No. Just No.

There was hope in the air when the Winnipeg Jets announced that they would be introducing an alternate jersey for the 2018-19 season. We've seen the Jets break out their heritage jerseys, and they sold like hotcakes as fans clamored for hitching the wagon of memories from the old team to the new franchise that rolled into town. The only catch was the jersey was white so the Jets rarely wore the jerseys at home in front of their fans. Referencing that hope again, there were some who hoped for a blue version of one of the old Jets jerseys, but the Jets went in a completely different direction in their unveiling of the new third jersey.

Without further adieu, here is the new alternate jersey.

Excuse me when I say this, but SERIOUSLY?!? That's the BEST you could do? Look past the "Adizero" buzzwords and the classic design (what does that even mean?) and the '90s-inspired striping. Where is the iconic logo? Why are we exploring wordmarks?!?

I'm not certain where the current iteration of the Jets lost their way, but the term "wordmark" actually is defined as "a distinct text-only typographic treatment of the name of a company, institution, or product name used for purposes of identification and branding." The Jets posted the various apparent wordmarks used by prior versions of the Jets, and it appears the current Jets brain-trust doesn't know the difference between a logo and wordmark.

As you can see, there are various examples posted, but there needs to be some clarification. The first image from 1972 is a logo - it is not a "text-only typographic treatment" of the Winnipeg Jets hockey franchise. The second image is a wordmark, and it was used on the Jets' 1972-73 uniform. However, by 1973, the Jets had introduced the third image as their logo for all their branding including on the chests of the jerseys - again, not a wordmark and it wasn't introduced in 1974 as the current Jets posted. In 1990, the Jets redesigned their logo - still not a wordmark - with the updated version that players like Teemu Selanne and Phil Housley wore. Calling those logos "wordmarks" is a rather egregious error, and I'm surprised that the Jets would allow something like that to be published.

And that brings me to from where it seems this "Aviator jersey" idea actually spawned. For those that are unaware, there was once an old league that played on the east coast called the Eastern Hockey League. The EHL played games in various east coast cities from 1933 until 1973, and featured teams like the Charlotte Checkers, the Hershey B'ars, the Springfield Indians, the Clinton Comets, and the not-so-coincidentally-named Johnstown Jets. It is this final team where it seems that the Winnipeg Jets grabbed a pile of inspiration because it almost looks like they copied a jersey thread for thread that the Johnstown team wore at one point.

As you can see, the 1958-59 Johnston Jets look remarkably similar to the new alternate jersey for the Winnipeg Jets. REMARKABLY.

That photo was supplied by Bob Artese and Mike Piskuric to the fantastic Eastern Hockey League webpage. Yes, the wordmark has been changed on the new Winnipeg alternates, but the striping is an exact match and it appears the lighter colour worn by the Johnstown Jets has been replicated by the Winnipeg Jets. I'm not going to accuse the Winnipeg Jets of making an exact copy of a defunct minor-league team's jerseys, but they do astoundingly alike. Like nearly identical. Almost the same. Like they could be mistaken for one another accidentally if one wasn't paying attention.

Of course, it could just be me. I like hockey history, and I particularly like the images of the old days such as this picture of Dick Roberge accepting an award. Here you can see his jersey in full splendor with the thick arm and hem stripes, lack of a coloured shoulder yoke, the contrasting pants, and socks with the thick stripe on them just like the new Winnipeg Jets alternate uniform has thick arm and hem stripes, lack of a coloured shoulder yoke, contrasting pants, and socks with the thick stripe on them. Wait, were the current Jets honouring past Winnipeg Jets uniforms? I feel like they may be honouring a team with whom they have zero ties. Then again, maybe it's just me who is reading too deeply into the newly-introduced uniform. Or not. You're free to decide.

I'm not impressed. I won't be adding one of these uniforms to my collection any time soon unless the Jets announce that they're leaving. Even then, this alternate Johnstown Winnipeg Jets jersey probably won't end up with the rest of my threads. While I held out hope for a blue version of the Heritage Game jersey, it seems that the Winnipeg Jets went with a different heritage jersey altogether as they reached into the EHL and brought an old jersey into the future.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!