Les Minimalistes De Trois-Rivières

Anytime anything is associated with the Montreal Canadiens, you immediately think of the timeless logo and the famous bleu-blanc-et-rouge. Those colours have been worn in a number of ways over the years by les Canadiens, but they haven't changed the uniforms all that much since 1917 when the NHL was founded and the Canadiens were named as one of the first teams. And that leads me to ask what happened with the Lions de Trois-Rivières, Montreal's new ECHL franchise, because there appears to be a certain colour missing if they're carrying on the Canadiens' scheme.

If you're into the monochromatic look, what Trois-Rivières debuted today should tickle your fancy. Since most hockey fans like a little dabble of colour, however, I don't understand why the Lions couldn't have added a red shoulder yoke to either jersey. That added colour is sorely needed when looking at the most uniform uniform in the ECHL. At least the white jersey breaks up the mononchromatic problem with the blue pants, but, again, add a shoulder yoke to break up the single-colour issue.

If we dip into the marketing speak, Mark Weightman, Lions President and CEO drops some rather ludicrous chatter on us in his statement.

"The jersey design is emblematic of the Lions' strength and determination and we hope to see it as a staple piece around the city and province. We look forward to seeing the jerseys on the ice when as we kick-off the inaugural season Oct. 21 against our Canadian league-rivals, the Newfoundland Growlers."

Ok, let's start with the obvious here because how on Earth is the "jersey design is emblematic of the Lions' strength and determination" when that's precisely what the logo is meant to do? The jersey is simply a blue or white background with zero semblence of anything strong, determined, nor Lion-esque, so let's stop with these moronic statements. I almost saw inside my skull with how hard I rolled my eyes at that comment.

You might be looking at the images above and wondering what those half-forearm stripes are on the sleeve because they seemingly serve no purpose other than to look ridiculous. Well, as per the press release, the "three vertical stripes are featured along the sides of the jersey sleeves and torso as a nod to the city of Trois-Rivières" which makes no sense because the entire jersey is a nod to Trois-Rivières considering they are the Lions de TROIS-RIVIÉRES. Why do you need a ridiculous-looking stripes on the forearm and hip to represent a city that the jersey and logo already represent? Am I losing my mind or are designers missing the whole point on what the jerseys represent?

I love how the team adds in the line, "Red highlights are featured as a reference to the Lions being a part of the Montreal Canadiens development system" like they're doing the Canadiens a favour. The "red highlights" are so minimal that you could have convinced me easily that the Lions de Trois-Rivières were actually the ECHL affilate of the Maple Leafs or Lightning based on their uniform design. The Canadiens would have way down the list when it came to the question of "Who is this team's NHL affiliate?"

"We have been very excited about this team and brand since completing the logo. To partner with the Trois-Rivières Lions again and take it a step further with the jerseys was another big milestone in seeing it all come to life," said Chris McDonald of Win X Two, the same company that helped the Lions design their logo. I have no idea why they'd be excited when they basically handed in a blank canvas that sorely needs some colour and life brought to it, but you do you, Chris McDonald. After seeing the Iowa Heartlanders jerseys and how well they were executed, this is a polar opposite from that unveiling.

You know you probably done messed up your uniforms when the manufacturer's logo below the neckline is the second most colourful thing on the front of the jersey. Yes, the logo of the Lions is still well-designed and looks good, but the jersey is supposed to emphasize the logo and allow the team to wear its colours proudly. While blue and while are certainly in the Lions' colour scheme, they shouldn't be the only colours.

This is a bad design for a team whose logo gave me so much hope. It now appears they'll enter the ECHL for their first season with the league's most boring and, quite possibly, the league's worst jerseys. C'est la vie, I guess.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!