Everything Old Is New Again

A lot of people emailed me over the weekend with a link back to the always-informative Icethetics blog where Chris had images of the alternate uniforms that Ottawa and Toronto will wear this season. There is a lot of hockey history in these two cities, so I was hoping to see something historical in terms of these new alternate uniforms. The only problem? We weren't supposed to see them yet. In fact, we weren't supposed to see them until October at the earliest! Clearly, someone dropped the ball on this one, and - while I doubt heads will roll - this can't make the Leafs nor the Senators happy that their alternate unveiling parties and press conference were thwarted by a leaked photograph. Reebok won't come under much fire, but let's put the blame where it belongs - he who ships early risks blame.

As the title of this article suggests, these two new alternate jerseys have a ton of historical significance to them. I wasn't disappointed by any means, so it's good to see that the Senators and Maple Leafs are honouring their heritages. There is nothing wrong with bringing back a look from the past as an alternate jersey. Washington is doing it this season as they'll be wearing their Winter Classic jerseys as their alternate jersey, so why not toss a few more historical pieces into the mix?

The photos on Chris's article come from the team store at First Niagara Center in Buffalo, the home arena for the Sabres. Without dragging this on much longer, here is Ottawa's look.
I like what they've done here. The only change I would have suggested is that they use a true white rather than the retro cream colour, but I like the stripes and the giant "O" is very reminiscent of historical Senators' teams. The shields on the shoulders I could do without, but I have no real complaints with the look of this jersey when it comes down to good vs. stupid. The Senators bring back some colour, and will look more respectable much like the Ottawa 67s when they hit the ice in these.

As for the Maple Leafs, they're going with a throwback as well. As you're probably well aware, the last time the Leafs won the Stanley Cup was in 1967. That was two generations ago, so there probably aren't a lot of today's hockey fans that remember the Leafs winning in '67. Thanks to the Leafs, though, we're going back to 1967.
What makes these jerseys a little less special than what they could have been is that we've seen these jerseys already. You probably don't remember seeing them, but they have been on Air Canada Centre ice before. Let's go back to December 19, 2009 when the Maple Leafs warmed up in jerseys honouring the 1967 Maple Leaf team that won the Stanley Cup. Look pretty familiar, don't they? So not only are the Leafs honouring a team from the past with these uniforms, they are also in the business of recycling once-worn uniforms as well. Everything old is... well, you get the point.

In any case, I'm fan of both of these jerseys. They're clean and simple, they have strong ties to past editions of the respective teams, and they look good in modern times. Chris from Icethetics deserves some major kudos for breaking this story, and he'll get them from me. Well done, Chris!

What say you, readers: good rehashes of old looks, or could you do without these versions of the Sens and Leafs?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!