mighty ducks

The NHL has some of the best uniforms in sports. From the originality of the Original Six, to some great modern jerseys, the NHL has some of the best looks in sports. However, like with all great fashions, in order to get the great jerseys in hockey, there have to be numerous failures. Whether it’s trying something new with designs or colors, or modifying the logo, some jerseys should have been just left on the drawing board. Being a hockey fan, I’ve seen my fair share of bad jerseys throughout the years. Here is my list, but there are certain rules to this list. First, it will only be NHL teams, I could do a whole list on minor league hockey uniforms. Second, only one entry per franchise. While there have been many teams that have had their fair share of jersey disasters, I’m talking to you New York Islanders, I wanted to get a wider range of teams instead of focusing on a few teams at a time.

10: Nashville Predators
When did the Predators get sponsored by French’s mustard?

Talk about your condiment calamity! Dijon mustard may work on hotdogs and burgers, but not hockey jerseys. Aside from the tasteless color, the logos also are an eyesore. The “skull” Predators logo on the sleeves could be an ok logo if used properly, but doesn’t go with this jersey. It’s because you have a gaudy multicolored predator that belongs in the Ice Age movies on the front. Modern logo with skulls on the shoulders? Doesn’t exactly connect. This sweater was doomed with weak and confusing logos along with a color that just gives me craving a hotdog. Excuse me one second I gotta go to the grill!
9: Montreal Canadiens
Would you like a little off the top or a quick shave?

Thanks, I just needed a hotdog. Oh look, I didn’t know the barbershop quartet was on TV tonight! What that’s not a barbershop quarter it’s the Canadiens? Oh boy. Look, I understand some team’s want to wear throwbacks to get in touch with their roots, but sometimes certain uniforms should be left in the past. Montreal you have an original six logo and jersey, you are set for life. You don’t need to modify anything. These uniforms are disaster. Weak white leaf logo and a headache inducing design with the horizontal red, white, and blue strips. This is a color overload that is not easy to look at and once you get over the novelty of the throwback for five minutes you’ll be saying, “ok bring out the actual Canadiens jerseys please”!
8: Phoenix Coyotes
A bold choice that I can appreciate, but still a head scratcher

Of all the jerseys on this list these are my favorites. I can appreciate what the Coyotes tried to do with a dark green jersey with the desert trim on the bottom. I also like the original Coyotes logo better than the new logo they have now. Still, this wasn’t a great jersey. Even though I liked them, I can see why people don’t. These are not traditional jerseys with bizarre colors. The green and burnt orange aren’t exactly the Coyotes main colors and the desert look on the jersey with the cacti makes the jersey look too much like a cartoon. Plus there are salamanders on the shoulders, weird numbers, and a moon on one side of the jersey. Even though they broke the mold and gave it a good try, the Coyotes still made a jersey that was to Will-E, and not enough Coyote.
7 Atlanta Thrashers
Thrashers? More like Thrashed jerseys

Thank god the Jets are back. On that note one franchise that never could seem to get its jerseys in order was the Atlanta Thrashers. If I didn’t limit the list to one team, the Thrashers would have multiple entries. Anyways, the Thrashers failed because they have too many colors, weird designs, and multiple logos. Talk about an identity crisis. With that I give you the epitome of all of this in a jersey. This jersey represents all of the different factors which made Thrasher’s jerseys hard to stomach. First the had weird designs. Here the socks with the vertical patterns and stripes look ridiculous. Then the white on the upper arms with the goofy large number in the center if the jersey just looked stupid. With the “Thrashers” script across the chest, these jerseys looked more like basketball jerseys then hockey jerseys. Then you have a barrage of different colors on the jersey with makes you wonder what are the team colors and finally the terrible woody woodpecker logo on the shoulders. Wow Thrashers, talk about setting low standards for expansion teams and their jerseys.
6 Boston Bruins
Bruins? More like Winnie the Pooh

Wow, Boston wow. You have one of the best logos in sports and this is the best you can come up with? A honey yellow jersey with black fur trim? Then you have Bruins in script on the shoulders? You couldn’t put spoked B’s on the shoulders? To top it off the Build a Bear mascot on the chest of the jersey. Nothing strikes fear into opponents like a dead eyed teddy bear on a jersey. Note to the Original Six, you have great uniforms, don’t change anything!
5: Los Angeles Kings
Yes, I would like fries with that Whopper

Now its really getting bad. The only saving grace for this jersey is that Wayne Gretzky actually wore it. Still a Burger King mascot is brutal. If the Kings were smart they should have partnered with Burger King with this jersey. Then you have the logo in the upper right of the jersey, not centered, with a giant purple stripe crisscrossing the front of the jersey. Wait I thought the Kings were supposed to be black and silver? Purple too, ok I guess. I mean this just likes awful. The jersey itself looks like its been washed with the purple and grey socks, yikes. Overall when it looks like the graphic studio threw up all it’s ideas onto one jersey, this is what you pretty much get.
4: Tampa Bay Lightning
Rain rain go away, take these jerseys far away

When you’re an expansion team, it’s tough. So I do tend to give expansion teams a pass on their first go of uniforms, I’m talking about you Columbus. However, the Tampa Bay Lightning jerseys are a natural disaster. Did a hurricane wash away the actual jerseys and they had to make these at the last-minute? It’s all the extra add ons that kill this jersey. Had it just been the logo with the plain silver and black sleeves the jerseys would be ok. But how do you have rain, lightning, and rough waves on this jersey? Come on this isn’t a painting of a lightning storm, it’s a hockey jersey! You know how they say “less is more”? Apparently the Lightning ignored this philosophy and decided let’s put everything on this jersey, except something good.
3: Anaheim Mighty Ducks
I loved the Mighty Ducks cartoon, but not this much

Wow, Disney really wanted to advertise their Mighty Ducks cartoon didn’t they? While the Mighty Ducks original jerseys are one of my favorites, I can’t believe someone thought this was a good idea. Come on this team’s already based off of a movie and was owned by a company known for cartoons, did we really need a jersey that should be on the clearance rack at a Disneyland Park? Apparently the answer was yes. True the overall designs on the jersey aren’t terrible, but the logo kills it. Seriously? Wild Wing jumping through the ice? Come on Disney. You already have many people questioning a team called the “Mighty Ducks”, did you really need another reason for hockey fans to laugh at you? Thank god this jersey didn’t last long. Looks like these Ducks of a jersey were roasted.
2: New York Islanders
From great tradition, to one of the biggest marketing disasters in sports history

In one of the biggest marketing disasters in sports history, the New York Islanders decided to change their historic and iconic logo. The new ownership, “The Gang of Four”, decided that the team needed a modern-day update. Not only did they seemingly piss off every Islanders fan in the process, but also plunge the franchise further into darkness. The Fisherman logo, which replace the iconic NY Island logo, was a disaster from the beginning. It looked terrible, angered the fan base, and created the “we want fish sticks” chants at Rangers’ games. Another jersey with a terrible logo, and a wave design on the bottom that just looks ridiculous. Plus the additions to grey and teal to the colors. Teal should never be used on an NHL jersey ever! The jerseys were so bad, the Islanders changed the logo one year later. These jerseys were horrible and almost were the worst of the worst except for….
1: Vancouver Canucks
Oh Canada! Why?

The Vancouver Canucks for a long period of time had the worst jerseys in hockey. While most teams changed their bad designs quickly, the Canucks stayed with these jerseys for years. While the skate logo wasn’t terrible, the colors of yellow, black, and orange made these look like the horrible offspring of a Halloween costume and a construction vest. The the massive V design from the neck to the middle of the sweater looked ridiculous, and they put the logo on the middle of arm. There’s no logo or script on this jersey just the V design. So Canucks fans riot over being in the Stanley Cup but not over this ridiculous uniforms that made their team a laughing-stock? Wow. Do you agree or disagree? Any jerseys that I missed or suggestions you have? Don’t forget to comment and follow below!

Sports movies are great sources of entertainment. They combine the thrill of sports with a roller coaster of emotions and back story that only hollywood can provide. These movies not only entertain but spark a child’s life long passion for sports. For me both the Sandlot and the Mighty Ducks inspired my passion for baseball and ice hockey respectively. There are so many sports classics that have touched millions of people, but Hollywood has a knack for ruining a great thing. The infamous sequel can be a great movie, but like Shaq at the free throw line, these movies often miss the mark and can tarnish their predecessor’s legacy. Here is my list for the top 5 worst sports sequels that ruined some of the best sport movie franchises.

5) Slap Shot 2

This sequel missed the net

When a sequel is made 25 years after the original you know it’s going to be bad news. With the original considered the perfect and quintessential hockey movie, it’s impossible to improve or repeat perfection. Now you have the Hanson brothers 25 years older, the team is moving, Stephen Baldwin is the new player coach, and did I mention their new gig is being the losing team to the Omaha Ice Breakers. They’ve gone from the batboys of minor league hockey to the scripted losing team in hockey’s version of the Harlem Globetrotters. Plus Paul Neumann isn’t in this movie. He was hysterical and it’s Paul Neumann, enough said. It’s a shame this movie was made with the original being perfect for its time in the 1970s, an age where hockey violence and shenanigans were at its peak. This new version doesn’t fit the times and slams the legacy the of this franchise into the boards. Thank god this film is mostly forgotten because it doesn’t do the original any justice.

4) D3: The Mighty Ducks

From Minnesota miracle to JV?

The Mighty Ducks franchise created two classic hockey movies. In the original, the Ducks overcame the Hawks to win the state championship. In D2, the team beat Iceland to be the best junior team in the world. Things were going so well after two hit movies, a cartoon series, and an actual professional franchise named after them. However, D3 nuked the franchise and officially fried the ducks. It took away Gordon Bombay, the charismatic coach tried to fill the void with actors trying painfully too hard to get a laugh. The icon of the series, Charlie Conway, went from being the perfect role model to a snarky and stuck up brat that you just wanted to see get slammed into the glass. Did we mention that there a JV team? Seriously I understand being the underdog but if they beat Iceland shouldn’t they be good enough to be a varsity team? This movie took everything that was great about the first two movies and completely threw it out the window. This movie turned out to be a quack.

3 The Sandlot 2

Not only was this movie a swing in a miss but it spawned another sequel

Growing up the Sandlot was one of my favorite movies. Anyone whose seen this just wants to gather up the neighborhood kids and go play ball! Everybody wanted to be Bennie “The Jet” Rodriguez, even though they were clearly a Smalls. However, hollywood decided to take the Sandlot’s great name and drag it through the dirt. The sequel has the same exact premise as the first one, literally. They just did the same story except a decade later and with characters so bad they made you cringe. No one was memorable and this movie didn’t teach us anything. The first taught us about chewing tobacco, how to insult other ball players, and most importantly how to make smores. I don’t know whats worst the fact that this movie completely took the great idea of the Sandlot and turned it into a joke or that this movie spawned a third Sandlot movie. Either way this sequel struck out looking.

2) Major League 3 Back to the minors

This franchise deserved a demotion after this wild pitch

The first Major League was hysterical, and the sequel was a solid follow-up. However, the old cliché that the third time is the charm clearly doesn’t apply to this film. We go from the “Wild Thing” and the major league shenanigans to the minor leagues? Seriously if there was a minor league for actors all of these actors in this movie would never see the pros. This film removes almost every trace of the original including the Indians, and replaces it with the Twins minor league team the Buzz. Instead of the Indians trying to win the World Series this train wreck focuses on not one but two games where the Buzz try to defeat their major league counterparts. Charlie Sheen may have been “winning” in the first two Major League films, but this sad attempt to revamp the beloved film franchise deserves a demotion.

1) Caddyshack 2

Forget hitting the fairway, this film is way out-of-bounds

One of the greatest comedies every made was the original Caddyshack. The crazy gopher, Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Bill Murrary were the perfect ensemble cast and have created laughs that will continue for decades. But once again hollywood just can’t resist sacrificing a film’s legacy in the pursuit of the all mighty dollar. Where to start, first with only Chevy Chase returning to this franchise while the others wisely jumped off this runaway golf cart. A sequel eight years after the original, two-thirds of the comedy trio not returning, this was a disaster waiting to happen. Instead of trying to find funny actors, lets bombard the audience with ridiculous eye candy. Seriously, it looks like a miniature golf course threw up all over this movie. Jeez, I though the worst thing in golf was Happy Gilmore’s putting. Boy was I wrong. Do you agree you disagree? Which terrible sports sequel made your eyes and ears cringe? Comment and follow below!

Rich Sports Talk

Tackling the biggest and latest stories in the sports world.

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One too many: Sports sequels that destroyed great film franchises