New look brings change, but goal stays the same
Have you ever stopped to think what if the Silver and Black were
not silver or black, but green and yellow?
Or what if the S and the F on the hat of the San Francisco
Giants was changed to some weird mascot-looking thing?
New look brings change, but goal stays the same
Have you ever stopped to think what if the Silver and Black were not silver or black, but green and yellow?
Or what if the S and the F on the hat of the San Francisco Giants was changed to some weird mascot-looking thing?
People always say change is good – and I agree – but there are some things that just need to be left alone.
The N and the Y are symbols in New York. They are letters that, I believe, will never leave the logos of the Yankees or Mets in baseball or the Jets and Giants in football. Those NY logos are the team, those logos are the fans. Whether you are a sports fan or not, when you pass a person wearing a dark blue hat with a white NY on the front, you know it is a Yankees hat. The logos for New York teams have always been there and if they were to change, it would break the hearts of many all over the nation.
For many teams, the colors are unique in their own symbolic way.
The Raiders, whether playing in Los Angeles or in Oakland, have always worn black jerseys and silver pants and helmets. Speaking from a fan’s perspective, Raider Nation would be ticked off if Al Davis decided the Raiders needed a new look and changed the colors. The silver and black colors are intimidating, it makes the Raider fans the scariest in the NFL, and that provides motivation.
Even the Giants and the Dodgers (both teams moved from New York to California) have never changed their colors – the colors fans look for when they think of those teams.
I realized the importance of a team’s logo when one of my teams announced they were making some changes. The San Jose Sharks of the NHL are not only changing their colors slightly, but they are changing their logo as well.
Representatives from the organization say there will only be slight changes to the design and color – but when was the last time anyone believed a representative for their team?
While online at work the other day, I stumbled across an NHL forum and found a Sharks logo leak page. I have wanted to know what the logo is going to look like since the team announced they were changing it, so of course I clicked on the link.
What I saw when I opened the page brought a lot of mixed feelings. The concept did not change much and I was happy about that because I feel the Sharks old logo, which has been the same since their expansion season more than ten years ago, brings a look of intensity to the ice rink, a look that no other team in hockey can bring.
However, even though the concept did not change entirely, the shark has a different look to it now. The new 3-D version is OK but it looks a little too cartoon-y, which takes away from its intensity. Just like any other fan, I wondered why the logo had to change at all. In the end, I decided I could live with the change.
The more I thought about it the more I realized, the symbolism of the logo is important for recognition, but is not what is most important.
The most important thing for Sharks fans is not how much their logo is changing; but when are the Sharks going to reach the ultimate goal of any hockey franchise, winning the Stanley Cup?
Sometimes change is necessary, but what never changes is the essence of winning.
As a fan, when it comes down to it, I would not care if the Giants changed their logo to an ugly orange seal. I would not care if the Raiders’ colors were red and white.
The Sharks are going to be sporting a new look on the ice next season. So what?
All I care about is winning. I want my teams to win. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want my teams to be wearing pink and purple uniforms out there. But if they did, I would still stick by my team. My teams’ players could be wearing dresses for all I care as long as they are striving for that victory and trying for the championship every year.
The bottom line is… the way the uniforms look does not change what they need to accomplish when it matters.
