Official Penguins Reverse Retros!; Ranking 5 Best & Worst New Jerseys

So, whaddaya think? After a month of online speculation, controlled and uncontrolled leaks, Adidas and the NHL finally released the reverse retro jerseys. PHN is busy previewing and ranking the new Pittsburgh Penguins sweaters born of the 1990s iconic Penguins block lettered jersey worn by rapper Snoop Dogg in the 1994 Gin & Juice music video against the rest of the NHL.

According to the NHL press release on Monday morning:

The Adidas Reverse Retro ADIZERO Authentic jerseys for all 31 NHL^® teams will be December 1 for $180-$225 in the U.S. and $200-$250 in Canada at adidas.com, adidas.ca,  NHLShop.com, NHLShop.ca, and team stores exclusively, with wider availability at additional retailers starting December 6. Fans outside North America will be able to purchase Adidas Reverse Retro ADIZERO Authentic jerseys for all 31 NHL^® teams at NHLShop.com starting Dec. 1.

The Penguins won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992 but switched their jerseys from the traditional triangle Penguin to the lettered Pittsburgh in 1992-93. At the time, the jersey drew mixed reactions because it was derivative of the longtime New York Rangers sweaters, which spelled “Rangers” diagonally.

The Pittsburgh Penguins never won a Stanley Cup with the lettered Pittsburgh jerseys and dropped the “Pittsburgh” jersey in 1997-98 in favor of the “Penguins head” sweaters, sometimes called the pigeon jersey, seen below:

However, the “Pittsburgh” lettered jerseys have become more popular in time. While some fans clamored for its return two seasons ago when the Penguins selected a new third jersey, which became the full yellow sweaters and yellow helmets, the reverse retro sweater is the closest we may get to the return of the original.

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Ranking the best and worst of the rest of the NHL

Here are the five best, worst, and undecideds:

The best:

1.  Chicago Blackhawks … Damn!

2.  Winnipeg Jets. We like gray and blue.

3.  The Carolina Hurricanes as the Hartford Whalers. We love the Whale. We love it when Carolina goes green to be the Whalers. But a reverse Whalers jersey? They’re nice, but cmon, give us the real thing? This is pretty good, though. Sexy and they know it:

4.  Ottawa Senators: We dig the red

5.  Vegas Golden Knights. Will they be the Red Knights, now? We like it.

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

1.  LA Kings. We’re unsure. The purple and gold were royal, but these were the Marcel Dionne, Bernie Nichols Kings, not the slick, black, and silver Wayne Gretzky Kings. We see the value, but not the way we would have gone. Your call:

2.  Pittsburgh Penguins

We like them. Perhaps we’re a little jaded because we liked the originals too much. Love ’em or hate ’em?

3.  Colorado Avalanche. Again with the awesome logo from yesteryear, but switched the colors. Not sure how we feel about the Avalanche colors with the Quebec Nordiques logo.

4.  The Vancouver Canucks sweater is an interesting mix of colors, past and present. An inversion of the iconic skate logo which Pavel Bure wore would have been nice. We think we have to see these on the ice before making a final call.

5.  The Montreal Canadiens. The classic, the brilliant, the clean, Bleu, Blanc, et Rouge. Now blue? Give us a minute to adjust.

The Worst

1.  The New Jersey Devils Christmas tree attire. It was never cool, even when they were finally successful and winning Stanley Cups. Pass:

2.  Seriously, what were the Arizona Coyotes thinking? This looks like Grandma’s sweater on a desert Christmas Eve. “Thanks, it was my mom’s. I took the shoulder pads out.” (Step Brothers reference)

3.  The Calgary Flames. So many great choices. This isn’t one of them.

4.  Poor Buffalo. A true hockey town with true passion and knowledge. But these? Like getting dry wings at the Anchor Bar:

5.  The Anaheim “Mighty” Ducks. First, the Flying V was offside. Second, Gordon Bombay was the most overrated coach in the league. Third, it’s child abuse to duct tape a kid to the goal. Fourth … oh never mind, these are flat awful: