5 Most Memorable Jerseys in NHL History

We all love hockey. For 82+ games a season, we bleed our teams colors and for a lot of us, we don those same colors on our backs while attending every game we can or even while just gracing the couch in our homes. Hockey is a game of passion, pride, and respect. Every gameday, our favorite players strap on their gear, and hide it underneath the best uniform in all of sports: the hockey sweater.

These pieces of cloth aren’t just another uniform with a name and a logo, they’re delicately crafted to display a teams identity. From the bad to the great, new to old, we’ve seen hundreds of jerseys make their way onto the ice. Let’s take a look at five of the most memorable jerseys in NHL history.

Hartford Whalers

Ron Francis, Hartford Whalers

The Whalers had one of the most unique color schemes in all of sports. Green and blue together aren’t colors we typically see in the current NHL, or in all of professional sports. Not only were the Whalers green and blues eye catching, but the logo was simple, yet clever. For those unaware, the logo tastefully incorporates an “H” and a “W” all while including a whale’s tale to separate the two. If only the Whalers would come back, or the Carolina Hurricanes bring back the lost navy and green, we’d all be able to bask in the glory of the Whale again.

Chicago Blackhawks

Blackhawks Jersey
(Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports)

This is what I consider, the perfect jersey. The Indian head logo is one of the best in sports and the red and black trim perfectly compliment the nine colors that make up the Blackhawks logo. White jerseys without a lot of color look clean. They easily could have included some of those other colors, but sticking to the small touches of black and red, with the crossed tomahawk “C” make the Blackhawks sweater one of the best in the League.

Quebec Nordiques

Shawn Anderson
Shawn Anderson during the 1990-91 season with the Quebec Nordiques.

The Quebec Nordiques are another team that are unfortunately no longer in the League, yet live in hockey glory with a great sweater. Troves of Quebec fans still makes their presence known while donning their blue, white & red in hopes of seeing their beloved franchise return. The team’s name is not only a reference to the Ungava region in the province of Quebec, but it’s also represented by the igloo and hockey stick logo. Another great feature of the Nordiques sweaters is the inclusion of fleur de lis rather than the typical solid stripes around the bottom of the jersey. A different take on the standard sweater, but one that is always discussed among the League’s best.

Boston Bruins

Brad Marchand
Brad Marchand (Greg M. Cooper-US PRESSWIRE)

The Bruins are the only team on the list that use black as a main color in their jerseys. While others have hints of it, the Bruins fully embrace the dark color. The black, gold, and white trim are perfect compliments to the logo that shares the same trio of colors. The spoked B wheel is a logo that dates back to 1948 when we saw the first variation of the current design. Unlike the Whalers and Nordiques, the Bruins  logo represents the city in which they represent, and their namesake. Nothing cryptic about it, it’s just a classic, simple logo. While many teams seem to use black as their “intimidation/sleek” factor, the Bruins gold balances out any hints of such motives. It’s a clean look that will remain timeless across the National Hockey League.

Montreal Canadiens

Max Pacioretty
(Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports)

Limiting this list to just five is a difficult task. Not only are there many others that come to mind, but all Original Six teams have sweaters that can easily be mentioned. When you think of hockey, one of the first logos that comes to mind is the red, blue, and white “H” enclosed in the large “C” of the Canadiens logo. Standing for the French “le Club de hockey Canadien,” this iconic logo has been used for almost 100 years. The solid blue with white trim wrapping its way around the red jersey proves again how simplicity continues to be the key to a good looking sweater.

1 thought on “5 Most Memorable Jerseys in NHL History”

  1. Great piece you have here, Reagan. It’s incredibly hard to limit the list to just five. The classic New York Rangers in diagonal across the sweater can never be duplicated and the wheeled wing of the Red Wings sweater is another great classic. All in all, I agree with this list, so, I can’t complain

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