PuckDrawn

Update On The Danbury Whalers Logo - With NEW Logo!

I just got an e-mail from Herm Sorcher, CEO / Managing General Partner of the Danbury Whalers and he gave me an update on the logo that was posted here yesterday and some other facts that you'll definitely find interesting. (Hint: Brass Bonanza!)

First, the most important thing is that the Danbury Whalers have decided to ditch the "W" logo as their primary and are going with this "D" design.

Rather than paraphrase, I'll let you read Herm's words on the matter.

I love the Whalers. I am a former employee of them. I bleed green. I have not been the same since 1997. No joke. All that being said, here are 10 great reasons why it should be named theDanbury Whalers (I attached the file).

[File contents posted at the end of this blog]

One of our owners is Mike Barnes. His father, William "Bill" Barnes, was one of the 4 founders of the New England Whalers.

The Hartford Whalers Booster Club President - Al Victor gave us 100% public support and his blessing.

To have the son of a founder who was also an employee of the Whale & to have the Booster Club President sign off...are there anymore higher Whalers authorities?

We were going to use the W, but at the press conference I asked the fans what they liked. They all said go with the D.

The official logo is the D... The one you posted (yesterday, the "W") is now the shoulder patch.

We are in the process of switching everything on the website. In minor league sports it is that easy.

Pretty cool story how the fans can have that kind of influence.

So there you have it. That "W" logo didn't last long as a primary, did it? I think this "D" logo is a major improvement.

I love the background to this story and I especially liked that the team listened to the fans and made the logo change!

The Danbury Whalers are now my favorite Federal Hockey League team (until the FHL expands to Philly... Sorry Whale, that's just how I roll).

After the jump, you can read the "Top 10" list that Herm sent along titled Why The Danbury Whalers Name.

FHL - Danbury Whalers Reveal Logo

I poked fun at the FHL's logo and website not long ago, and it was suggested that we get some PuckDrawn readers to design all of the Federal Hockey League's team logos. Unfortunately, it was pointed out that the team logos already had a release schedule. And the first team out of the gate are the Danbury Whalers.

I can't say I'm inspired too much by this logo. The Hartford Whalers logo is just too hard to top, so anything that remotely resembles it - as this one does - is sure to fail. But they get three thumbs up for using the Whalers name and color scheme in honor of the NHL's Hartford Whalers.

Here's a snippet from the press release:

At the press conference the team announced the name (Whalers), colors (green & blue), and unveiled the team logo. In addition, also announced were the team Ownership Group and the Head Coach / Director of Hockey Operations – Chris Firriolo.

In taking the name of the former NHL team which played in Connecticut from 1972-1997 (Hartford Whalers), the Danbury Whalers received the official word of public support from the Hartford Whalers Booster Club. President Al Victor was on hand for the press conference and offered his best wishes for the team saying “Whalers fans have been looking for a place to go to wear their colors, cheer for a team, and feel welcome. This is a good thing and we will support it.”

You can read the whole thing here.

Atlanta Thrashers Rebrand By Untvar

Just a couple days left in the Atlanta Thrashers Rebranding Competition. This design was submitted by Untvar along with his thoughts on the design process.

First, the design...

And here is Untvar's explanation:

Problem: The thrasher bird is not memorably marked... mostly-brown with a light belly and some brown-black spots. IMO, brown has no place on a sports uniform. The next closest color is maroon. So I made the team colors maroon, white, and black. After I came up with the idea of the faded wing tips, I didn't want to make the design full of busy details. So, for the rest of the uni I stuck with the “keep it simple, stupid” method.

The positives of this design: It's clearly a hockey jersey. It's easily discerned from all the others in the NHL. The bird logo makes a very inconspicuous 'T' shape. No other team in the SE division wears maroon. No other team in the league has maroon and black as their identity.

Minnesota Wild Retro Concept by Mike Ivall Design

After looking at the Winter Classic Proposal by Cole Jones over at TheOther6Seconds.com, Mike Ivall decided to create a different retro logo and uniform for the Minnesota Wild.

I like the simplicity of this uniform as compared to Cole's design, but I don't like the idea of forcing a logo to be retro (which is how Mike describes the jersey and logo that he created). That's the same reason I don't like the "barber pole" jersey that Cole came up with.

Also, I like the idea of the Winter Classic featuring teams that have been around the league awhile; with some history. After those teams have had their time in the snowy classic, then the newer teams can have their day. At that point, maybe they'll have some "retro" designs to take advantage of for the "old-timey" jersey reveal.

UPDATE: Be sure to check out Mike Ivall Design's portfolio website, featuring many of his creations.

Griffins Specialty Jerseys Have Arrived

Just saw a tweet from the Griffins that Chad B. Stilson's specialty jerseys have arrived and they look fantastic!

Here's a snippet from the Griffins news release:

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Grand Rapids artists Brian Oesch and Chad B. Stilson have been chosen as the winners of the Grand Rapids Griffins’ jersey design contest, conducted earlier this summer through Puckdrawn.com.

Oesch’s classic design and Stilson’s fierce interpretation of Griff, the team’s mascot, were selected from more than 50 entries that were received prior to the July 1 deadline.

“Overall, the entries we received were excellent, ranging from the absurd to some very high-quality work,” said Rich Meyers, the Griffins’ director of game operations. “It was neat to see submissions from people across the United States and Canada, and it was really tough to pick out a winner. A lot of people within various levels of our organization, from account executives to ownership, were involved in the decision process.”

READ THE WHOLE THING HERE.

Here's a look at the concepts that Chad originally submitted.