Metro Atlanticism

The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference doesn't have it's own hockey conference. Which is why I didn't know if the Peacocks of St. Peter's College had a team or not. I only new of the local boys (Canisius and Niagara) from the MAAC. Now I'll have to find the rest.

I'm not too keen of the half yoke outline or half cuff link, but everything else is spot on seeing the different inner collar I'm assuming it is intentional. At the same time, it looks better than the last concept of his. I like the inclusion of the green and black to add some variety, particularly the black over green for the equipment.

Off to me creating more content. Sorry to be brief, but the bulk of my Friday is not like last semester where I had no class but rather in the afternoon. I'll write again soon.

-Ricky

The O'Jays and the Creighton Jays

One song that I hadn't heard in a while until the other day was For the Love of Money by the O'Jays. I then thought 'How hasn't Geico used it yet?' Now I really figure that it would go with that stupid stack of money with eyes, but whatever. Elsewhere in the world, Jake88 has one of his last two concepts for the time being. The other will be here Friday.

Hmm . . . Upon further review, the jersey isn't as I had anticipated. I can't correlate the striping design to Creighton's branding for starters. Also the addition of silver doesn't really stand out enough for me to want its inclusion. I'm also not sure if the collar is intended to be singular colored on the inside of the jerseys or not. The worst thing about this is actually relatively minor - the logo on the helmet, which I would just remove all together.

This Hoophall tournament took a lot out of me, I still haven't full recovered quality sleep. Which means my brain will be fried until the weekend as far as new concepts for the retro-modern series is concerned. The first few days of class will not help that any. I'm going to recharge and I'll be back tomorrow.

-Ricky

Halfway Home

Utica is roughly the halfway point of my voyages to and from Springfield. Considering that the AHL is doing a better job moving towards the west coast, I'm very surprised that the Canuckleheads affiliate is not close to it's parent club at all..

Green, green, glorious green from Jake88. This is great because there is more incorporated green and as a result is differentiated enough from their parent club's kit. Don't know about the hem design, but I suppose that it helps with the distinction. I think I would prefer the alternate logo as the crest here, but this is passable.

I'm sort of playing catch up right now, so this has been a very tricky scheduling process in regards to what to do when. Don't be alarmed if things continue to seem off the next couple days.

-Ricky

The Great Dhane

Jake is back and with another IIHF concept today and while I don't have time for myself to make concepts at the moment (or continue my series), that is all we will have today. In the mean time it was another good game for Dhane Smith of the Buffalo Bandits, who recorded a natural hat trick in Friday's win over the Colorado Mammoth (the first ever in Colorado for the Bandits), has consecutive games with a hat trick.

I love the vintage looking crest in this, definitely unique to the Danes. I question the use of a hem stripe but matches the the sleeves. The sleeves are clever, but I don't particularly care for them. While the socks seem rather plain, they're better than if they were blank.

While Hoophall wraps up tomorrow, we should be back to normal between Tuesday and Thursday, but classes start back up on Wednesday so the weekend may actually where we pick it up again at full throttle.

-Ricky

Istanbul, not Constantinople

Today, I regret that I must be brief. Jake88 has an IIHF concept on display and you can see that below. It will be like this at the blog for a little while, but don't get completely used to it (lest I say otherwise).

I don't know what the current jerseys look like (the new ones anyway). I'm afraid this seems too simple for this template. It also makes it look more crowded on the colored uniform. As for the striping, feature the crescent and star on a single, solid stripe at the current position of the striping of both jerseys. Therefore, remove the flag from the home kit and replace it with the road crest font. There you have it.

No time to chat today. Enjoy another terrific Tuesday!

-Ricky

Sound the Alarm!

Greeting to to regulars and a warm welcome to any new readers visiting today. Given my schedule over the next couple of weeks, there will be one concept per post. Those will all be between Alan, Jake, and myself. I apologize for the lack of my work as this will somewhat delay my retro-modern series.

 I've reviewed this at HJC the day after the Blackhawks won Lord Stanley's Cup in 2013. I will quote it verbatim:

This logo does not look like a bear as it's supposed to and it's hideous, but Alan had to make do with what he had. but for the jerseys themselves, not bad at all. What catch my attention are the striping pattern on the sleeves, hem, and yoke. That's what really make the concept with a nice addition of NY Rangers style pants. The only thing is that the black stripe closer to the body of the jersey needs to be a little thicker for my taste, enough so that it evens out the red and gold stripes. 

I stand by everything I said and left out the concept rating from that post. After that drawing class I took in the summer, I discovered other ways to look at objets d'art from several perspectives, which I've now done to unmask things like symmetry (etc . . .). But I do realize what you think one day may change on another day. This is not one of those times.

Well, tomorrow it's Jake88 to step up to the plate and my next concept will be on deck. That will be the next of my series. I await it's unveiling, but not before the excitement from Jake88 of course. See you on the flip side.

-Ricky

Lady Liberty and the Pioneers

Sounds like a good band name for someone. Here's how this is going to work. So that I can adequately space out my concepts in timing with going back to Springfield next week, I am going to utilize recently submitted concepts by Jake88. New readers who aren't familiar with his work, check out his other stuff in his portfolio on the "conrtib's" tab or you can find stuff on his blog, though it's been a while since posting.

I will tell you that I was not a fan of some of the specs of  this HJC contest and that I don't like submitting my artwork to be yielded to the inquiring entity (so I don't enter). I would at least require a small royalty fee, just for each time the hire me to do the design portion. After I've made it I don't care what happens to it as long as it isn't distorted without permission and seeing as I've been compensated for my labor. While I don't mind the originality piece, I didn't like any of the logos or wordmark that people came up with.
Jake88 really had the best entry. That's because of the two alternates. However, I would make the grey uniform red and conversely the red to grey. I like the other jerseys as well. Everything in these designs are perfect except the primary/crest logo and the striping on the red alternate. With the striping, keep it but change the hem and cuffs to red or switch the white and blue in the striping then keep the cuffs and hem navy.

While I regret not sharing a concept of mine with you, I have at least one that was finished yesterday morning and that one is the one I will present Sunday with another concept from today's contributor to boot. My two jerseys should be in today and will both appear briefly tomorrow with a little bit more on Monday. Sally forth and a good day to you all!

-Ricky

Sabres, Sabres, and Not More Sabres

For those curious enough to ask, the Sabres third jersey will be worn this season. In fact the first appearance is tonight against the division rival Red Wings. Even though they will look bad while playing bad, I think the Sabres could win. I hate going 0-for because you can never say, not even for a single game, that you were undefeated. Particularly this is the case with one time things like when a jersey is introduced for the first time you only get to wear it for the first time on the ice once kind of thing.

As I've mentioned before somewhere, I'm not a fan of this template. However, the set looks alright based solely on design and not the template. A gray jersey seems out of place, but the Sabres might be one of those teams that could pull it off both then and now - but I did want to see the gold first which they failed at not terribly but definitely below my expectations. Caden makes a respectable throwback with a good touch of retro-modern that is to say old yokes and striping with current version of the logo.

Novotony er I mean no TV anek or rather not Vanek. There we go, rather Matt Moulson's number. But seriously, I first mistook the name for former Sabre Jiri Novotony. Though I like the modern, I wouldn't use the crest logo provided here. If I've said it once, I've said it many times - I'm still not used to Jake88 not coloring in his gloves with multiple colors around the fingers. The numbers are okay, but I'm not thrilled by the striping.

All in a day's work. Some real stuff is about to go down. You'll find out more tomorrow.

-Ricky

Macedonian Makeover - Sort Of

You may or may not recall that Jake88 asked me to put some sort of Yakball concept together regarding Skopje, MK or the Republic itself. Since I've sent mine in to him, he decided to put something together himself. Here's how it looks.

I like these a lot - they incorporate everything Macedonia, present and modern past. The socks even have a design to them. I wouldn't mind adding black into the color scheme (some of the teams add orange for some strange reason) at least for the numbers on the front of the yellow uniform. I see he also did his homework - including the lion rampant in a shield logo used instead of the traditional round sun for the "crveni lavovi" (literally the 'red lions'). The only problem is that the name on the back reads Matsedonia (transliteration) where it should read Makedonija (or Македонија) but that's okay for the first go at it because they don't use all of the Cyrillic characters unlike the Russians in particular and that I'm guessing is not as experienced as I am in Macedonian Cyrillic literature (hey, there's a first time for everything). I really do appreciate the effort though!

He also went to the extent of creating a jersey set for the Evansville Icemen, who HCI's Caden Patafie is employed by (I'm not sure if it's volunteer or paid). Anyway, I see that good use of the new Sabres template is being properly utilized. That for sure is a good start. He also added cuffs from the HJC "Drag 'n' Drop" feature. That's a good thing because that makes the rest of the template look better than the original, but I'm not quite a fan of these particular cuffs. The addition of the name plate is the best of all to this template! I think this is also the first time in a while that I've seen his glove template in multicolor - in this case it matches perfectly. Well done all around.

-Ricky

Jake88 Overdue and Logo HoF Stuff

Before we get to Jake88 and Yakball, I wish to discuss the Logo Hall of Fame . . . this year's deadline has been moved to 11:59 Pacific Time on Saturday 26 October this is in accordance with Halloween being the selection day with the induction of course on American Thanksgiving. Please go to the Halls of Fame tab and copy the nomination form into your design operating system (Photoshop, Illustrator, Paint.net, Microsoft Paint, etc . . .). Remember each logo should be on a separate form and you can submit is many as you wish. Also,  email bngraphics2012@aol.com if you would like to be a member of the selection committee -keep in mind that only a nominee with 75% or more of the votes can enter.

So Jake88 had designed these for the creator's intentions of featuring an operating team in Oulu, Finland. That didn't happen. So Jake88 felt the need to give it a go anyway. I'm not so sure I like the way the Blues striping is presented here, but I'm not the Yakball expert so I guess at least something is on it.

To start, the Chevrons make it look like a soccer uniform a little but it does fit in rather nicely. They also transition very well onto the shorts. I actually think that the dual-color uniforms look better that if they were uni-color in combination. I'm not 100% on the tan socks though . . .

As my third and final full day home draws to a close this afternoon and evening, I will be preparing ideas for future posts on the train ride home tomorrow as well as finishing a long awaited "big" project (or at least trying to).

-Ricky

A Yakball Request, Quite Shocking

So Jake88 (Jake88 Concepts and co-admin of Hockey Concept Ideas) asked me to do a request for yakball uniforms regarding Skopje, Republic of Macedonia based on my HCIHL team. Anyway, I decided more in favor of a national team rather than a particular city in Macedonia, much less the Balkan Region. The alternates below are intended to be what's known as a faux-back, that is a uniform intended to be retro for a team that wasn't around long enough to have a retro look (the MLB Tampa Bay Rays are infamous for this).

Let's think rationally for a bit. Gradients are typical 1990s (at least in hockey) and Greece doesn't like Macedonia using the Star of Alexander the Great (aka the Star of Vergina). The home and road were kind of based off Poland's soccer uniforms introduced last year (who by the way lost to the Ukraine today with one last hope to qualify for the World Cup Tuesday against England). It's tough to find a good font to use as there are so few fonts in Macedonian Cyrillic that are available for me at the moment. You'll notice that the lion is also a national symbol and replaces Alexander's Star.

-Ricky

Yakball Again

Well, we go live tonight for the HCIHL. my lineup for this week will be found at the end of the post.

I must say I do like the template, it could be interchangeable for ultimate frisbee or flag football uniforms unless these are intended to be specific to yakball.

Skopje Foxes:

Goalie

30 Fasth

35 Schneider

 1 Bishop

Defensive Lines

7 Seabrook,  5 Girardi

27 Oduya,    6 Coburn

54 McQuaid, 24 Pietrangelo

Forward Lines

92 Landeskog, 15 Getzlaf,     26 St. Louis

21 Parise,    39 Couture,      8 Selanne

10 Sharp,      9 M. Koivu,    33 Ryder

91 Huberdeau,  4 Lecavalier,  11 Cleary

Extra Skater: 33 Ryder

Power Play 1:

92 Landeskog, 15 Getzlaf, 26 St. Louis

        7 Seabrook, 6 Coburn

Power Play 2:

21 Parise, 9 M. Koivu, 8 Selanne

       27 Oduya, 5 Girardi

Penalty Kill 1:

10 Sharp,   9 M. Koivu

7 Seabrook, 24 Pietrangelo

Penalty Kill 2:

21 Parise, 39 Couture

54 McQuaid, 6 Coburn

Penalty Shooters:

15 Getzlaf

39 Couture

 9 M. Koivu

-Ricky

Jake88 Strikes Again!

This one is cool, Jake created his own logo for this Finnish international team in a sport called "Yakball".
From what I've read, I don't know that I like the sport. Having created one myself a few years back and going through the copyright process someday, I do not think that It will catch on as well as mine because of my insider secret - my game has no time limit and unlimited scoring which is fast paced and high scoring (what America is looking for; my personal best is 208). My score is much more oriented towards tennis and racquetball and is a racket sport. I won't be talking too much about it until I have it copyrighted. Kudos to the guy who invented it though.

The Penn State ones look just a little bland; but for someone who learned about a new sport, I would say this is pretty good (all of it).

-Ricky

Don't Reign on My Parade

Jake88 has sent us in some ideas.

I like where this is going, Thrashers alternate template in hand. Gradient works (after all, this isn't the NHL) and it's very subtle anyway. Perfect balance of color, practically matching. The striping is weird, but then again, the alternate crest looks more like a bat from a distance.

In the mean time, yesterday was our semi-semesterly flag sale where our flag guy Des Anderson provides near wholesale prices. I know that because A) he told me, B) There's a place near my old high school that is almost double in price compared to his company, and C) I almost always get something from him even if it isn't a flag. My collection will appear soon. In the words of New Era Caps, "fly your own flag!"

-Ricky

No Pro Teams Could Pull This Off in Hockey, Could They?

Another day, another BNG post. As Chuck Woolery now says, it's "three for free" time. Three artists, three concepts - it's just that simple.

Caden gives us this concept which features a sponsor logo as a crest in one jersey, reminiscent of European style soccer jerseys. This one doesn't grab me, but there sure as heck are a lot of pluses. Since this isn't the NHL or AHL, I don't mind having a sponsor featured on a jersey.I can't like the alternate with just the face as a logo, but that's why it is just an alternate. I'd be able to give a better critique, but the picture comes out grainy on my computer.

Jake88 as you may recall has had some magnificent series done on the European hockey leagues. This one actually reminds of a red version of a Pittsburgh alternate but with a little too much white. If anything black numbers and black dividing stripes might do the trick for me. A black yoke with white outline might be a nice touch but isn't absolutely necessary.

William provides an interesting look for the Bronx Bombers. He keeps the road resemblant uniform as an alternate. But as many hockey uniforms feature a logo, this set is no exception to that. I don't know how I feel about the placement of the stars as I feel that they could go elsewhere on the jersey. While it takes some elements, it has its own flair than that of the New York hockey Rangers as opposed to the baseball team in Arlington with the same nickname.

You can put a cork on this one, capping off another post at BNG. As I continue to try improving different parts of the site, I am wondering if I can convert anyone into a broader realm of sport graphic design, not that there is anything wrong with hockey. I love hockey, but I figure that there are people out there that want to see other sport uniform templates. That was the basis of which I created BNG last May. Give it a thought -  if you try, you might even like it.

-Ricky

A Long Awaited Concept!

Just what the blog needed to get back into the swing of things . . . a guest concept! We are welcoming Jake88, regular HJC contributor, to BNG. He has done some pretty astounding  European league hockey concepts for HJC - some of which you've seen on my posts for HJC as seen on Saturdays here.

This is what Jake 88 tells me he wants the Sabres alternate to look like. I certainly like it a lot. It's all in the color distribution. But he is absolutely right that the elements of the logo and jersey layout go well together. By the way go to our "Friends of" tab and click on the new link to his blog! Check out the other new ones too while your at it.

Hate to be short circuited today, but I've got company . . . looking forward to getting the blog back on track!

-Ricky