Maybe they're insulated

If you didn't get a ticket for the NHL Winter Classic on New Year's Day at Rich Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., you'll have to watch the outdoor contest from the comfort of home.

Members of the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins, however, as well as anyone lucky enough to snag a ducat from someone other than a money-grubbing ticket broker, will likely have to battle the elements.

A novelty within the game, I believe, will be the retro uniforms that both teams will sport for the game. The Sabres will wear the old-time fan favorite white, blue and gold. The Penguins, an apt nickname for a team playing in a winter day's game, will wear their baby-blue get-ups.

Having endured my share of teeth-chattering, snow-filled days as a kid growing up in the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains in rural Cattaraugus County, here's hoping that Reebok eschews the form-fitting, perspiration-wicking fabric of the RBK Edge jerseys in favor of down, fleece or, at the very least, flannel.

San Jose batting .500

Maybe it's just me, but I'm disappointed in the San Jose Sharks. How a team can go from a tremendous upgrade in its logo to these butt-ugly RBK Edge jerseys is beyond comprehension. There's something hideous about that burnt orange striping.

Calling an audible

Rather than make my third trip to Brandon in five days, I've called off today's planned trip to the Tampa Bay Lightning's training camp. I've had pretty good luck so far, so why push it? Besides, April is many moons away.

In the meantime, I'll try to catch up on new RBK Edge jerseys:

~ The Dallas Stars, in town this week, adopted a retro look for their home jerseys, returning to the black sweater and a wordmark, rather than the star, for their primary logo. For card hounds, this is yet another jersey that renders cards useless for signing.

~ As expected, there were few surprises in St. Louis, Phoenix and Edmonton: changes to sleeve striping and elimination of striping along the bottom.

San Jose unveiled its new jerseys on Monday.

NHL's fashion shows

The Atlanta Thrashers have apparently followed the Minnesota Wild's lead by transforming last season's third jersey into their new home jersey when the team, using Pascal Dupuis and Alexei Zhitnik as models, unveiled their new RBK Edge look earlier today.

Last week, the Wild opted for their Iron Range Reds, perhaps the gaudiest jersey in the NHL, for their home-ice contests.

The Thrashers weren't the only ones rolling out their updated designs:

~ The Philadelphia Flyers also used training camp to unveil their new look for the season. As you'll see, there's no major changes, other than within the sleeves.

~ The opening practice of the New Jersey Devils' training camp this morning brought more than new faces.

The Chicago Blackhawks, who showed off their new duds Friday afternoon, stayed with their traditional look

~ Hockey fans at the Honda Center in Anaheim got a look at new jerseys for the Ducks and the visiting Los Angeles Kings in their preseason opener Thursday night.

~ The Colorado Avalanche showed off their new work clothes on Wednesday.

~ In Toronto, it's simplicity.

~ Thanks to Grae, a faithful reader and Hurricanes fan, I now know that Carolina not only unveiled their new look earlier this month, but a logo marking the organization's 10th anniversary in North Carolina as well. I remember some of those early games at the Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum, when a good crowd was more than 5,000 people and you could get coupons for a free game ticket as Subways.

A number of teams are taking the wraps off their updated looks:

Friday: Dallas Stars (updated Sept. 17)
Saturday: Phoenix Coyotes (updated Sept. 17)
Saturday: St. Louis Blues (updated Sept. 15)
Sunday: Edmonton Oilers (updated Sept. 17)
Monday: San Jose Sharks (updated Sept. 18)

AHL's new looks

Lest we forget that the new season also means updated looks for American Hockey League teams, you might want to take a look at this feature at ahl.com. This RBK Edge jersey belongs to the Lake Erie Monsters, a first-year farm club for the Colorado Avalanche.

Too Wild?

Now that the Minnesota Wild have unveiled their new RBK Edge jerseys, I'm left to wonder whether the Iron Range Red home version, left, a variation of last season's third jersey,
is more garish than the Phoenix Coyotes' brick red. The tie-down collar is cool, though. Too bad the road jersey lacks one.

Two teams unveil their new looks in the days ahead:

Chicago Blackhawks
Friday, Sept. 14 (last question in Dale Tallon Q&A)

St. Louis Blues
Saturday, Sept. 15

Just another among many

The Pittsburgh Penguins became the latest NHL team to show off new duds earlier today when they trotted out their latest look. What surprised me, though, was just how many designs the Penguins have had since 1967. I counted 22 different jerseys within a three-picture span in this slideshow. That's quite a bit, don't you think?

Nice touch in Calgary

A tip of the helmet to the Calgary Flames for adding a touch of Canadian heritage to their new-look RBK Edge jersey. The jerseys, unveiled yesterday, feature the Canadian and Alberta provincial flags (at left) as the shoulder patches. While most teams use secondary logos there, it's nice to know that at least one team remembers the roots of the game.

Montreal also unveiled its so-called new look yesterday. Other than the NHL crest at the neck, I don't see much of a change. Do you? Besides, changing the Canadiens' look would be sacrilegious. There are just some things that should be left as they are. The Habs' jersey is one of those.

Three other NHL teams will unveil their jerseys in the days ahead:

Minnesota Wild: Sept. 7

Chicago Blackhawks: Sept. 14 (Last question in this Q&A with GM Dale Tallon)

St. Louis Blues: Sept. 15

A rainy afternoon

I don't know about you, but it's been raining on and off down here in Tampa Bay all day long. Given the threat of lightning (hence the team's name), you don't dare head outside.

I'd watch the Florida Gators' whupping of Western Kentucky, but the last I saw it was in a fourth-quarter weather delay. The Gators were winning, 49-3.

It's too bad, though, that I've already stumbled upon these hockey gear sites. I guess I'll have to go hockey surfing and find some more:

Reebok unveils its 2007-08 lineup. From Pittsburgh's Sid the Kid to Calgary's Dion Phaneuf to Vancouver's Roberto Luongo (above), it's all RBK Edge, all the time. Sure, it's nothing but advertising, but you can download some cool wallpapers. What I can't figure out, though, is why Reebok invested money in Toronto's Andrew Raycroft.


Not only does Calgary's Jarome Iginla receive top-shelf treatment, but did you know Anaheim's Ryan Getzlaf, New Jersey's Zach Parise and Los Angeles' Mathieu Schneider are among the other players featured at Easton's site. You can find postcards, wallpapers and screensavers there, too.

I have to admit that I was surprised to see Tampa Bay's Johan Holmqvist as a poster boy for Sher-Wood Hockey. Given that Buffalo's Jocelyn Thibault, who'll back up Ryan Miller, and Pittsburgh's Dany Sabourin, the No. 2 to Marc-Andre Fleury, are also featured, I'm not so sure that Lightning backup Marc Denis might have been more relevant. Then again, maybe Sher-Wood knows something we don't. Sorry, no freebies.

New-look West

About every other day, it seems, another NHL team takes the wraps off its new RBK Edge look for the upcoming season. A couple days ago, the Vancouver Canucks showed off their new duds. Perhaps, they should waited a little longer.

First off, what's with the city name across the front of the jersey? What did the Canucks do? Forget where they came from? In that vein, why not use the letter "V" for the striping on each sleeve, a nod to the Canucks' butt-ugly clown uniforms worn from the late 1970s to mid 80s?

I do like the colors, though. That blue-and-green scheme evokes a more Pacific Northwest, or as the team likes to say British Columbia, feel than the most recent dark blue, maroon and silver. Still, though, I find it a little silly to have the "Vancouver" on the chest.

Though the biggest change to the logo is color (harkening to the days when Vancouver settled on Dale Tallon after missing out on Gilbert Perreault), the team's secondary logos, and especially a new-look Johnny Canuck, continue the theme.

Looking ahead, the Calgary Flames will unveil their new look on Sept. 4. How big is this in the Canadian heartland? Pretty big, I imagine. You'll need tickets to get in. Thankfully, they're free. All they're offering now is a glimpse at the tie-down collar.

Worth a look, I suppose

For those of us, for whatever reason, who were unable to attend the Ottawa Senators' new RBK Edge jersey unveiling last week, the defending Eastern Conference champion has been kind enough to provide a photo slideshow tour of the team's new look at its Web site.

No matter what they do, though, the new jerseys aren't worth the prices.

More new looks

The Ottawa Senators unveiled their new jerseys and logos yesterday, opting for a sharper, more determined look for the Roman soldier. With the announcement, Ottawa becomes the fifth team (Boston, Columbus, Ottawa, San Jose and Washington) to launch a new logo, in conjunction with the new RBK Edge uniform system, for the upcoming 2007-08 season.

The new jerseys will also feature a nod to the team's past. The shoulder patches will have a retro “O” symbol on a striped background, a tribute to the original Ottawa Senators.

Senators fans will get their first on-ice look at the jerseys when the team plays host to the Washington Capitals on Sept. 20.

Looking ahead, the Tampa Bay Lightning will unveil their new logo and jerseys this Saturday during the team's IceFest. In Vancouver, the Canucks will show off their new jerseys Aug. 29.

Down here in Florida, the Panthers unveiled their new jerseys during their alumni game on July 28. That's Nathan Horton, left, modeling the road jersey and Stephen Weiss showing off the home jersey.

While these new looks may tempt some fans into dropping some of their hard-earned money for a jersey, I believe a better value can be found in scooping up last season's looks. Chances are you'll be able to get them at a discount.

Not too long ago, I bought Colorado Avalanche and Montreal Canadiens replica home jerseys for just $85. You'll spend considerably more, say about $150, for a new RBK Edge replica jersey. Bottom line, though, it's your call.