Detroit Red Wings Jersey Hall Of Fame and Shame
In February 2016, the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche will take to the outdoor ice at Coors Field as part of the Coors Light Stadium Series. The game has got everyone here at Octopus Thrower towers excited and we’re super hyped to see our favorite team take on our rivals from the west.
That inimitable spirit took a slight knock a few days ago when descriptions of the Stadium Series jerseys were leaked. You can see mock-ups based on the descriptions here. Needless to say we don’t like them. I’d print some of the responses we had on Twitter and by email, but this is a family site.
That got us thinking, the Red Wings are known for having one of the most recognisable jersey/logo combinations in sport. But what are our favorite jerseys from Red Wings history? And which, if any would go into our hall of shame? We asked a few of the writers here at The Octopus Thrower to choose their winners and losers from Detroit’s fashion history, so here’s a big thanks to all who contributed.
In no particular order, here are our favorites.
Start with a classic;
The 2009 Winter Classic jersey
Photo Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
The second NHL Winter Classic saw the Detroit Red Wings take to the ice sporting a white and red jersey designed as a throwback to when the team was known as the Detroit Cougars way back in the 1926-27 season; the team’s first season in the NHL.
Taking pride of place in the center of the jersey was an old English letter ‘D’, representing the city of Detroit amongst other things, while the winged wheel logo was relegated to the shoulders.
Personally I like this Jersey, it ain’t my favorite Winter Classic jersey but I get what it represents and it’s still instantly recognisable as being Detroit. Be warned, this isn’t the first time you’ll see this jersey in this article!
What better way to incorporate the spirit of Detroit than with the old English D? It was an instant hit, and a variation you still see sold and worn today. It helps that we toppled the Hawks at Wrigley Field in the game … though I’ve blocked out what happened in the Finals that season. I’ve still yet to get my hands on one of these uniforms, but I really should before it’s too late.
Next: The other classic...
The 2014 Winter Classic jersey:
Jan 1, 2014; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Detroit Red Wings center Pavel Datsyuk (13) receives congratulations from teammates after scoring in a shootout during the 2014 Winter Classic hockey game at Michigan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
We’ve seen many teams take a swing and a miss when producing special jerseys, but this is outstanding. Nobody had a bad word to say about this. The 2014 Winter Classic at the Big House was an amazing event, the result not so much, but whoever designed the jersey here really upper their game. The arched writing and distorted logo and the beige stripes made for a really distinctive sweater while still maintaining red as the main color.
The second Winter Classic jersey used against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Michigan Stadium was a bit better. It is a red sweater with tan trim instead of white. It features was a distorted winged wheel that says Detroit over it. It looks way better than the previous throwback.
In my biased opinion, this was the best Winter Classic Jersey to date. The sweater was a perfect mixture of classic old-time hockey and the modern NHL. You can’t deny how awesome the boys looked out there on the ice with the snow falling at the Big House.
Next: Why fix what ain't broke?
The current home jersey:
Sep 29, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Red Wings right wing Tomas Jurco (26) celebrates his goal in the third period against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Joe Louis Arena. Detroit won 3-0. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
One of, if not the most recognisable jerseys in hockey. Clean, simple, bold. What’s not to love about this? In a league where teams change their jerseys often, this classic design has been mostly unchanged in most of our lifetimes. There has been small tweaks here and there but the template has always stayed the same. Whether CCM or Reebok, the design is a winner.
My favorite jersey is honestly the ones they wear now. I’ve been a hockey fan most my life, but I was too young to remember the 90’s Red Wings and so I never got to see them play in those jerseys much. Yet the jerseys they have now, which they have had since 2007, are what I grew up watching them play in. They won a Stanley Cup in them that I got to see and remember to this day.
Red Home Jersey: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The Red Wings have one of the best and most recognizable logos in all professional sports, so much so that it hasn’t had to be altered much since it’s inception in the mid 1930s. Take that logo and match it with the simple red and white color scheme and you’ve got one of the best looking uniforms in all of sports.
The current home and away jerseys which have been used the longest are classics and cannot be replaced. The logo it has been ranked the 5th best logo in American sports. If you walk down the street people know that’s a Red Wings Jersey.
The CCM sweater is a classic, and takes me back to the nostalgia of the 90s Wings. There’s something about the CCM logo above the name on the back that screams hockey. It seems like there were so many sponsors back then — I remember the classic swoosh that Fedorov brought to the club — but CCM, to me, was always synonymous with hockey.
Have we missed off your favorite, or do you disagree with ours? Join in the conversation below!
Next: Hall of shame
The 2009 Winter Classic jersey:
Photo Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Wait. What?
No I didn’t accidentally copy and paste this. The 2009 Winter Classic jersey really divided opinions within the team.
The first Winter Classic jersey is a throwback to when the Red Wings were the Detroit Cougars. The Red Wings sported a white sweater with a red stripe across the chest and the old English D in the middle. It was a great idea in concept, but i didn’t like the jersey so much.
2009 Winter Classic Jersey: Don’t get me wrong, I love seeing the Red Wings rockin’ the Old English style “D”, but the overall jersey makes me feel just “meh”. I know my opinion on this jersey is probably the minority opinion but like I said, “meh”.
Next: Dishonorable mentions...
Here are a few dishonorable mentions:
Patrick doesn’t like the St. Patrick’s day sweater, and frankly nor do I:
Why? WHY?! There’s no Green in Red Wings! There’s certainly no reason to don the color, even if its St. Paddy’s day. Let the other teams drive merchandise sales with stupid, off color sweaters. There’s no need to sway from the timeless, classic, red and white winged wheel.
John takes issue with stripes:
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Red & White Striped Detroit/Cougars Jersey: Granted the Wings…er I mean Cougars wore this sweater nearly 60 years before I was born, I never liked it. I understand it was a simpler times before fancy logos, but god bless the man who designed the winged wheel.
So does Gwen:
A long, long, LONG time ago the team changed their names to the Detroit Falcons in the 1930 season. They had these God awful red and white striped jerseys that had “Detroit Falcons” in this bright gold/yellow looking color. The team always looked like they were headed to a rugby match more than a hockey game.
Really, any jersey before they were the official Detroit Red Wings in 1932, were terrible jerseys. They always looked like candy canes and and while some crest like the first old English D and the blocked lettered Detroit were cool, there was also the horrendous cougar crest that the Detroit Cougars wore in the 1928-29 season. It looked like something out of a disturbed young kids head when you asked them what they thought the devil looked like.
Next: Wrapping it up
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The current jerseys are ace. I say ‘current’; the design has been around for a long time, but that design is perfect. Both home and on the road, the Red Wings jerseys have a sharp, clean, timeless look. The 2009 Winter Classic jersey really divided opinion while 2014’s effort was universally well received. Anything prior to the Red Wings taking the name was universally hated.
The descriptions that have been leaked about the Stadium Series game leave an awful lot to be desired, especially the diagonal sash/stripe. Sashes are for beauty queens, mayors and Thunderbirds.
Have we missed yours? Or are we just wrong? Shout up below.