Since the relaunch of Icethetics this summer, I haven’t spent much time talking about the Canadian junior leagues. But there are several dozen reasons to change that.
A couple weeks ago, the Canadian Hockey League unveiled a photo gallery featuring their teams’ new CCM QuickLite jerseys. QuickLite is the minor league replacement for the Reebok Edge system, which was phased out starting in 2017 when the NHL adopted the Adidas Adizero system. The American Hockey League made the switch to QuickLite in 2018-19. And the ECHL partnered with Athletic Knit this year for their jersey design manufacturing. (More to come on that soon!)
The CHL comprises three leagues across Canada and parts of the northern United States—the Western Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Combined there are 60 teams, which means 120 new jerseys. Which is to say they’ve probably been in production on these for at least a year or two. But the CHL website is only showing each team’s dark jersey for the moment.
Still, it’s a lot of new jersey designs to take in—some for better, others for worse. I won’t share all 60 in this posted, but I did want to highlight a few from each league.
WHL
We have four WHL teams here in my state of Washington alone, including the Seattle Thunderbirds—noteworthy for their use of the later Hartford Whalers design as well as the fact that they’ll soon join the Giants, Oil Kings and Hitmen in sharing their market with an NHL club.
I love the variety in this league. I may be geographically biased, but I think the WHL has the best overall jersey collection of any North American hockey league. The modern looks of teams like Everett and Vancouver play off the retro looks of Swift Current and Saskatoon so well. Man, I really need to get to more T-Birds games this year!
OHL
All right, I admit the OHL has some pretty awesome sweaters too. Just look at these. It’s so nice to see that Minnesota North Stars-esque jersey coming back to the London Knights this year. And how can anyone not like that Ottawa 67’s barberpole design?
The interesting balance to me in this league is the number of teams wearing NHL-inspired designs compared to those with completely original looks. You’ve got Kitchener, Hamilton, Mississauga, and others wearing direct copies of great NHL sweaters in the same league as Guelph, Oshawa, and North Bay with their completely original designs. And despite the dichotomy, none of the jerseys feel out of place. Such a great-looking hockey league. The NHL could learn a thing or two.
QMJHL
And all the way over there on the east coast we have another batch of brilliant sweaters. It really is remarkable. The Q has some true standouts, including the recently unveiled redesign for the Cape Breton Eagles. Oh, and somebody tell Vegas if they want to see what a gold jersey looks like, the Charlottetown Islanders have been doing it for years.
The great thing about the Q is the originality—a very Quebecois trait. I think maybe two teams wear jersey designs that have been seen in the NHL. But I also mean that in the sense that so many teams have used the same look for so long. Val d’Or, Chicoutimi, and Halifax all have logos that have been around for ages—and the general jersey designs aren’t far behind.
Seriously, if you like any of these, take a moment and flip through that CHL gallery. There are a lot of gems in there. Then come back here and tell us your favorites.
