It all started with a simple idea. Dylan Nowak wanted to organize a design competition among some of the most talented hockey concept artists on Twitter. That’s the essence of Uniform Madness. Here’s how it works.

The Basics

Thirty-two designers were hand selected to redesign all 32 NHL teams — including the yet-to-be-named Seattle franchise, who will begin play in 2021. Teams were randomly assigned and each entrant was given one week to put create and submit a concept.

The Rules

Designers were given a simple set of rules. Redesign the team’s overall look. While they were allowed to use a team’s existing or past logo, the uniforms must be different from anything the team uses or has used. No direct throwbacks were permitted. And the team’s name can’t be changed (except Seattle, where the name was at the artist’s discretion).

Entrants were also told to focus on home and away uniforms — dark and light, respectively — with no individual or alternate jerseys in the mix. And to ensure consistency of voting graphics, all entries were required to use the same template with No. 19 on the back and “Madness” in the name bar.

The most interesting element of the tournament is the designer anonymity. All concepts are submitted and displayed without any identifying marks or names. The designer associated with each entry will be revealed at the end of the tournament.

The Schedule

Voting will take place here on Icethetics over eight weeks, from April 15 to June 8 — meaning we’ll have our own champion right around the time the Stanley Cup is awarded. The opening round will be spread over four weeks with one division revealed and voted on at a time.

Polls are open for one week, from Monday to Saturday. Voting is dark on Sunday to allow time for announcement of the winners and creation of polls for the following week.

One last item. Don’t forget to follow Uniform Madness on Twitter!