The Hockey News Is Ranking The NHL Logos From 30 to 1

[sabresfaninthesouth]

ooooookaaaaaay

We don't let Edward Frasier near any sharp objects, got it? Poor guy is obviously visually impaired.

Is he a zoologist or something in real life?

By my count the only teams with animals in the logos that he doesn't have there are Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and Vancouver.

 

[Hank Kingsley]

If Chicago isn't #1 it's rigged.

 

[Darkstone42]

Dallas's logo is better now than it used to be, but it's still not very good.

 

[DragonfromTO]

No. 6: Dallas Stars

 

[dash]

^

That is so wrong that it is right.

 

[Hank Kingsley]

^

That is so wrong that it is right.

Mr Copious Amounts....

 

[pixburgher66]

So, even the dissenting opinion puts them top 10? Crikey. I like the new one a lot more than the old one, but still. Nope.

 

[IPostedWhat]

What...no one reads the History of the Logos?

Of course, the series concluded with one of the more controversial goals of all time, when Brett Hull appeared to have his foot in the crease. That stupid rule is, thankfully, long gone from the rule book, but this highlight still enrages Sabres fans. Should it have counted? We asked a Sabres fan by the name IPW, who was lifting 100lbs over his head at the time, and he emphatically said "Fuck Dallas!"

 

[IPostedWhat]

No. 5: Buffalo Sabres

Down the stretch we come.

We started from Carolina and now we’re here, heading into the top five of our NHL logo rankings. On Friday, we’ll reveal which one we’ve ranked No. 1 (though you’ll be able to figure it out on Thursday), but we start the week at No. 5.

Thankfully, the Buffalo Sabres moved away from the Buffaslug a few years ago – and hopefully never look back. The return to an original look was one welcomed with open arms by just about everyone in and outside of Buffalo for good reason – the current logo is a homerun.

Sure, sometimes Buffalo sports teams are reviled for relying too much on the animal the city is named after in their logos, rather than using something related to the team’s nickname. The NFL’s Bills have forever been guilty of this. The Sabres used a buffalo as their logo for about 14 years in the ’90s and ’00s – but the current throwback look integrates both the city and team name into the design.

We despise when a team needs to spell out its entire name in the logo, but the Sabres get around this. Their full team name appears in the logo, but it’s represented by images instead of text. It’s as if this logo came as a result of a game of Pictionary. This design gets the job done. It represents the city in a way it all its sports team do, while also pointing to the team’s nickname. The blue and yellow colors are also easy on the eyes.

HISTORY OF THE SABRES LOGO
When the first Buffalo owners, Seymour Knox III and Northrup Knox, had to come up with a name for their NHL team, they wanted something different and unique. Bisons, a popular nickname for teams in the city, was not an option. A contest was opened up and the winning name came from Toronto filmmaker Harry Cole.

So, when Buffalo hit the ice for the first time in 1970, they did so as the Sabres, a name the team says is “renowned as a clean, sharp, decisive and penetrating weapon on offense, as well as a strong parrying weapon on defense.” This is the logo that comes to mind when you think of the French Connection or May Day.

The familiar blue, gold and white color scheme was settled on and wouldn’t be changed for 26 years. The Sabres made their first Stanley Cup final in 1974-75, their fifth season of existence, losing to the Flyers in six games.

The first major change to the Sabres’ primary logo came as the team moved away from The Aud and into Marine Midland Arena (now known as the First Niagara Center). The Sabres had made it past the first round of the playoffs just once in the previous 13 seasons, but had a two-time Vezina winning goalie who was about to take this team to new heights.

In 1996-97, the Sabres introduced a new logo and color scheme. They moved away from a blue and yellow look in favor of black (of course), red and silver.

The swords in the logo were removed and replaced with the head of a buffalo. Now, the horned design is a nice-looking logo, but the team name isn’t “Buffaloes” it’s “Sabres” and there was absolutely no connection to that in the team’s second image.

But this logo represented a golden age of sorts for the Sabres. Hasek would go on to win four more Vezinas between 1997 and 2001, plus two Hart Trophies. The Sabres lost in the second round of the playoffs in their first year using this logo, before making it to the conference final in 1998. In 1999, they reached their second Stanley Cup final, losing to the Dallas Stars on a controversial Brett Hull overtime goal.

Two seasons after the NHL lost a year to a lockout, the Sabres again went through a redesign. The return to their blue and yellow color scheme was a good call, but the design is recognized as one of, if not the worst logo in professional sports history.

Deemed the Buffaslug, this travesty was the result of a combined effort from the Sabres, NHL and Reebok. Its designer, Kristopher Brazen, used the NFL’s San Diego Chargers lightning bolt as an inspiration for something quick and powerful. The leg-less, tail-less buffalo was selected by the team, which it said combined the original logo with the second one. Fans hated it and Brazen felt terrible about that fact. The logo would eventually set off protests to bring death to the slug, which were ultimately successful. But not until after this thing was used on an NHL uniform for four seasons.

If this ranking took place when Buffalo was using the cashew nut, the Sabres would have given the Carolina Hurricanes a run for their money at No. 30.

In 2010-11, the Sabres went old-school, reverting to a look they never should have gotten rid of in the first place.

Though the current Sabres logo throws back to the original look, it comes with a few minor adjustments. The silver that was introduced on the 1996 logo remains as an outline on the current design, while the yellow circle is thicker. This retouched look is great on jerseys, but it also represents the team and city well. So far, the Sabres haven’t found any success since switching back to this logo, but with the way GM Tim Murray is building up his future assets, Buffalo is on the right path back to contention.

By 2020, the Sabres may be ready to win their first Stanley Cup with this logo.

Dissenting opinion: “I respect the use of the crossing Sabres, but I’m fed up with Buffalo sports teams incorporating the buffalo itself into their logos. Just admit it: you are the Buffalo Buffaloes. That should knock this team down several pegs in my eyes.” - Matt Larkin

 

[IPostedWhat]

“I respect the use of the crossing Sabres, but I’m fed up with Buffalo sports teams incorporating the buffalo itself into their logos. Just admit it: you are the Buffalo Buffaloes. That should knock this team down several pegs in my eyes.” - Matt Larkin

 

[forty_three]

IPW, you of all people should realize that the city is named after Chicken Wings and not that big cow-beast. No reason for it to be in every logo.

Sheesh.

 

[IPostedWhat]

IPW, you of all people should realize that the city is named after Chicken Wings and not that big cow-beast. No reason for it to be in every logo.

Sheesh.

 

[IPostedWhat]

No. 4: Detroit Red Wings

Coming in at No. 4 in our logo rankings is the Winged Wheel of Detroit, which has been a long-standing symbol in the NHL – and it has roots in Montreal.

The Detroit NHL team hasn’t always been called the Red Wings. They were called the Falcons and the Cougars before James Norris purchased the team in 1932.

With the name Red Wings came a logo that has stood the test of time and represents a perfect fit with the Motor City. The crisp, clean, detailed, yet simple red and white look has only been modified a couple times in team history – and not since 1949.

Because longevity was not a factor in our rankings, we had to look at this logo again for the first time – and we still loved it. Never was there any chance of the Red Wings falling out of the top five. The only dissenting opinion we had was that it should have been higher than No. 4.

HISTORY OF THE RED WINGS LOGO
On May 15, 1926 an NHL franchise was awarded to a group from Detroit. The team purchased the roster of the Western League’s Victoria Cougars, who won the Stanley Cup in 1925.

At first, the Detroit NHL team was named the Cougars after the team its players were coming from. The Cougars struggled right off the bat, though, going 12-28-4 in their first season in Michigan. They were also a money-losing franchise and played home games out of Windsor until they moved into the brand new Olympia Stadium in 1927-28.

In 1928-29, the team reached the playoffs for the first time, but the name Cougars wouldn’t last much longer.

Trying to change their fortunes, the Cougars name was changed in 1930-31 to the Detroit Falcons. This name also didn’t have much staying power. Detroit continued to have financial difficulty until 1932 when James Norris Sr. bought the team, which had already been put into receivership. Get a good look at this Falcons “logo” because it only stuck around for two seasons.

Norris came from an athletic background, having played for the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association’s Winged Wheelers sporting club. That organization won the very first Stanley Cup in 1893, before the NHL’s professional ranks came along, and was the first dynasty competing for hockey’s new big prize. Because of this connection, Norris and Adams decided to change the name of their NHL team.

As you can see in this picture, Norris and Adams took inspiration from the Montreal winged wheel logo and used their own version for their newly named Red Wings team.

The original Detroit red wing logo lasted for two seasons before it went through a redesign. In 1934-35, the Red Wings introduced a look that had a much bigger wheel than we’re accustomed to and they found their first success with this logo. In 1936, the Red Wings won their first Stanley Cup and then defended it in 1937. They would win again in 1943.

This logo was used for 13 seasons and would be updated again shortly after World War II in 1948-49.

The Red Wings introduced this logo in the late-’40s – and they haven’t looked back.

In their first season with the new design, Detroit lost in the Stanley Cup final to Toronto, but turned around and defeated the New York Rangers in the final the very next season. This was the start of a solid run for the franchise, which would win another three Stanley Cups between 1952 and 1955. Little did anyone know that ’55 championship would mark their last title until 1997, when a new generation of Red Wings set off a modern dynasty that is gasping for air today.

The reason why this logo has gone untouched for so long is that it’s a thing of beauty. No wonder we ranked it No. 4 in the NHL.

Dissenting opinion: “To me, fourth isn’t high enough for the Winged Wheel. It passes every logo test imaginable. It’s beautiful, with intricate artistic detail on the wing and wheel, yet it’s somehow simple and uncluttered, too. It even ties to the Motor City’s roots. And if you don’t like judging the logo on its look, it passes the sentimental test. It’s as old-school and iconic as it gets. A top-two symbol in the NHL in my books.” – Matt Larkin

 

[IPostedWhat]

And just like that, the Yotes make the Top 3.

 

[dash]

And just like that, the Yotes make the Top 3.

 

[forty_three]

And just like that, the Yotes make the Top 3.

 

[Darkstone42]

Top five for the Sabres and Red Wings' logos is correct, of course, but both below the Coyotes?

It's not an exciting logo, not unattractive, but even though it looks good, and there may be some callback to Picacho Peak in the way it's oriented, it's not a top ten logo, much less top three.

 

[KennyBanyeah]

This list sucks. And not in the good Las Vegas way either.

 

[mattola]

And just like that, the Yotes make the Top 3.

 

[BoSox Fan]

always liked the Whalers first logo, 1972 when they were the New England Whalers and played in the Boston Gahden.


http://www.brassbonanza.com/hcc/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/1972-New-England-Whalers-Logo.jpg

(I will learn how to post these later.)

Back when three team played at the Garden. Bruins, Whalers and Boston Braves (Bruins AHL team)