Collection 32: Gone But Not Forgotten

All the Winnipeg Jets talk of late is practically begging for a concept post in which we look at other defunct franchises. What have our talented artists envisioned? Let's see.

Above, you'll recognize the illustrious California Gold Seals of old — and below, the Montreal Maroons of even older.

There are no Jets concepts here but we've seen plenty of them recently and I'm certain there will be more to come in the near future. If you've got one, you know where to send it.

Collection 31: In the Future... (If There Is One)

With all this rapture talk, I thought we might take a look at what the future holds (if there is one) for NHL uniforms next season. These are all based on rumors that have been reported around the web recently.

The first set is based on the rumor that the Flyers will host the Rangers for the 2012 Winter Classic. The inspiration for the Flyers' throwback jersey is the Philadelphia Quakers franchise — which has no relation to the Flyers. Still, I have yet to see a Flyers WC concept not based on that team's uniform design.

Another rumor spreading this spring calls for the Isles to launch a black alternate next season.

Whether or not it's wishful thinking, the prevailing rumors for the Stars is the debut of a green third jersey.

Now this one is a little more outside the box. It assumes the Thrashers are sold and moved to Winnipeg and that True North would retain the Moose branding to some extent while also paying tribute to the Jets.

And last here is just one more example of a Quakers concept standing in as a Flyers jersey for the big outdoor game next year. Personally, I don't see it happening. But then the Flames revisited their city's hockey history at their outdoor game this year. I suppose Philly could do the same in 2012.

Collection 30: Still on the Hunt

The theme for today's concept art is the Conference Finals! Just four teams remain and here are some fan-made jersey revamps for them. (And a bonus.)

And as a bonus (so I can round out this post with five pieces), here we have the Red Wings, the last team to be eliminated from the playoffs.

Coming soon, we'll take a look at what we might see for the 2012 Winter Classic. Send along your concepts!

Collection 29: Just a Minor Thing

One group that's often overlooked on the Concept page are the minor leagues. Plenty of teams could use a bit of rebranding work. Here's what some of our talented designers have come up with.

First up is my favorite. John's idea was to rebrand the AHL's Norfolk Admirals based on their NHL affiliate — the Tampa Bay Lightning. The color scheme has been cut down to blue and white and the logo has been simplified. And just like Tampa Bay's new uniforms, the road jersey bears the city's name. It's a brilliant concept and one I've been wanting to share for some time.

Mike was headed down a similar path, rebranding the Lake Erie Monsters to sync up with their fellow Ohio team, the Columbus Blue Jackets. Only Mike has used the Jackets' new alternate sweater as a base.

Jake's design is for the ECHL's Wheeling Nailers, an affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins — on which his design is obviously inspired. It's actually pretty clever.

Ryan, here, hasn't rebranded the Manitoba Moose so much as he's applied the existing brand to the Phoenix Coyotes. We now know that the Coyotes aren't an option for Winnipeg anymore, at least not in 2011 — but also that if the Coyotes were to move back to Manitoba, they would likely retake the Winnipeg Jets name. Still, a nice effort anyway.

And yes, I know this isn't technically a minor league design. But let's be honest, it was such a minor league design. Glen has Edge-ified the much-maligned jerseys of the New York Islanders from the mid-1990s by adding the fisherman logo to the Ducks' Edge template.

Sorry you had to see that.

Collection 28: Canadian White Out

It's weird. Last time I updated Concepts was only a week ago and the Lightning had just dispatched with the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round of the playoffs. Now the Bolts are already moving on to the Conference Finals with a sweep of the Capitals! So much can happen in a week.

Now with a brief break in the action, I thought it might be time for a concept post that honors a playoff tradition — the white out. And it just so happens these are all Canadian teams.

If it seems my team's unlikely playoff run is resulting in fewer updates to the site, I won't argue with that. I fully expected to be enjoying the Stanley Cup playoffs from the sidelines. But with my team in the middle of it, I find it hard to spend my free time doing anything but cheering them on.

I'll do my best to keep the updates coming when I can.

Collection 27: So Long, Pittsburgh

I'll be honest. Despite my rabid Tampa Bay Lightning fandom, I wasn't sure we could take the Pens. But as our conference quarterfinal series proved, the Bolts are progressing a lot faster than we might've thought. So in honor of my readers who call themselves Pittsburgh Penguins fans, this one's for you.

This may seem like salt in the wound considering how much most of you just hate love the '90s logo you've nicknamed the "Robo-Penguin" — and you know, that whole era in general. But this is what our artists are coming up with these days.

Again, perhaps traditional Penguins fans would be turned off by most of these designs, but I like the way they each borrows from the past while mixing with the present. That's all for today as my team prepares for the Caps and I contemplate new ways of rubbing it in with concept art. (Kidding!)

Collection 26: Long Time No See

As I was considering themes for today's concept post, I started wondering which teams have gotten the least love on this page. So I took a look back, and as it turns out, there are five teams that have yet to be represented with concept art in 2011. We'll rectify that today.

Now these teams won't have to feel left out. Coming in a future concept post, some phenomenal redesigns for another often overlooked group — the minor leagues.

Collection 25: Playing For It All

Enjoy these new concepts for a handful of teams competing in the 2011 playoffs. More to come, of course.

My personal favorites are Brian's Ducks and Glen's Rangers designs at the top. And I do think the Canucks shoulder start moving toward Colin's concept. But I don't see any of those things happening very soon.

Collection 24: The Blue & Gold

As I get to work on building the next jersey gallery, I thought it might be time to share some concept art. Perhaps theme of this post will clue you in on the next team being represented in the galleries.

I know last time I said we'd do some concepts focusing on playoff teams. That's still coming. In the meantime, send along whatever you've got and it'll surely find its way onto this page soon enough.

Collection 23: Summer Comes Early

Over the next two months, most of the hockey world will forget that the NHL actually extends beyond 16 teams. So before the playoffs kick into gear, I thought I'd share some concepts for a handful of clubs that have already wrapped up their seasons and will start the summer early.

Perhaps next we'll look at some teams that did qualify to play for the Stanley Cup in 2011.

Collection 22: The Resurrection

Over the weekend, we saw what some Icethetics concept artists think the Quebec Nordiques should/would look like if they existed today. Now, we're expanding beyond that and resurrected some other past teams.

We recently saw a couple of posts worth of Jets concepts, but here's another great look.

Do you recognize Ohio's first NHL franchise? The Cleveland Barons only existed for a few years, but they always come up when we talk about the teams of the past.

They're the Devils now, but what if the Scouts never left Kansas City?

All right, this team was never a member of the NHL, but a league that preceded it. Any guesses? Ten points to the first person that gets it right.

We'll wrap up this two-part series with the man that started it all. Dallas sent in the first of the Nordiques concepts I posted over the weekend. This team is the Quebec Aces. Seems like someone really wants pro hockey back in Quebec City.

Collection 21: Calling On Quebec

Earlier this week I asked you guys for modern-day concepts for defunct NHL franchises. I received a lot of awesome work, but the Nordiques were the most popular.

In the next set, we'll visit some other former teams including those once in Cleveland and Kansas City, plus one you'll likely not recognize.

Collection 20: Get Thrashed

Today feels like an Atlanta Thrashers kind of day. I can't explain it. All I can say is enjoy this diverse group of concepts for Georgia's second NHL franchise.

I'm trying to put together a couple of concept posts full of extinct NHL teams. Start sending in your concepts for the Nordiques, Whalers, etc.

Concept Collection 19

No theme for this collection. Just a nice, varied assortment. But of course we have to start with the Senators' forthcoming Heritage Jersey — which we got a sneak peek of this week.

The way the jersey is folded in the photo the Sens provided leaves the design open to interpretation. It's not a bad attempt by Avi, but I think he may have strayed from the target. The shield he's put on the chest appears to be on the shoulder instead. And if it is in fact the "O" on the front, the photo does show that it doesn't have the double-stroke seen here. Otherwise, I'd bet it's pretty close. Anyone else want to take a crack at it?

Brendan's design is likely pretty close to the road uniform we'll see from the Kings next season. I'd bet on a black collar and maybe more black on the sleeves to add contrast. Now for the fun stuff...

So what do you think of that? I'm particularly fond of Colin's Canucks design!

Collection 18: To the Northeast

Today's batch of concept art brings us to the Northeast Division.

Last month, I re-posted some early sketches from the Sabres' 2006 rebranding on the blog. Here, Ross decided to spruce up one of the sketches and put it on the current uniforms. I get the feeling something like this would've gone over a lot better with fans than the "Buffaslug."

We've gotten Jets and Nordiques concepts on this page recently, and I didn't want to leave the Whalers out. They were part of the Northeast Division back in their day.

Benoit brings a unique set to the table. A bold choice with the red-free, two-tone blue jerseys for the Habs, but that's why it's interesting to look at.

New concepts are rolling in all the time. If you'd like to submit yours, just send a JPG or PNG file by email.

Collection 17: No Pinching

It's a day reserved for drinking and wearing green. There's nothing I can do to help you with the drinking part, but maybe you'll like some of these green concept jerseys.

Of course don't forget that the New Jersey Devils will crack out their 1980s throwback sweater — a swell mix of red and green — for one night only this season. That'll be tomorrow when they host the Capitals (they're in Ottawa tonight). They Devils wore them for the first time since 1992 last season on St. Patrick's Day.

Update on 2011-03-17 19:57 by Chris

Saw someone mention in the comments a desire for a green Quebec concept, then realized I had one filed away for a rainy day. Let it rain!

Happy St. Patrick's Day from Icethetics!

Collection 16: Winnipeg Jets Redux

As I said Friday, we've got another round of Winnipeg Jets concepts today. The trouble with the Coyotes is getting folks in Manitoba pretty excited. And whether or not the Jets name will be resurrected, it's looking more and more like Winnipeg will have a team again soon. Today we start another super-sized post with several different designs by Mike Ivall.

And now we'll revisit a couple of Jets concepts previously posted on Icethetics.

Now that we've seen all these different ideas for the Jets, what if Winnipeg gets a new team and they're not the Jets? What should they be called? What rumors have you heard? What should their colors be? Comment with your ideas or email in some concept art.

Collection 15: Bring Back the Jets!

With all the talk about the Coyotes heading back to Winnipeg heating up this week — and by that I mean Gary Bettman not ruling out for the first time — I put out the call for everyone to send in their best Jets concepts. To accommodate great response, I'm super-sizing today's post beyond the usual five. Hope you enjoy it!

I do have to say one thing now. If you're a Phoenix hockey fan, please accept my apology for what must appear to be cheering in the streets over the notion of you guys losing your team. No one wants to see a hockey fan say goodbye to his club. But if they must go, there are a whole lot of people in Winnipeg who will be ecstatic. This post is dedicated to them.

Also, keep an eye out this weekend for another set of Jets concepts. We'll be revisting some past designs that have been posted here on Icethetics. Plus, I'm sure there will be some stragglers with new artwork now that this post is up.

Collection 14: Tex on a Tear

Thought this was a fun story. A lot of readers send in concept art and I love it when someone new comes along because it usually means a new perspective. Somewhat surprisingly, newcomer Tex Fischer was a huge hit with his Senators concept on Sunday. Not to offend, but I'm not sure why it was such a standout considering the entire group was made up of variations on a theme. Regardless, it was a hit. And Tex has been on a tear since. Today's post is dedicated to him.

That last one should serve as the segue into our next set of concepts. I put out the word for Winnipeg Jets concepts this week and have already gotten a lot of excellent entries. Looking forward to sharing them.

Collection 13: Changing Their Stripes

Tough crowd these days. You guys are getting hard to please. In any case, today's theme post features the Ottawa Senators, who recently announced their intentions to launch a new "heritage" third jersey to mark their 20th anniversary season. Our concept artists have shared some of their ideas.