by Matt DeLaere, Marketing
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| Top: 1921-22 Toronto St. Pats [Image from http://www.greatesthockeylegends.com] Center: 2017 Centennial Classic Jerseys Bottom: 1928-29 Detroit Cougars |
The National Hockey League will kick off celebration of its 100th year with the Centennial Classic at Toronto’s BMO Field on January 1, 2017.
The outdoor game between the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs will take place nearly 90 years to day after the teams (then known as the Cougars and St. Pats, respectively) met for the first time on January 4, 1927.
The special event jerseys for the game, unveiled in late November, feature a modern look with echoes of each team’s heritage. Officially licensed NHL®/NHLPA®name and number kits for these jerseys are now available from Stahls’.
In 1927, Conn Smythe took control of the Toronto St. Pats and changed the team’s name to the Maple Leafs. According to the Maple Leafs official website, Smythe chose the symbol in the hope that the team would “wear it with honour and pride and courage.”
The St. Pats’ sweaters of the late 1920s (shown top, right), green with a white stripe, lend a subtle design influence to Toronto’s Centennial Classic jerseys, which are blue and white, with silver highlights in honor of the league’s (and the team’s) 100th birthday. Inside the collar are the words “Honour. Pride. Courage.” as a tribute to the values Smythe instilled in the franchise.
Detroit’s jerseys also take their cue from that 1927 matchup. The jersey is all-white, with four arm stripes, a nod to the Cougars’ sweaters (shown bottom, right). Three of the stripes are red, with the uppermost stripe being silver, again in commemoration of the league’s centennial. The silver stripe on the right sleeve bears the years 1936, 1937, 1943, 1950, and 1952, while the left sleeve stripe contains 1954, 1955, 1997, 1998, 2002, and 2008 – the 11 years in which the Wings won the Stanley Cup.
Silver also features prominently in the jersey’s crest, replacing white in a special version of the winged wheel logo.
Centennial Classic jerseys are already a hot gift for the holiday season. Help your customers wear their favorite player’s jersey with pride with Official NHL®/NHLPA® player name and number kits from Stahls’.