The Carolina Hurricanes enter the 2019-2020 season with a new road look, Is it really an improvement over the old, however?
The Carolina Hurricanes had an impressive 2018-2019 season. Not only did they end their decade long playoff drought, but also exceeded everyone’s expectations of the little franchise that could from Raleigh by making it all the way to the Eastern Conference finals.
However, the off-season has been less monumental. Though there was some offer sheet drama for Sebastian Aho and a trade that sent Calvin De Haan to the Chicago Blackhawks being the main news. There was also the acquisitions of Ryan Dzingel via free agency and Erik Haula via trade.
One interesting change the Hurricanes made this off-season changed the look of the team, not in the roster, but in the threads the players wear when they hit the ice. It’s not a change that most of the home fans will see however. As the 2019 off-season draws to a close, the Carolina Hurricanes revealed their new road jerseys for the upcoming season.
Bold. Clean. Canes. https://t.co/c2TprIaLD6 pic.twitter.com/FYp05DUJXy
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) August 20, 2019
More from Puck Prose
- Detroit Red Wings 2023 Rookie Camp Has Plenty of Ups and Downs
- This Columbus Blue Jackets rookie doesn’t want to be forgotten
- 2 trades the Boston Bruins must make to secure the Stanley Cup
- 3 reasons the Avalanche won’t win the Stanley Cup in 2024
- This is a big year for Alex Turcotte and the Los Angeles Kings
Just like the Twitter post says, one word comes to mind when seeing these uniforms for the first time – clean. The new design is striking and simple, with a basic color scheme of red and white, along with the diagonal “Canes” lettering. Previously, the Canes road jersey was a copy of their home jersey, with the black swapped out with white, but with the same logos, numbering and accents.
One major criticism against the new jersey is that it got rid of the Canes iconic “eye of the storm”. That logo was previously front and center on both versions of the jersey, although the third alternate jersey swapped out the logo for dual hurricane flags with the log on the flags.
The new jersey looks more like a college jersey than it does an NHL jersey. However, the Hurricanes’ famous flags do make a cameo appearance on the jersey, as the red band that goes across the bottom.
There’s also a decent resemblance to the New York Rangers alternate jersey. That version similarly features “New York” going across the front diagonally in similar fashion and in a similar font. By no means does anyone accuse the Hurricanes of copying the Rangers look, but it at least proves the new design is rather unoriginal.
While their new road uniform is instantly recognizable, clean and crisp, it seems to lack the identity of the Hurricanes team. Gone is their famous logo, which can be considered one of the most underrated in the NHL. Of course if the Canes start winning a lot of games in them, I’m sure their fans won’t seem to mind.
As for the Hurricanes alternate jersey, with the announcement that they will once again host Hartford Whalers tribute nights, it’s safe to assume they’ll go with the classic whale tail threads for a second season. Of course, they could always go with the dual hurricane flag that’s more recognizable. The Whalers tribute jersey had a mixed, and polarized, reaction from fans across the NHL last season.