Back To Their Roots

The Atlanta Gladiators have an interesting history when one considers that they became Atlanta's ECHL team in 2015. Previously named for the northeast county that reaches into Atlanta, the Gwinnett Gladiators were the original Mobile Mysticks franchise that played in Alabama from 1995 until 2003. The move to Gwinett County saw them go on a solid playoff run each season with no less than 40 wins in any of their first five seasons, but it's been a long, long time since Atlanta saw any hockey success since those early days of Gladiators hockey.

Since adopting Atlanta's name, the Gladiators have made the playoffs three times in nine seasons and have never advanced pas the first round. Twice in those three seasons have the Gadiators reached the 43-win mark, but it hasn't translated to postseason success. The last time that the Gladiators won a playoff series was back in 2013 under head coach John Wroblewski when they fell in the second round.

It should be noted that the team switched their colours from garnet and black to navy blue and gold as shown above to "create a unique identity and attract fans throughout the highly diverse landscape in metro Atlanta." There was hope from Atlanta fans that an affiliation with the Nashville Predators organization would soon follow based on these changes, but that affiliation wouldn't happen until 2023. The Gladiators instead remained as the Boston Bruins' ECHL affiliate.

Of course, that brings us to Friday where the Gladiators unveiled this.

The Gladiators will return to their original garnet-and-black scheme that they used when they moved to Gwinnett County! These new jerseys will be worn in the 2026-27 season, and they look pretty good! I'm not sure about that script on the left with the stripe so low, but the colours look fine on these new Gladiators threads!

These jerseys aren't replications of the original jerseys worn in 2003 when the team arrived from Mobile, and I'm glad they didn't bring back the diagonal-name jersey worn in 2012-13. The white jersey could use a maroon shoulder yoke with a black outline as an improvement, but, overall, these jerseys and colours work nicely.

With the Fort Wayne Komets throwing back to a number of eras in their history this season and, now, with Atlanta going back to their original colour scheme, it looks like two ECHL franchises see the value in embracing their roots. That's the thing about bringing back old jerseys: perople identify with them and have memories from the eras in which they were worn while teams can tell those stories again. It never hurts to turn back the clock when doing a rebranding!

If you want to read more about the Gladiators' history, please visit the Georgia Hockey Museum's website where they have an incredible article all about the Gladiators' history among the 15 teams featured! Huge shout-out to Jay Jarvis for putting this site together!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Least Amount Of Risk

The New York Islanders have an interesting franchise history, but their fans have always been partial to the original logo which the team wore in establishing its dynasty from 1979-1983. We know they rallied hard against the Fisherman logo in the 1990s before it was replaced with the original logo, and we've seen other logos land with thuds as Islanders fans made it clear as to which logo they prefer. When the third jersey contest was announced for the 2027-28 season, every option was back in play for fans to choose, and the hope was that the Islanders would see an awesome winner.

The results of the eight-jersey, bracket-style voting ended today, and the Islanders now have themselves a winner for that third jersey.

I'm not unhappy with how the vote ended, but this was literally the best of the eight options and even it's not great. This jersey is the safest option of the eight presented when it comes to the design, and the lighthouse logo has been in demand for a third jersey for quite some time by Islanders fans. The New York Islanders took zero risks.

Am I against this jersey? Not at all. That lighthouse logo is a great logo, and it should look good on the chests of players as a fully-embroidered mark for the New York Islanders. It's infintely better than the "NY" logo, and it certainly has as much charm and fun as the Fisherman. Everyone thinks of islands when one sees a lighthouse.

As you can see on Zigmund Palffy, this lighthouse logo was the shoulder patch on the original Fisherman jerseys, and it has always stood out as one of the better secondary logos, in my opinion, in NHL history. It's colourful, it catches the eye, and it needed to be used again by the Islanders. Whether it works as a long-term primary logo will be a question answwered in 2027-28 when they don these new third jerseys, but it certainly has a shot at warming fans' hearts.

Perhaps this was the jersey that the Islanders needed, though, after taking a big swing with the Fisherman in the 1990s. As was written by Nicholas Hirshon in We Want Fish Sticks, "the logo quickly became a scapegoat for the Islanders' poor play," so the Islanders are going to want to win in the Lighthouse jersey. Otherwise, this new third jersey could establish its own legacy of poor results which the Islanders don't want. Nothing hurts sales more than having a losing team.

I look at the uniqueness of this jersey compared to others in my collection, and there simply isn't enough for me to consider it as one that needs to be added. It's certainly not the Fisherman, it doesn't have that cool factor like the Oilers' alternate jersey did, it doesn't have that eye-catching quality that the Pooh Bear did, and it's not quite as bizarre as the Stars' alternate jersey was. It's solid, but it's going to take something special for the Islanders to see this jersey celebrated as much as their traditional home and road jerseys are.

The popular saying of "no risk, no reward" means that one has to step out of one's comfort zone if one wants to be successful. The Islanders didn't do that here as they stayed safe with colour, stripes, and logos. Yes, they can still make changes to these jerseys before they debut in 2027, but the Lighthouse jerseys feel safe which fits the overall brand of the New York Islanders. Former GM and noted alternate jersey hater Lou Lamoriello would be proud of the effort here.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 726

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, is back in the confines of the UMFM studios for another show this evening, but we won't be joined by Montreal Victoire defender Kati Tabin as she's far too busy to make an appearance. If you're attending her camp, have a great time, but we'll focus on some bigger stories tonight as the world of hockey has some good, some not-so-good, and some absolute treachery happening in it over the last week. There's a pile of stuff to chat about this evening, so settle in for another examination of the game and all its connections on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

They won't be looking for a dolphin like the pet detective shown, but Teebz and Jason will look at the newest gambling-trend-turned-investment-tool with which the financial world is hoping to capitalize. Beyond that madness, they'll discuss Rogers canning the HNiC Punjabi broadcasts, the OHL cracking down on fighting again, Jeff Skinner's new home, Fort Wayne's incredible jerseys, a pro ball player, championships in three leagues, there's finally a name and logo for one team, and whatever else comes across the desk at our hosts. There's lots to discuss tonight on the show, so settle in for an hour of hockey opinions and thoughts on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

If you live outside Winnipeg and want to listen, we have options! The UMFM website's streaming player works well if you want to listen online. We also recommend Radio Garden if you need an easy-to-use online stream. If you're more of an app person, we recommend you use the TuneIn app found on the App Store or Google Play Store.

If you have questions, you can email all show queries and comments to hockeyshow@umfm.com! Tweet me anytime with questions you may have by hitting me up at @TeebzHBIC on Twitter! I'm here to listen to you, so make your voice heard! And because both Teebz and Jason are on the butterfly app where things are less noisy, you can find Teebz here and Jason here on Bluesky!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason chat high-stakes gambling, stupid decisions, expensive fights, Swiss chalets, historical accuracy, pro hits, winning teams, new names, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

We're Gonna Need A Discount Rack

As a guy who has a fairly robust hockey jersey collection, I can tell you that there are many jerseys I never would have in my collection simply because they don't have that certain quality that makes people love them or hate them. For example, the Justin Bieber-designed Toronto Maple Leafs jersey would not be in my collection because it's literally forgettable. Compared to jerseys like the Islanders' Fisherman and the Oilers' Todd McFarlane alternates, the Bieber jerseys simply aren't that great. Be prepared for 32 more jerseys that will likely be disappointments as the NHL and Fanatics will be introducing the Hometown Remix jerseys for each team this season.

Outside of a handful of Reverse Retro jerseys, there aren't many seen at games or being worn by fans because those were also mostly forgettable. The Minnesota Wild certainly have one of the better Reverse Retro jerseys as they tapped into the North Stars' colours, but the majority of the jerseys introduced in that league-wide effort have been mothballed. Let's be honest: they weren't that great.

The NHL and Fanatics released the following statement today.

Do you ever get the feeling that the NHL would slap its logo and its teams' logos on anything it could in order to make a buck? Imagine buying NHL-branded bottled water - "the same kind the pros drink!" - or NHL-branded condoms - "even you can score wearing these!" - just because the NHL licensed it. That's what this Hometown Remix campaign feels like: more junk thrown into the merchandise market.

Yes, people will throw $300 or $400 at these jerseys in order to have the latest and greatest because that proves how big of a fan they are, right? Except that there really isn't any purpose to buying these jerseys if they're going to wear them for one season and then mothball them like the Reverse Retro jerseys. Again, the NHL is bleeding fans of their money by tugging on the ol' civic pride, and I cannot justify throwing my hard-earned dollars at this merchandise.

Maybe we'll get another solid jersey like the Minnesota Wild's alternate jersey in this new offering, but when you consider that the NHL and Fanatics are 1-for-32 with the Reverse Retro jerseys from 2022-23 in terms of teams still using them, a 3% chance of seeing these Hometown Remix jerseys stand the test of time is unlikely.

Maybe if merchandise were cheaper and not so disposable, we'd see more jerseys and t-shirts worn by fans. That's not going to happen ever, though, so save your money when this new cash grab is unveiled. You're going to need every penny to buy network broadcasts of your favorite team's 84-game schedule, and I'm guaranteeing that no one will stop you on the way to the fridge in your kitchen to ask you where you got your Hometown Remix jersey this season.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Reading The Manual

For the last couple of weeks, I've been spending a lot of time reading about, researching, and narrowing down my options for a new HBIC mobile, and my choice of the vehicle you see to the left is a good one! Jokes aside, I didn't buy that car, but I did take possession of a new vehicle today so anyone who knew my old vehicle will likely need to get used to this new one parked in my driveway. Being that I like to know everything about expensive purchases I make, I'm going to spend the evening reading the manuals that came with the vehicle.

No, I'm not listing what I purchased here, but I assure you that this blog contributed nothing to the purchase. What I can tell you, though, is that there is more technology in this car than I've ever had in a vehicle, so I need to figure out what everything does, how it all connects through my phone, and whether or not satellite radio is necessary in this new vehicle. I'm leaning towards no, but we'll see.

I've listened to the NHL Network radio channel they have on SiriusXM and I'm often wondering why I'm listening. There isn't a show on there that is "must-hear radio", so that's one reason I may scrap the subscription. Add in the fact that Howard Stern is dropping to one show per week according to a Page Six report, the playlists for the music stations rarely change, and I have no need for Pitbull's channel, Kelly Clarkson's channel, The Beatles' channel, Alex Cooper's music, Bruce Springsteen's channel, Pearl Jam's channel, the Grateful Dead channel, and so on. No, I'm not staying for Andy Cohen either.

I might show my age here, but I would load up my iPod Nano with all my favorite music and listen to it for hours on road trips. Unless there was something specific on satellite radio that I wanted to hear, there really wasn't a need to have it. I'll admit that I've enjoyed the Howard Stern Show over the years and used it to the listen to the Blue Jays' run to the World Series last season when I was travelling for work, but more commercials on channels and less and less variation is making it hard to justify the cost of satellite radio at this point.

I'll evaluate thst decision moving forward, but, being that the hockey stories are few and far between right now, I'm going to spend this evening getting smarter about all this connected technology so I can have the full experience with my vehicle. According to the first few pages that I've read, Apple's Siri might be useful if it's integrated with the car's technology! See? I learned something already!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!