A Sleeker Mythical Beast

Far be it from me to tell any established team or institution that their logo needs an update. I'm not important to anyone in the grand scope of sports, let alone hockey, so my opinion is just another whisper among the many voices that teams hear on a day-to-day basis. Sometime, though, teams and institutions will undergo a review of their branding with respect to current trends where the end result is new branding or logos that feel more modern in their designs. That's what happened at a university in northern Alberta as the MacEwan Griffins will enter the 2025-26 school year with a new logo that feels more modern for their next fifty years!

"Today marks an exciting new chapter in MacEwan Athletics," MacEwan Director of Athletics Joel Mrak said Wednesday at the unveiling. "Our new logo takes a bold step forward for the Griffins and the refreshed brand identity reflects the strength, passion, and grittiness that define our student-athletes and our entire university campus. Every detail of this new look was designed with our community in mind – those who compete, those who cheer from the stands, and those who wear our colours with pride."

Those are bold words, but considering the new design to the right? He's entirely correct in his assessment of this new logo! The MacEwan Griffins will have a fiercer, less cartoony, and more modern griffin representing them moving forward, and that should bring some excitement to the students, faculty, and fans who push the teams and institution to new heights both in the classroom and in their respective sports. Count me in as someone who likes the new look on first glance, and here's hoping this new look is the start of a new era for the Griffins where Canada West comes to fear Alberta's mythical beast!

The new look was designed by former MacEwan hockey player Curtis Ogrodiuk "and his cutting-edge Edmonton-based sports logo design company Artslinger". Having a former student work on this design may have helped because he would want a design that represented all the traits and qualities that drew him to the school and hockey program.

It should be noted that he was the captain of the Griffins men's hockey program while playing for them from 2003-06, and he scored nine goals and 16 assists in 61 ACAC games while wearing the maroon-and-white. He was named Male Athlete of the Year at the school in 2006, and he and his team have redesigned logos and branding for the likes of the NHL Officials Association, Edmonton Elks, Canada West, MacEwan University, and Mount Royal University since 2009.

"It was very cool to be able to work on this project," Ogrodiuk said of his involvement. "Being a graduate of the school's design program in 2006 and playing on the men's hockey team, you could say I started this project 22 years ago."

I don't know if that statement is entirely true as I'm not sure he had plans to change the logo 22 years later, but I'm sure a graphic design student is always looking at making things better. What always kills me when redesigns are unveiled is that there has to be an over-explanation of every detail on the new logo. MacEwan University got that same treatment despite it being somewhat unnecessary.

Do I really need an explanation for the griffin's wings? If it didn't have them, it wouldn't be a griffin - 'nuff said. Explaining the physical features of a redesigned logo that has been in use for fifty years is something no one needs, so I'm not sure why this was included.

Marketing and design vomit aside, the new griffin logo for the MacEwan Griffins is sharp, sleek, and modern. Full credit to Curtis Ogrodiuk's team at Artslinger and the athletics department at MacEwan University because this new logo should move merchandise for the school as well as attracting some recruits who want to wear the new logo proudly. And that's the goal of a rebranding and a redesign, isn't it - to have people notice and potentially want to be part of something cool? Or maybe I'm out in left field here.

In any case, I like the new MacEwan Griffins look, and it's already had me looking at the store with all the products sporting the new logo. If this is the start of a new era in MacEwan Griffins history, it's starting well. All we need now are a few Canada West hockey banners hanging in the rink and maybe a National Championship appearance for the hockey teams, and we could be talking about how the Griffins rebrand happened right before their hockey programs hit new highs!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!