The Genericville Gargoyles

I was holding out hope that the ECHL's Greensboro Gargoyles would have a jersey unveiling that would make a lot of teams envious. With a name like "Gargoyles", the potential for this team to be fun and wear something truly unique was built into the imagery of the team name itself. I get that the Gargoyles are a professional team, but it's not like they're going to be a polished NHL franchise anytime soon. In saying that, my hopes were dashed with the Gargoyles' jersey unveiling last night in Greensboro for this team to be revolutionary for the ECHL when it comes to fun.

The three jerseys that the Gargoyles will wear are shown below.

There is nothing that stands out on these three jerseys that make them memorable or eye-catching. For a league that routinely wears promotional jerseys for specific theme nights, it's not like the Gargoyles couldn't have been a little more "outside the box" with their design. They weren't, though, and these jerseys miss the mark.

As per the linked release above, here's how the jerseys are described by the team. Prepare to be underwhelmed.

Purple Primary — Purple base with the primary logo on the chest, trimmed by a bold white stripe outlined in black and gold. Shoulders are purple and plated with the G logo, while the sleeves feature a white stripe topped with a gold accent.

This is accurate without a lot of marketing garbage mixed into the description, but it leaves one to wonder how these jerseys are different than any other generic jersey design. The purple jerseys literally have sleeve stripes, a hem stripe, and secondary logos on the shoulders. What, from that description, makes them unqiue compared to every other cookie-cutter jersey design on the planet?

White Primary — White base trimmed by a sharp stripe in purple, gold, and black. The shield logo is featured on the chest, while the shoulders are purple and plated with the G logo. Sleeves include a black stripe accented with gold.

Again, there really isn't anything unique or mindblowing here. Aside from the jersey looking like a poorly-replicated, knock-off St. Louis Blues jersey, the white jerseys could be worn by pretty much any other team if the logo on the chest was switched. That's not good.

Black Alternate — Clean black with the head logo on the chest. A crisp purple stripe ascends the shoulder plate, runs through the middle of the sleeve, and finishes along the bottom of the jersey. The two-tone design is highlighted by the shield logo featured on each shoulder plate.

A black alternate is one of the laziest ways to create an alternate jersey in all of sports. Why could they not go with a stone gray alternate like gargoyles are? Sublimate some shading on the jerseys and make them look like the stone statues on the top of buildings, and now we're talking about a fun jersey. Instead, we get a black jersey with purple stripes that could have been made on MS Paint.

For a team whose ownership group includes the Spittin' Chiclets guys, there's nothing about which one should be excited when looking at the Gargoyles' closet. The Savannah Ghost Pirates have their fun logo and funky colour scheme. The Tahoe Knight Monsters were a step down with their generic designs, and the Grensboro Gargoyles took that generic feeling one step further. I'm sure fans in Greensboro are excited for hockey and will buy a jersey or two, but the whole point of minor-league teams is that they can get away with jerseys that are a little more wacky and fun in their colours and designs.

Usually, people marvel at well-crafted architecture like gargoyles on buildings as in terms of the art they are, but these Gargoyles jerseys are like cinderblocks: boring, unremarkable, and utility. In saying that, the Gargoyles are going to have to rise when night falls from their generic, unremarkable look if they hope to find success.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!