Blue on the Schedule

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The Pittsburgh Penguins will unveil their 2011 Winter Classic sweater later this month and plan to wear it more than once this season.

Yesterday, the Penguins also released a third jersey schedule for 2010-11. The powder blue duds will hit the ice 10 times this season, including tonight's debut, while the yet unreleased Winter Classic sweater will see action twice beyond New Year's Day.

Here's how the schedule shakes out for the third jersey:

  • Fri., Oct. 15 - vs NY Islanders
  • Sat., Oct. 30 - @ Carolina
  • Wed., Nov. 17 - vs Vancouver
  • Sat., Nov. 27 - vs Calgary
  • Mon., Dec. 6 - vs New Jersey
  • Sun., Dec. 26 - @ Ottawa
  • Sat., Jan. 8 - vs Minnesota
  • Sat., Jan. 22 - vs Carolina
  • Wed., Feb. 23 - vs San Jose
  • Sun., Mar. 27 - vs Florida

Note that the powder blue sweater will be worn twice on the road against Carolina and Ottawa. Both of these teams have black thirds and red homes. Think we could see a night or two without white sweaters? That would be a treat.

Additionally, the release tells us the Penguins will unveil their new Winter Classic threads later this month, but doesn't cite a specific date. Icethetics has it on good authority they will be dark blue.

  • Sat., Jan. 1 - vs Washington
  • Thu., Feb. 10 - vs Los Angeles
  • Sat. Mar. 12 - vs Montreal

This new sweater will see action at least twice after the outdoor game at Heinz Field. And more than likely, it will be the Pens' new third jersey in 2011-12.

Panthers Promoting Throwback Nights

The Florida Panthers will be holding three Throwback Nights this season, according to the team's season ticket packages.

Panthers season ticket holder Brian E. wrote in yesterday to let us know about about the events, which haven't yet been explained by the team. But we can only hope it means the red jersey will make a brief but welcome comeback.

Panthers celebrating Throwback NightsHere are the dates:

  • Tue., Dec. 7 - vs Colorado
  • Sat., Jan. 15 - vs New Jersey
  • Thu., Mar. 17 - vs Toronto

The Dec. 7th game against the Avalanche has been dubbed "Throwback to 1996," referencing the only season in which the Panthers made it to the Stanley Cup Final. Unfortunately, they were swept by the Avs, but making it that far is pretty respectable in itself.

It seems obvious that the Panthers would use the old red sweaters based on the photos used on the tickets. Plus, it's the only thing they could "throw back" to after only 17 years of existence. However, "Throwback Night" may not necessarily refer to the uniforms. It's entirely possible it could just be an in-arena promotional thing with special appearances by former players and such.

We'll have to just wait and see, but how great would it be to see the Cats back in red?