedly, part of that was playing NHL13.  I was playing through some of the Live Moments games, including having to play as Nail Yakupov during that gigantic game against L.A. last season.

I watched that game live last year, and absolutely lost it when I seen him sliding on his knees down the ice the way he did.  It was nuts, but I loved it.  This kid was showing the world how passionate he is for the game, and how excited he was to get that goal.  A good celebration shows the pride you have in yourself, and vents off that excitement you have for scoring that goal.  Some celebrations are just tacky, done solely to piss off the other team, but the good one you can tell are purely reactionary, and are driven by the love for the game.

In thinking about that, I decided to make a list of my favourite goal celebrations of all time.  And in case some of you don't know which ones I'm talking about, I'll put the video of it on here. Note: I do not own the videos used, just linking them from YouTube.  Give your thanks to them if you wish.

Honourable Mention: Bobby Orr's Dive

This doesn't really count as a celebration because he didn't really mean to dive like that.  He was tripped just as he scored the goal.  Still, that is one of the most iconic moments in hockey history.

5. Marek Malik Makes The Shootout Relevant

This would make my list of best shootout moves ever, when/if I make such a list.  But this also counts as one of my favourite celebrations.  In this case, a little goes a long way.  Here's a guy who rarely scores at all, pulls off the first highlight reel shootout move since the NHL brought it in, wins the game, erupts the building, and acts like its nothing special, just part of his job.  Definition of "cool".

4.  Sean Avery Does Push-Ups

Alright, remember what I said about tacky celebrations that are just for the sake of pissing off the other team?  Well this is it.  But in this case, I like it.  Pissing off the other team is Sean Avery's job.  This wasn't disrespectful in any way, it wasn't too tasteless, it was just fun to watch (maybe not for the Preds, but thats the point).  Although, I'm one of the few guys who would love to have Avery on my team, and this is partly why.

3. Nail Yakupov Steals the Show

If you're a hater of this celebration, then you're a Kings fan, or you really don't like hockey.  1) Pro hockey is part of the entertainment business.  If this doesn't entertain you, you probably dead. 2) This is a young player who is trying to be a big star in the league.  Maybe getting millions of extra looks because of your celebration wont hurt. 3) And this is the biggest one, he scored a goal to tie the game with 4 SECONDS LEFT. I'd be jumping out of my skull if such an exciting goal came from my stick.  He made the building jump and gave the Oilers new life in the hockey game.  This celebration (and other ones during the season) shows how passionate of a hockey player he is. 

2. Selanne Snipes His Glove

As an aside, I firmly believe the French language was invented solely for making hockey sound even better than it already is.

All joking aside, this comes in at #2.  Selanne shatters Mike Bossy's rookie scoring record, and basically cemented his status as the best rookie season in history.  The celebration is unique, and spur of the moment, despite how cool Selanne looks throughout it.  And best of all, this was a one-time thing.  If anyone tries the same celebration now, they look like a hack trying to get more attention.  This was the real deal.

1. Henderson Has Scored For Canada

I don't think I need to explain this one much.  This is probably the most important moment in hockey, and the celebration that shows it.

Well here you have my opinions of the best goal celebrations in history.  I'm sure some of you have other ones you'd like to share, or disagreements with my list, and I'd love to hear them.  Thanks for reading.

Building My Dream Team

So my post yesterday about the greatest goalie got my thinking, if I were to form the greatest team of players in the game, who would I have?  Of course, this isn't a new argument, many writers and experts have said their "dream team" of hockey.  But after seeing the "Legends" team in the NHL video games (which is one line of actual legends, then filled with current star players), I had the urge to make this my next post.

So I'll be picking 4 RW's, 4 C's, 4 LW's, 6 D's and 3 Goalies.  Of course, I could load up on skilled Centermen and fill the line up with those, but I'm going to stay by the book and pick players for their natural position.  The players are for all time, not just now obviously (although, that would be an interesting post later on). Without getting too into details, lets start with my Left Wingers:

Luc Robitaille - Nearly went point-per-game through a career spanning over 1400 games.  Probably one of the best shooters to play the game.

Bobby Hull - Hull was better than point-per-game through his entire career, and was a powerful player to play against.  He was only behind Robitaille by 58 goals in all-time LW scoring, and played almost 400 games less.

John Bucyk - Bucyk was one of the elite playmakers in the game through the 60's and 70's, tallying more assists than any other Left Winger.  If he was paired up with a line of elite goal scorers, the line would be unstoppable.

Alex Ovechkin - So here's where I go off the board a little.  He's not a legend by any means, yet anyways.  But his goal-scoring talent is surpassed by no-one in the league right now, and could really be effective if paired with a great playmaker, and another star to defend against.  I'm keeping his as LW, because thats where he naturally plays, and there are more great RW's to pick from.

Now I'll pick my Centers:

Wayne Gretzky - Well duh.  Gretzky has more assists than anyone has points, and he has a boatload of goals to add to it.  Yes, he was on a stacked team for many of those points, but no one can argue his place in the record books, he had the best hands, best hockey smarts, and best vision out of anyone who's put on a pair of skates.

Mario Lemieux - Even though he played almost 800 games less, he's only behind 2nd leading point scorer Mark Messier by 164 points.  He has the 2nd highest point-per-game average in history, and had his career not been marred by cancer and injury, he could have been the one to catch Gretzky.

Joe Sakic - It was between Sakic and Yzerman for this spot, as they had really similar p-p-g totals, and fairly similar careers.  In the end, I chose Sakic because, for the most part, Yzerman was on a better lineup than Sakic was, yet they both delivered the same amount.  Plus Sakic's wrist shot is one of the best in the game.  Really hard to pick one or the other though.

Mark Messier - Its hard to argue with a player who was the most natural leader the game has ever seen.  On this line up, he'd be more of a goon player, protecting the smaller skilled players.  But he's also 2nd in Centerman points.  He certainly belongs in this lineup.

Now for the Right Wingers:

Gordie Howe - Like Gretzky, this required no thought.  His longevity is that of legend itself, nevermind that he went over p-p-g during his long career, and is still one of the faces of hockey today.  This was a no brainer.

Maurice Richard - A player who rivalled Howe for most of his career, he was a huge reason for Montreal's dynasty years through the 50's.  He didn't have the longevity as many other players have had, and his stats are just slightly better than Martin St. Louis' career stats are up to this point, but he was an electrifying goal scorer who could probably teach Ovie a thing or two.

Teemu Selanne - Another electrifying player I'd want on my team is one that is still currently playing... maybe (hasn't made his decision yet for next season).  Even at his age, he continues to be a strong presence for the Ducks, and his hockey IQ and speed would be matched by few on this roster.

Jaromir Jagr - Anyone who knows me will know that I've never been a huge fan of Jagr.  However, his skill, longevity, and adaptability in any lineup are too good to pass up.  He's 2nd in points for RW's, behind only Mr. Hockey himself.  The fact that he is still playing at his age, and being as sought after as he was during the trade deadline and off-season is a testament to his skill.

Here's my 6 Defencemen:

Ray Bourque - He is the highest scorer and point-getter of all defencemen, had a long career, and was a great leader to Boston and eventually Colorado.  He played the game with heart, and wasn't a liability in the penalty box.

Paul Coffey - Better than p-p-g during his career, and is very close to Bourque's goal and point records despite playing 200 less games.  Any blueline was dangerous when he was on it.

Bobby Orr - He invented the offensive defenceman role, and changed the way the game was played.  While he didn't have a long career, there's no questioning his importance to hockey, and his place on this "all-star" team of all time.

Nicklas Lidstrom - He was one of the smartest, most dependable defencemen in history, being a staple on Detroit's blueline for 20 years.  He was rarely in the penalty box, and was one of the best defensive defencemen to play the game, while still being an offensive force.

Scott Stevens - Keeping your head up was essential when you shared the same ice as Scott Stevens.  He was a punishing, physical force, and had a long career of doing what he does best: knocking people out.  Aside from that, he also put up some decent numbers, and was a great leader to the New Jersey Devils.

Al MacInnis - Despite being 3rd in points by a defenceman, he is often overlooked on many "best-of" lists.  He was a big, physical player who was a perfect complement to a young Chris Pronger in St. Louis, and was also a huge part of the Calgary Flames' Stanley Cup win in 1989.  He had a legendary slap-shot, preferring to use wooden sticks instead of switching to the new technologies of composite sticks.

Last but not least, my 3 goalies:

Dominic Hasek - Although the term gets used quite often, there were only 2 goalies who you could really depend on "stealing a win" for their entire career: Hasek, and Patrick Roy.  I'd say, purely on skill, Hasek is the best goalie of all time.  His acrobatics and unorthodox style of play fooled many players, and his longevity as a goaltender is something unsurmountable to this day.

Patrick Roy - As mentioned above, Patrick Roy could steal a game when his team needed it, and could so from his young years as a rookie in Montreal, to being the veteran in Colorado.  He survived under the harsh spotlight of Montreal, winning 2 cups as a young goalie, often Carey-ing the team on his back.  Wait...I meant carrying...not trying to compare a certain current goalie for Montreal.  Anyways, he was a big, skilled goaltender that could backstop any team and make everyone around him look good, and himself even better.  He thrived under the pressures of the game that cause most goalies to crack at some point.

Jacques Plante - What, no Brodeur?  Although he is the winningest goalie in league history, he had the help of some staunchly defensive teams through the years.  I'm not knocking his skill, but I feel it would be a crime if Plante wasn't on here.  Plante is the only goalie other than Hasek to be named MVP of the league.  He was the backstop of the Canadiens' Cup dynasty of the 50's, and moulded the goaltending position from how it was played pre-50's to how it is played today.  He was one of the quickest goaltenders in history, and certainly the most influential.

So to put everything together, here is my lineup of my all-time Legendaries team:

Ovechkin-Gretzky-Richard

Hull-Lemiux-Jagr

Robitaille-Messier-Howe

Bucyk-Sakic-Selanne

Orr-Bourque

Coffey-Lidstrom

Stevens-MacInnis

Hasek/Roy/Plante

Now, I'm not saying Ovie is the best LW and Richard the best RW, this lineup is based on chemistry and playing style.  Ovechkin and Richard, two powerful goalscorers, would be at their most powerful paired up with the best playmaker in the game. Jagr and Lemiux are reunited, and paired with Bobby Hull. Messier and Howe will be the playmakers and protectors of Robitaille, who isn't as physical but a definitive goal scorer. Bucyk's playmaking ability is teamed up with Sakic and Selanne's sniping abilities.  

Orr and Bourque are united. Coffey and Lidstrom match up well as one would be offensive, and one would stay back more, but both capable of filling each others' roles. Stevens and MacInnis are the shut-down pair of the lineup.

It would really be hard for me to pick a starter out of the 3 goalies above.  Against a team that is full of long-range snipers, Roy would fill the net better and be the best choice.  Against a team that likes to play down low and close to the net, Hasek's athletics and flexibility would be better suited.  Against power, goalscoring defenceman, Plante's quickness would prevail.

So there is my dream lineup in a nutshell.  If you have any suggestions, or substitutions, or lineups of your own, feel free to comment.  Thanks for reading.

The Best Goalie Debate

Alright, this is a can of worms I've been meaning to open for a while.  The goaltender is probably one of the hardest positions in all of sports, and there have been few that have been able to dominate the game for a long time.  Many goalies sit atop the goalie mountain for a year or two, only to fizzle out.  Most goalies aren't dependable starters for the entirety of their career, or put up numbers that reach the record books.

But there have been a few goalies in the league that have not only succeeded, but dominated, for a long period of time.  They've won cups, broke records, and changed the way the position is played.  But who exactly is the best goaltender of all time?


Bernie Parent - Okay, so he's probably not on the top of most peoples' lists.  An injury made him end his career early at the age of 34.  But he has 2 Vezina Trophies, 2 Conn Smythes, and led a young expansion team, the Flyers, to 2 Stanley Cups.  He probably wasn't the best, but he could have been.

Jacques Plante - He was the backbone of the Montreal Canadiens dynasty through the 50's, and continued to have a long career, spanning over 20 years.  He was the biggest reason goalie masks became a part of the game, and his playing style shaped how most goaltenders play today.  If thats not enough, he also won 7 Vezina Trophies, and won the Hart trophy as league MVP, one of the two goalies to do that.

Terry Sawchuk - If Patrick Roy or Martin Brodeur own a statistical NHL record, they likely had to pass Sawchuk before they got it.  Sawchuk was the leader in wins and shutouts until the two goalies mentioned above passed him.  He won 4 Vezinas, the Calder Trophy, and all while suffering through many injuries and health concerns throughout his career.  And unlike many goalies in his day, he had a very long career.

Clint Benedict - Who? Well, think of Georges Vezina and George Hainsworth.  He's the goalie that outshined both of them.  He was essentially the game's first goalie star, and prompted rule changes to force goalies to stand up, as he would "fall down" to make a save.  Turns out, he had it right the first time, as butterfly goalies are more common than not in todays game.

Patrick Roy - Patty Roy took the league by storm, eventually winning 4 Stanley Cups, 3 Conn Smythe trophies, and 3 Vezinas.  He carried Montreal to 2 Stanley Cups, while they played heavy offence and left the goaltenders high and dry.  He had the most wins of any goaltender (until passed by Brodeur), and will own the record for most playoff wins for a very long time.  He's one of the games most electrifying, iconic goaltenders.

Vladislav Tretiak - He never played a game in the NHL, but is referred to by some as the greatest goalie in hockey history.  He backstopped the Soviets during the '72 Summit Series, at the age of 15.  He was the Soviet's number one goalie for 14 years straight, helping the Soviets win 10 World Championships, 3 Olympic gold medals, and 1 Olympic silver.  No other goalie comes close to having that international resume.

Dominic Hasek - While many look at his longevity, its often forgot that he wasn't a starting NHL goalie until he was 28. But despite his late start, he won 6 Vezina Trophies, and was named the league's MVP twice.  The only other goalie to win the Hart was Jacques Plante.  He led an underdog Czech Republic team to Olympic gold in 1998, the first Olympics with NHL participation.  Gretzky himself named Hasek the world's best player.

Martin Brodeur - While he's still playing, and has the skills capable of adding to his accomplishments, its fair to say his time in pro hockey is limited.  But he had an excellent career and should be an instant first-ballot Hall of Fame player.  He owns the record book for goaltenders, has won several international titles, won 4 Vezinas, 3 Stanley Cups, the Calder Trophy, and has a few goals to boot.


Here's why its tough to make this decision:  Roy is undoubtedly the best playoff goaltender of all time, but has had some really good teams to play with.  Brodeur is the best consistent goalie for any goalie to play as long as he has, but like Roy has played on some really impressive teams that helped him out.  Hasek is probably the most skilled goalie of the bunch, but has played on fairly bad teams most of his career, and only has 2 Stanley Cups to his name.  And all 3 of those goalies are mentioned because of Jacques Plante, who is the creator of the goaltending position as we know it.

Who do you think is the best of all time?

Power Ranking the Current NHL Jerseys

Today, for something different, I'm going to give my own Power Ranking to the current jersey sets of all 30 NHL teams.  This is pretty much my own opinion and design preferences, so feel free to comment and argue with my tastes.  Without further ado:

All images courtesy of nhluniforms.com.

30.  Carolina Hurricanes

These jerseys were just released almost 2 months ago, and immediately I recognized it as my least favourite NHL jersey.  It's a Team Canada rip, for one.  I'm not a fan of the unmatching striping pattern between the home and away, and the logo looks awkwardly high up on the jersey.  Plus I was a sucker for the red "warning flag" patterns on their old jerseys, which made them unique.  This just makes them bland.

29. Tampa Bay Lightning

Not only are these 3rds awful, the jerseys are overly simple, the logo is overly simple and not very impressive, and the logos are mismatching with one having the wordmark and one not.  I'm not a wordmark fan at all, but have it on both or none if the logo is staying, because otherwise one jersey looks cluttered and one looks bare.

28.  Florida Panthers

Not much to say about this one, they're just meh.  I've always loved the Panthers logo, but their original jerseys looked much more creative and original than this. 

27. St. Louis Blues

Nothing bad about these jerseys, but like Florida's, they're not that impressive either.  I might be a traditionalist, but I associate the Blues with the blue and yellow colours, or the red diagonal striping pattern of the Hull era.  When they first went to double blue, it looked cool.  But now they changed the striping pattern, gave them a weird "modern" yoke, and have that awkward yellow arch.  Yes, maybe it's a bit of symbolism, but I just don't like the look of it.  I don't mind the 3rd much though.

26.  Washington Capitals

As much as I love the 3rd jersey, I just feel that their regular set is just not very attractive.  Plus red and blue is used way too much in the league (or all of pro sports anyway), and I thought their old light blue and black pattern was exceptional.  The design and colour scheme were original, much unlike these.

25.  Ottawa Senators

I never got the "pit-stain-turned-cuff" pattern, which is the black on their jerseys.  It just makes the jersey look really... disproportionate?  I'm not sure.  The 3rd jersey, however, is one of the sharpest in the league.  I wish Ottawa adapted that sort of style and history into their regular set.

24. Columbus Blue Jackets

This really belongs back with Florida, but it moves ahead simply because of their 3rd jersey, which I would argue is one of the best jerseys of all time.  For a team with little history, that jersey makes them look as old as Les Habs.

23.  Pittsburgh Penguins

This is one team that I would say older isn't better.  I never understood the baby blue jerseys with the yellow-black penguin logo.  So they improved with time.  But I think their yellow and black jersey days were better, or even the pre-Reebok gold-black jerseys, because they had a striping pattern that at least set them apart.  Now they just look like Senators jerseys.

22.  Detroit Red Wings

Yes, you shouldn't mess with tradition, especially with a history like Detroit's.  There is nothing really wrong with this jersey, it's a classic.  Its just not THAT exciting to look at, and artistically really basic.  

21. Calgary Flames

The 3rd jersey here is really cool, but I'm not sure about the rest.  Calgary has experimented with new patterns since those "throwback" jersey was their regular one, with some good and some bad.  These are meh.  I liked the 1995 style, and then the next set after that, but these were an artistic decline.

20. Los Angeles Kings

I'm all for classic, and I'm really glad they brought back the Gretzky-era black and white back.  Its a colour set lost in the league.  However, the style of the jersey isn't really unique, and I wish they made the logo look more authentic 90s.

19.  San Jose Sharks

I really wish they kept the silver in the jerseys.  As much as teal is unique, and orange is even more unique, the orange looks kind of awkward and gimmicky on these jerseys.  The teal and silver combo was fresh and original, and made some of the better jersey sets in NHL history.  These are okay, but nothing more.

18. New York Islanders

The main jerseys tribute to their classic colours, as they should.  I don't have too many complaints about their main set.  But those 3rds are downright awful.  So bad, I'd rather wear the Captain Fishstick jerseys.  Yikes.

17.  Buffalo Sabres

I like how they went to the throwback style, while keeping the Buffaslug colours.  It works well, and is definitely an improvement.  However, I for one miss their "Goat-head" red-black era.  This also loses points because of what the 3rd jersey sounds like it will look when its released later this summer.  Yellow on front, blue on back? Uh oh.

16.  Vancouver Canucks

Cue the hate.  As much as I like the colours, the obvious retro style, and the 3rd jersey, their main set doesn't appeal to me.  For a team that has had so many original (some good, most bad) designs, this is more bland than most.  Plus as I said earlier, I'm not a huge fan of the wordmark.

15.  Dallas Stars

The logos, despite making me want a Starbucks beverage, are pretty awesome.  The colour scheme is original and unique to the rest of the league.  The jerseys are okay at best.  But still, a fairly cool new set.

14.  Nashville Predators

This set was a huge improvement to their prior sets.  I don't like the "fang-thing" below their collar, and the mismatching arm-stripes throw me off a bit.  But the rest looks really solid and original.  I love what they did with the numbers and secondary logo.

13. Minnesota Wild

I'm a huge fan (unlike many) of the red-green colour scheme, and the bear-head logo.  But I don't like the mismatching of the jerseys.  The home red looks way too christmasy.  The away white should be the off-white yellow to match the home set.  The 3rds are cool, and should really be their regular jerseys (like the Iowa Wild this year)

12.  New Jersey Devils

New Jersey hasn't changed their jerseys since they were red-green in the early 90s.  This is a good thing.  The red and black make them look devilish, not to mention original.  Their simple, yet not too simple, style has stood the test of time, and hopefully will for a long time longer.

11.  Toronto Maple Leafs

Just shy of the top 10 is Toronto's current set.  They could fiddle with the regular set's striping to look a bit more creative and balanced, but it looks like a Maple Leafs jersey always has and always will.  They lose out on the top 10 because of their 3rd jersey.  I don't understand the point of their "throwback" logo, that just looks like an awkward remake of the current logo, and really doesn't reference any of their other logos of the past.

10. Anaheim Ducks

These jerseys are wickedly awesome.  I do miss the Mighty Ducks branding, and the highly original colour scheme that went with it, but they rebranded nicely with an entirely new colour scheme and style.  I love the striping pattern.  These would probably be near the top of my list, if it wasn't for their 3rd jersey.  Orange is a nice secondary colour, but they had to flaunt it everywhere, and put in a very basic pattern on the jerseys to boot.  Whole lotta meh right there.

9. New York Rangers

Aside from Montreal and Boston, I don't think there is a more recognizable jersey in the NHL.  The jersey style has lasted forever, with very minor changes, and has stayed visually pleasing.  Again, not a huge fan of the mismatching stripes, but in this case it's fairly minor.  The yokes in the white jersey are very original, but such a pattern in the blue jersey would make it look too busy.  I also really like the 3rd, a good throwback that really isn't a throwback, but just looks old and classic.  It works well.

8.  Phoenix Coyotes

Simply put, when they Coyotes rebranded in 2003, they went from looking like a gimmick team, to looking like one of the classiest teams in the league.  The colours are simple but unique, the logo is fresh and impressive, and theres just not much that you can complain about with these jerseys.

7.  Edmonton Oilers

Being the traditionalist that I am, I love seeing Edmonton in these classic colours, and ridding themselves of the awful colour scheme before this, and the funky 3rd jerseys that came with it.  This loses some value because it isn't entirely an original colour scheme, sharing it primarily with the Islanders.  But all in all, these are great classic jerseys that have waited too long to come back.

6.  Philadelphia Flyers

I really like the Flyers style, and how it really hasn't changed much over the years.  This is another classic look that hopefully remains fairly untouched (with maybe a few tweaks).  My only complaint is the awkward black cuffs.  They seem out of place to me, but its probably to my own tastes.

5.  Boston Bruins

While the classic red-blue-white style is shared through many teams, there is only one true black-yellow team.  These are, in my mind, the most classic and original jerseys in the league, beyond the Canadiens, Leafs, and Rangers.  However, the only drawback (and why this lost so many points) is the 3rd jersey, which looks bear...I meant bare, and takes away from what is a beautiful, original set.  Boston is a team that, like Detroit, Toronto, Montreal, and (to some extent) the Rangers, have no need for a 3rd jersey, outside of classic throwbacks.

4.  Chicago Blackhawks

I really don't have much to say about these jerseys.  They were the original red-black team, and carry those colours well to this very day.  Those 3rd jersey throwbacks are also extremely well done.  However, while I make a case for some traditional teams for mismatching stripes, I feel they take away some in these jerseys.  Thats my only justification to make them 4th, other than the next 3 are just that damn cool.

3.  Colorado Avalanche

When I first thought of this list, I thought there would be no way Colorado makes it this high.  But on second thought, they deserve to be.  In my opinion, they have the best colour scheme of any team in the modern expansion era, and have the 2nd best logo in the league, one that has stayed untouched since their creation in 1996.  While I feel their modern-style jerseys have been a bit of a decline, the jersey still flows with that great colour, and the 3rd jersey is very throwback-esque. I feel this jersey set (and previous jerseys, which were better than this set) are very underrated in the history of hockey jerseys.

2.  Winnipeg Jets

This set is absolute eye candy.  The double blue looks absolutely fantastic as a hockey sweater, and is complemented by the silver very well.  The logo is also currently my favourite NHL logo, period.  I was excited for Winnipeg to be back in the league, a little disappointed when I heard they would rebrand, then extremely excited when I saw this.  Simply beautiful, and the top of my jersey-wishlist.  However, there is one more jersey left to talk about.

1.  Montreal Canadiens

When I was thinking of this list, I really didn't want to put Montreal 1st.  I felt their jersey is way overhyped, and really never cared for the mismatching of the striping.  But who am I kidding?  The white jersey hasn't been changed since 1941, the dark jersey since 1917, all aside from minor changes of course.  The red-white-blue scheme has so much meaning to it other than aesthetics, and the logo is essentially a symbol not just for the NHL, but for hockey all over.  My only thought would be that maybe the white jersey could use some form of arm striping.  Not the chest striping tho, that would look too busy, and the white of the jersey is really classic.  But maybe just a little bit of arm stripes.  Just my thought.  Otherwise, this IS the NHL's best jersey set, and likely best there ever will be.

Well glad you read through all of that.  Hope you enjoyed my list and please feel free to rank your own or tell me your opinions, favourites, or least favourites in the comment section.  Thanks for reading.