Junior hockey teams usually have strong ties to their communities and, in some cases, are owned by the communities in which they play. The QMJHL's Chicoutimi Saguenéens are one of those teams who are well-represented on both sides of that ledger as they are owned by the city of Saguenay in Quebec, and the team name translates to "People from the Saguenay". Founded in 1973 in the city, the Saguenéens are celebrating their 50th anniversary in 2023, and that means that there's usually something in store when it comes to a rebranding or a jersey change or a similar event to mark a historic event like the Saguenéens will. Today, we found out what that was!
Rather than having me explain, here's the video the Saguenéens sent out via social media. Yes, it's in French, but it takes you through the history of the team's logos!
I have to admit that the Sags (as they're commonly called) using the Avalanche's colour scheme way back in 1973 is pretty cool considering how the Avalanche's colours took the league by storm when they were introduced. Beyond a few colour changes, though, there have only really been tweaks made to the logo since 1984. Until today.
The Saguenéens will keep the same general design, but the workmarks inside the crowned circle are replaced by a stylized "S". There's meaning to this design as "[t]he S represents the Saguenay, the gray outline being the walls of the fjord" as per Pascal Girard's reporting for CBC Radio-Canada. The Saguenay River is a major waterway in Quebec as it drains into the Saint Lawrence River, and the Saguenay Fjord, carved by glaciers thousands of years ago, is the only one of its kind in Quebec! Needless to say, the Chicoutimi Saguenéens represent their city, people, and region very well with the new logo design!
"It's our 50th anniversary, so we're looking back," explained Richard Létourneau, President of the Saguenéens. "Of course, we have to remember everything that the Saguenéens have been since 1973. We thought it was also really important to think about the future, so that's why we worked for three years on the development of a new logo."
The question about logos will always be how they look on the jerseys, and I have to admit that the new logo works nicely on both the white and navy blue jerseys that the Saguenéens wear. The gray third jerseys use the "Sags" nickname wordmark across them so they don't even qualify as jerseys in my book, but they don't have the logos prominently featured as it is. In short, if it works on the jersey, it's already a decent logo, and this new Saguenéens logo fits that bill.
If there's one thing I can lament over on these jerseys, it's the reductions on the vertical striping on the shoulders as seen to the right. The image shows the newer white jersey on the left with very limited vertical shoulder striping whereas the older jersey, worn by Patrice Tremblay on the right, has that amazing barberpole effect down the shoulders and sleeves. Personally, I would have worked with CCM to see if the striping on the older jersey could be worked into the design again, but I do realize that this was a logo redesign, not a jersey redesign.
In narrowing our focus to just the logo, I'd say the Chicoutimi Saguenéens have done a fine job in modernizing their logo without getting too crazy. The KISS principle - Keep It Simple, Stupid - seems to have been used here, and that's always appreciated by this writer who likes logos that catch the eye without being too busy. Overall, this logo by the Saguenéens gets a thumbs-up from me as they'll continue to look classy on the ice.
Next step? Bring back the extended shoulder stripes!
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