Post-Olympic Extras

Had a few leftovers from the Olympic Spirit series that ran during the Vancouver Games.

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Dallas Hicks	By far the most popular part of the series was Dallas' flag-based jersey concepts for Finland, Sweden and Norway. Now he's tackling Canada with the same principle in mind. White in the middle with a red maple leaf (in the form of the classic Team Canada crest) and red sleeves to mimic the red stripes on either side. He's also put the Canadian flag itself on the sleeves.
Connor Hanley	Here's another Canadian concept, this time from Connor. The first thing I noticed was the merging of two classic sweaters — those belonging to the oldest Canadian NHL franchises, the Canadiens and Maple Leafs. Obviously, the maple leaf on the crest belongs to Toronto and the striping across the chest comes direct from Montreal. Aside from that, it's not a bad look. Just needs to be a little more original.
Jason Pires	I don't know when was the last time Portugal sent a hockey team to the Olympics (if ever), but I'm sure it wasn't recently. Still, Jason has sent in this Portuguese sweater for our enjoyment.
Ethan Proulx	Another nation not seeing ice hockey action in Vancouver was South Korea. But why should that stop Ethan? Here is his attempt. It's a little busy, but definitely one of a kind.
Matt McElroy	Now we finish where we started — Team USA. Matt submitted this concept. I actually like it better than the current blue United States jersey. That one's a little dark. At least this has a lot of white and red in it.

That wraps things up for the Olympic series. More in 2014!

Olympic Spirit, Finale

I promised one final Olympic concept post. I meant to have it ready Sunday, but as you can see time sort of got away from me. So here's some of the last of the international artwork series.

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John B.	The last three Olympic Spirit posts have opened with a Team USA concept. That's not really fair is it? So here's John's attempt at jerseys for Canada. And yes, that is the Toronto maple leaf in red on the front of the home and road jerseys. The alternate design, which kind of makes me think of the Devils, features the Canadian coat of arms. A nice effort, but I think one of the keys to the maple leaf on the Canada jersey is that it keeps you from having to spell out Canada at the same time.
Jack Gambro	Now we can get to the United States. Jack put together these simple but bold sweaters. That is a lot striping going on there on the sleeves. Not bad at all.
John B.	Here's a new look for Norway. John's replaced the traditional blue on the flag with a powder blue more reminiscent of the Penguins' throwback third. He's also got some interesting striping on the shoulders of that blue jersey.
Howie Crawford	Howie's back with a new look for the Swiss. He's added black and put the white cross front and center. Too much?
John B.	John has one more concept to share — for a nation that's never had an ice hockey team. Go Jamaica!

It's not over yet. In the next update to this post, I'll add all of the remaining Olympic artwork for your enjoyment. Stay tuned for that.

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Classic makes a comeback. 3.8.10

Olympic Spirit, Part II

This is an extension of Thursday's post. Concept art has just been flying in over the last couple of days and some of it is pretty awesome!

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Glen Cuthbert	Glen put together this blast from the past. Call me crazy, but this would be an awesome alternate jersey. Much better than the U.S.'s New York Rangers-based third. Plus, that's just a great all around crest. Where has it been all these years?
Matt Marczel	While we're on the United States, Matt is looking for a return to something a little more recent. Personally, I think USA Hockey needs a new logo.
Jared LeBlanc	Jared has put together concepts for several countries, including this Canadian one I really like. The black goes away, as it should, and another shade of red is added for contrast. I'm not sure so about the alternate jersey. May be a little too red. That's Russian territory, right?
Jared LeBlanc	Now, I take back what I said yesterday about Elias' Swiss design. Nothing against it, but this is just too cool. At first glance, it may seem plain — which is what I accused the current Swiss jerseys of being — but really take another look. That's just a really sharp design.
Jared LeBlanc	The only one of Jared's concepts I'm not crazy about is this one. Sweden arguably has the best jerseys in this year's tournament, but I feel like this re-imagining takes away from that.

I've still got more artwork waiting in the wings. Keep checking back for updates!

Update on Sunday · Feb 21 · 2010 | 5:14 PM PST by Chris

As promised, I've got more international concept art to share with you this evening as we all enjoy the U.S. and Canada here in the prelims. As I write this, they're getting the second period underway.

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Jared LeBlanc	The prolific Jared LeBlanc didn't leave out the United States in his collection of Olympic-flavored uniform artwork. Here's his set with a dark blue third jersey. I don't care much for the USA Hockey logo — and I'm glad to see it's nowhere to be found at the Vancouver Games...
Eric Westhaver	...But I do like the U.S. shield used in 1976. Eric Westhaver has worked up full uniform designs not just for the U.S. and Canada but pretty much every other team in these Olympics. So rather than displaying them all here, I'd recommend you check out his online gallery. He's got a lot of uniform designs on display, including alternate jerseys, for all 13 countries represented in Vancouver. He's even included his player template for anyone interested.
Matt McElroy	Now for something a little different. China may not have fielded a men's team this year but that hasn't stopped Matt from thinking outside the box and submitting this design. Very cool sleeve design and interesting to see the player's number on his pants. Certainly something I've never seen before.
Brendan Anderson	Kazakhstan didn't qualify for the 2010 Olympics either but Brendan has put together this rather unique design based off the national flag. It's actually pretty cool. When was the last time you saw a hockey uniform in those colors? (And don't tell me about the Seals unless you can prove you went to a game.)

Keep the concepts coming. I'll continue posting Olympic-themed artwork throughout February!