Rangers Unveil Winter Classic Threads

Today, the New York Rangers officially unveiled their 2012 Winter Classic sweater. And I'm happy to report that every so-called "leak" along the way proved wrong, leaving us all surprised this afternoon. For the most part.

While no fan concept or Chinese knock-off scored on the details, some of the larger, more obvious ideas are on display here. For example, the jersey is vintage white — in other words, not white. It's got a tie-up collar and a traditional striping pattern.

It's a very simple design but there's something about the oversized stripes that make the players almost look like kids. Not sure if that was intentional. But if it was, it's kind of brilliant. Part of the draw of the outdoor game is to recapture that feeling of children playing on the pond in tattered old sweaters. The vintage white adds to that, making the jerseys look unwashed.

Rangers unveil Winter Classic jerseyMany are likely to cry foul at the notion of the Rangers wearing the shield on their chest. For two short seasons between 1976 and 1978, the team stepped away from the text-only sweaters they'd worn for 50 years. And then of course in the late '90s they introduced the Lady Liberty jerseys, which were quite a hit. But other than that, they've basically used the same uniform design since, well, forever.

Much like the Boston Bruins' Winter Classic jersey from 2010, the Rangers' 2012 edition isn't based on any single design from their history, but is rather a combination of elements from the past spruced up with some new ideas.

Despite that, you have to ask yourself, when you look at it, do you immediately know it's a Rangers jersey? And I'd have to say yes. Regardless of seeing the crest, how can you call this anything but a Rangers sweater? Could be the colors. Could be the shoulders. Whatever it is, it works.

Time for links. In their official release, the Rangers credit the design to a partnership with Reebok. Our friends at the Hockey Uniform Database have the Rangers' complete sweater history on display for you. And you can find a few more pictures of the new threads on the team's Facebook page. And a lot more on Blueshirts United.

And if you've been living beneath a rock, the 2012 NHL Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia between the Flyers and New York Rangers takes place on Jan. 2 at 1 PM ET. Both jerseys are now officially out. (For those keeping score at home, we now have all of the new uniforms expected for the 2011-12 season — that is, unless the NHL breaks out new All-Star threads, which I don't expect.)

Anyway, what are your thoughts on what the Rangers will wear to the Winter Classic? It's close to what we had been expecting. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Rangers' Classic Jersey Coming 11/28

Exactly a week after the Philadelphia Flyers unveiled their 2012 Winter Classic uniform, the New York Rangers have announced they will do the same. The event will be streamed online for fans.

The unveiling is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 28 at 4 PM ET. Details of the jersey have been well guarded, but that hasn't stopped more than a few rumors from making the rounds. One such rumor is this design, which is what I currently believe to be accurate:

Rendering of rumored design of New York Rangers' 2012 Winter Classic jersey / icethetics.info

We'll see on Monday if it proves as true as the Flyers jersey leak.

The following information about the unveiling was posted on the Rangers' website:

Fans can log on to Blueshirtsunited.com and Facebook.com/nyrangers to tune into the live streaming jersey unveiling which will feature select current players and will be hosted by MSG Network talent Dave Maloney and Al Trautwig. Official Winter Classic jerseys will be available for purchase beginning December 5th at Madison Square Garden.

If you're unable to watch the stream, just check back here for pictures on Monday. In the meantime, feel free to share your thoughts about what we should expect for the new sweater.

Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving to all my American readers!

Flyers Revealing New Sweater 11/21

The wait is almost over for the official unveiling of the Philadelphia Flyers' 2012 Winter Classic jersey. According to the NHL, it's happening in just three days.

On Monday, Nov. 21 at 11:30 AM ET, last week's leak will either be proven right or wrong. (But I'm pretty sure it'll be right.) The uniforms will be modeled by players at Citizens Bank Park, home of the outdoor game on Jan. 2, 2012.

Personally, I'm steadfastly standing by this design, which surfaced last Thursday:

We're still waiting on something solid from the Flyer's Winter Classic opponent, the New York Rangers. It doesn't seem like they'll be ready to unveil in time for the Black Friday shopping rush. However, earlier rumors are still holding up, based on T-shirt designs available in the NHL's online store.

Winter Classic T-shirts on sale look a lot like the leaks / shop.nhl.com

Some people refer to these types of tees as "shirseys" — as in a shirt that's meant to resemble a jersey. It doesn't have any of the striping, so it's nothing definitive, but so far the Flyers leaks have been a match.

I wouldn't think the Rangers would wait until game day to unveil the jersey as they'll want to get the word out so fans can buy them before the Winter Classic. But we'll keep waiting. This is actually the longest we've had to wait. In the past, Winter Classic jerseys have been unveiled over the summer at the press announcement, or before the first week of the hockey season.

Share Your Winter Classic Theories

The 2012 NHL Winter Classic is now just 56 days away and we still haven't seen the official jerseys yet. It's a little surprising, but rumor has it we'll see them before this month is out. In that spirit, I thought I'd share what details I've been able to cobble together from rumors and speculation over the last few months.

Regular readers know I don't like to base posts off of speculation, but I have a lot of reason to believe these are very close to what we'll see when the jerseys are officially released.

Rumored Winter Classic 2012 jersey, New York Rangers / icethetics.info

Rumored Winter Classic 2012 jersey, Philadelphia Flyers / icethetics.info

Again, understand these are based on what I believe to be true. Feel free to tell me how wrong I am. Share your thoughts, opinions and relevant links in the comments.

NHL to Announce 2012 Winter Classic

On Monday, Sept. 26 the NHL will make a major announcement from a ballpark in Philly. Why are they beating around the bush? It's the worst-kept secret in hockey.

The league will announce that Citizens Bank Park will play host to the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers for the NHL Winter Classic on Jan. 2, 2012. I think this may be the longest we've had to wait for official word on the annual outdoor game. The press conference usually happens during the summer.

Before I go on, credit where it's due. The Philadelphia sports blog Crossing Broad seems to have been the first with details, such as the confirmation of the new Winter Classic logo and a number of other details.

Yesterday, they posted a logo found on a fan-operated Winter Classic Facebook page. While they couldn't initially confirm its legitimacy, it sure looked like the real thing. Later in the day more details started to emerge, including a YouTube video labeled as the "official teaser" for the 2012 Winter Classic. It featured the new logo at the end.

Winter Classic presser preview / Matt GelbThen came this photo of the Citizens Bank Park scoreboard from Philadelphia Inquirer writer Matt Gelb. I assume there was some testing being done in advance of Monday's press conference. Either that, or someone punched up a graphic they shouldn't have.

Either way, it proves the Winter Classic logo is legitimate while also giving us a sneak peek at the throwback logos to be used by each team. For the Flyers, no surprises. They haven't changed their logo since they joined the NHL in 1967. The Rangers, on the other hand, have gone through a number of iterations of their classic shield mark. This particular shield design was used by the Blueshirts between 1926 and 1947.

Now the jersey speculation can truly begin. There's almost no doubt in my mind the Flyers will stick with their current orange home sweater. It's based on their original look and it's as retro as they're going to get.

For the Rangers, there's a little wiggle room. According to NHLUniforms.com, the Rangers never wore a white jersey until 1951. And since then, the only one they've used that didn't resemble what's still worn to this day was in 1976 and 1977 when the shield was used as a crest. But I don't see them going that route.

Instead, may we'll see a break from tradition. The first Winter Classic in 2008 was the only time the home team has worn white out in the elements. Will the Flyers don white again in 2012, as they did in 2010 when they played the Bruins at Fenway? If so, it would allow the Rangers to simply use their current dark blue retro third jersey, meaning we wouldn't be treated to any new uniforms at all.

Of course, even if the Flyers wore their home orange, the Rangers could still sport their regular road whites. Either that or they could introduce a white version of their new third. It's hard to say for sure right now. We should know on Monday. But I don't imagine we'll be all that surprised.

Should we expect one or two of these jerseys to appear at the 2012 Winter Classic?

What do you guys think? Are my expectations too conservative? Think the Rangers and Flyers have something special in mind that we haven't thought of yet? Speculate away!