Wait! There’s an explanation for this. And it’s a long one. Travis Hawkins writes:

This one is probably a good candidate for Freak Out Friday considering how many feathers it will ruffle. While I decided to create an alternate jersey for the Montréal Canadiens, I want it to be known that in my mind, this isn’t meant to replace the iconic home sweater, just to be a modern alternate, worn a few times a year at home.

The crest that I designed has three main components. The very center is a Fleur De Lis in honor of their home province of Quebec (at the risk of drawing too much of a comparison to the Nordiques).

I made the Fleur the center of an M for Montréal with the two “wings” on either side. I also separated the top part of the Fleur De Lis to make it the flame of a torch made from the bottom part, referencing the team motto “Nos bras meurtris vous tendent le flambeau, à vous toujours de le porter bien haut.”

As I’m sure you know, the team’s hanger effect on their current jersey is the first part of that line, so I added the second part as this jersey’s hanger effect, completing the line of the poem and creating some admittedly vague symbolism of the classic jerseys "passing the torch" to this modern take.

The chest and arm stripes were made thinner and modernized with the removal of the bottom white stripe and the addition of 24 ghosted Fleur De Lis on the chest, obviously representing the 24 cups they have won.

So there you have it. Tap the Extra Images tab to see a close up of the crest. And let it be known the headline for this entry comes straight from the designer himself. Happy Freak Out Friday!