The NHL Jets yesterday “revealed sharp-looking home and away jerseys before a crowd of roughly 200 invited media and guests” at a Canadian Air Force base in Winnipeg, according to Ken Wiebe of the WINNIPEG SUN. The primary color on the home jerseys is a "crisp navy blue -- known as Polar Night Blue and found on many Royal Canadian Air Force planes -- while the secondary colour is a lighter blue -- Aviator Blue, which closely resembles the colour worn on the jerseys of the 1948 RCAF Flyers." A “distinguishing feature of the road white jerseys are the Polar Night Blue sleeves, with stripes near the elbow and underneath the numbers.” Jets co-Owner Mark Chipman said, “You try to do a whole bunch of things. You want something that’s unique but you also want it to be simple. I think we captured that. You put it all together and it just seems to fit together.” Wiebe noted the “only so-called damper surrounding all the enthusiasm was that the new jerseys won’t be available for purchase until early October” (WINNIPEGSUN.com, 9/6). The Jets' name and logo “weren't the first choice of the team's new owners but they bowed to public pressure and that meant a last-minute rush to get the logo and jersey's ready for the season.” The colors are “essentially the same as those worn by the original Winnipeg Jets, who left the city in 1996 when the team relocated to Phoenix” (CP, 9/6). Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff said that the Jets “will wear a special commemorative patch on opening night” against the Canadiens on Oct. 9 at MTS Centre. After that, the uniforms “will sport a commemorative inaugural season patch” (WINNIPEG FREE PRESS, 9/7). The WINNIPEG SUN's Wiebe writes the unveiling of the jerseys at an air force base was “fitting.” Wiebe: “This union between the Jets and the military has come under some scrutiny by a certain segment of the population, but you can count me among those who like the look of the logo and are genuinely impressed by the jerseys themselves.” Cheveldayoff said, “The lines are clean, the colours are very sharp and the logo is very distinct. Very simplistic, yet very complex. It can mean a lot of things to a lot of different people” (WINNIPEG SUN, 9/7).
WHAT'S ALL THE HYPE ABOUT? PRO HOCKEY TALK’s Joe Yerdon wrote the “sweaters are nice, but underwhelming.” Yerdon: “With all the build up and the waiting that went into this, coming up with something that’s a bit plain and simple comes off almost as boring but these are good sweaters and a good look all told” (NBCSPORTS.com, 9/6). YAHOO SPORTS’ Sean Leahy wrote, “As much as we would have liked to have the Jets return to their previous jerseys for the full nostalgic effect, we'll give these a bit of a pass, although the shoulder yoke and arm/waist stripes seems a bit much” (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 9/6).
