I know a lot of people — Tampa Bay Lightning fans included — aren't in love with the new logo and uniforms. Speaking as one of the biggest Bolts fans out there, I can say I love the designs. It's miles better than what we had even if it's not perfect yet. You have to admit that much. And hell, I already pre-ordered my black jersey. I can't wait until mid-September.

Anyway, on to the subject at hand. I've got concept art from across the Southeast Division today (except for the Stinkin' Panthers). And I'm starting with the Lightning.

Like I said, I like the new logo but I'm open to new ideas as well. This logo is cool in that it forms a lightning bolt out of the letters "TB." That sort of thing is why I wake up in the morning.

Unfortunately, as drawbacks go, there sure is a lot of negative space in that design. Maybe we don't need such a large circle. Let the bolt overlap the bounds of the circle sort of like the new logo does. And the muted colors don't market well. And whether we want to think so or not, that is an important element.

So let's see what that logo looks like on a jersey.

I like the lettering style but it doesn't really seem to go with the jaggedness of the logo. Loving the bolt on the bottom of the back. And the black sleeves with a blue body is pretty cool. Another one I'd be curious to see on a player. Overall, it's not horrible, but it could still use some touching up.

We talk a lot about simplicity in logos. Check this out.

You can find these designs and many others in the Concepts Gallery. I highly recommend a look through what's there.

Moving on now northward to the Atlanta Thrashers. I got emailed a couple of cool Reebok-style concepts worth a look.

The design above is very sharp. You'll notice the all-star logo on the shoulders which was a nice touch. Also this concept does away with the overhead Thrasher logo, opting instead for the head from the primary logo on the shoulder. Overall, Atlanta could do worse. Personally, however, I'm partial to the design on the left.

I think the red sides are very nice. I think that is a very smart accent color and there's no reason to do away with it. However, it seems the red pushed out most of the gold. I think it could use a little more. But my favorite thing about both designs is the retention of the sky blue used for the home sweaters. I think that was a great move by the Thrashers and I wouldn't want to see it go away.

How do you Thrasher fans feel about it?

Continuing up the east coast, we have some Carolina Hurricanes fan art. Check out this guy.

How about that logo?

This design here to the left is a rendering of the 'Canes unis based off of what we've seen from EA Sports in NHL 08. The black jersey is merely a suggestion at what could be done in the future for an alternate. I like the black and the hurricane flag is growing on me as a crest. I wasn't a fan at first.

Anyway, what really matters is what Carolina fans like. Any feelings on the matter, guys?

We'll wrap up our Southeast Division tour with the Washington Capitals. I agree with the above design almost whole-heartedly. That "W" eagle should definitely be the new primary. The wordmark "logo" should be relegated to the shoulders if you ask me. The stars on the shoulders are nice, but stolen from the Columbus Blue Jackets and that's not acceptable.

But this design fascinates me. That's a very nice use of the Capitol dome. Very impressive. I also like the black, silver and red jerseys. The blue being used sparingly works in its favor, I think. I'd like a better look at the shoulder logos to see what's going on there. Too small in this graphic.

Any Capitals fans out there to share an opinion? Because we know I'm certainly not one.

That does it for the Southeast today. Apologies for the long post. I know that irks some of you. If someone's holding a water gun to your head forcing you to read this blog, let me know and I'll see what I can do to shorten them.