As a huge hockey fan myself, it's not exactly news when the NHL does something that most of its fans dislike. That's what we call "business as usual." However, there are still certain times when we all have no choice to be, like, "damn, they thought this was a good idea?"
That seems to be the case with this year's NHL All-Star Game jerseys, which Adidas unveiled to the public on Wednesday afternoon. The uniforms feature single-color team logos over a musical staff that runs across the front of the jersey, a nod to the host team in the St. Louis Blues. Like last year, each of the All-Star teams will have a dark gray and and white version of the uniform.
Here's a look:
Your 2020 NHL All-Star jerseys pic.twitter.com/WLaalAy0Va
— Sean Leahy (@Sean_Leahy) January 8, 2020
It's not uncommon for people to turn into harsh critics when it comes to new jerseys, and style is subjective so not everyone usually comes to an agreement upon assessment. That being said, It appears that a whole lot of people dislike these, or at least think they could be significantly better!
These will look great once they finish rendering. https://t.co/PDBZlxFkUr
— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) January 8, 2020
These ummm...well...what's the word I'm looking for here? Suck. https://t.co/YKXRxW2jHZ
— Jordie 🔵 (@BarstoolJordie) January 8, 2020
A good example of colour choice making a big difference in a uniform layout. Darks look great, real Early 1990's snapback vibe to them. Whites, which are literally the same template, look empty, like someone just slapped electrical tape on a t-shirt. https://t.co/q3yIIToICZ
— Jeff Veillette (@JeffVeillette) January 8, 2020
Can't wait to see the finished product!
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) January 8, 2020
Wait, this is the finished product? https://t.co/YasrvaQaFS
why do they bother making these practice jersey quality uniforms? https://t.co/EXq2rOpdO8
— Jim Lyons (@JimmyFausto) January 8, 2020
ok....... but why? https://t.co/kWvsY6SnbP
— Tony X (@soIoucity) January 8, 2020
If I was on the team choosing all-star jersey designs and someone came to me with these, I'd laugh them out of my office, ask for a refund and then send a bill for making me look at them
— Jen (@NHLhistorygirl) January 8, 2020
the All-Star Game is the one event of the year where you could get away with making garish, tacky, looks-like-an-ECHL-promotional-night jerseys and THIS is what you come up with??
— Hannah Stuart (@HockeywthHannah) January 8, 2020
people got paid big bucks to design those wack all-star jerseys and yet i don’t have a girlfriend
— meanie elk (@mannyelk) January 8, 2020
It's NHL All-Star jersey reveal day. I'm sure they won't be terrible, let's take a look. And oh I'm hearing that they're terrible again.
— Hannah (@hburrito92) January 8, 2020
adidas executives brainstorming for the #NHLAllStar game pic.twitter.com/XaAYcVYRcr
— Thomas Welch (@twelcher15) January 8, 2020
Luckily, not EVERYONE hates them.
I like the all-star jerseys. I am prepared to be cancelled.
— Micah Blake McCurdy (@IneffectiveMath) January 8, 2020
Personally, I don't think they're putrid or the worst the NHL has ever had, but they're certainly not good. The big problem here is that only some of the jerseys look solid-to-good while others look downright terrible, and that's mainly due to the single-color team logos. If your team logo is on the darker side, you're probably okay. However, logos using lighter/brighter colors over the gray and white jerseys... woof.
It seems like it would have made a lot more sense to just stick to a fully gray & white theme, like the league did in last year's All-Star Game. Those jerseys looked quite good across the board. It's understandable that the league wanted to try something different this year, but the execution leaves room for desire. Perhaps the logos would look better if the colors were muted a bit.
Anyway, if you want to assault your eyes or make fun of these in action, feel free to watch the NHL All-Star Game on January 25th in St. Louis. Or don't. It's a free country.