It’s been a good stretch since I’ve written one of these Loose Threads stories. For those unfamiliar, it’s basically a collection of minor stories from recent weeks, none of which warranted having a blog post all to itself. So I’ve collected them all in one quick read.

The main thing you need to know is the NHL elite gathered in Chicago this past week for a media tour ahead of the new season. Amidst all the hubbub, Rogers Sportsnet set up an on-ice studio to get footage of their favorite stars to use during game coverage and features throughout the year. Their video shoots actually gave us a sneak peek at a handful of new uniform treatments for the 2019-20 season.

Panthers revive old logo as new helmet decal

Jonathan Huberdeau was on hand from the Florida Panthers for the Sportsnet shoots. Eagle-eyed fans took note of a familiar yet unexpected logo on his helmet, thanks to a Sportsnet tweet.

From the looks of things, the Panthers are bringing back their old secondary logo—at least for their home uniform helmet. The logo depicts the sun behind a crossed hockey stick and palm tree. But this version appears to use the Panthers’ new color palette, making the sun a metallic gold instead of a flat yellow.

This new decal replaces the leaping panther logo that’s been on the helmets since the 2016 redesign. So here’s the question: Are the Panthers moving away from the jumping cat, or are they saving it for the new third jersey expected to arrive this season?

Flames to use 40th logo as uniform patch

Thanks to Sam Bennett, we got a look at the placement of the Calgary Flames 40th anniversary patch at the Sportsnet shoots.

The Flames unveiled the commemorative logo on August 19 and said it would be painted on the ice. Here we get confirmation it’ll be present on the uniforms as well—the upper right corner of the chest, to be specific. The video quality wasn’t great but you can kind of see it there. It should look especially good on the third jersey.

Canucks, Sabres 50-year patches seen on sweaters

Also present at the Sportsnet shoots was Bo Horvat, whose jersey was adorned with the Vancouver Canucks 50th anniversary patch—a very bold and simple design—positioned on the upper right corner of the chest.

Photos of the Canucks’ throwback jersey with the 50-year patch have also turned up online. I wanted to include it because, as you can see, the Canucks wisely decided to use the retro colors for it.

You may have noticed the 50th patches present on the new sweaters the Canucks unveiled in June, but technically those were Photoshopped on. These are the real deal.

Meanwhile, the Buffalo Sabres 50th patch will sit on the left shoulder of their sweaters.

Back in July the Sabres tweeted a photo from their team store that showed the patches. The photos above were later posted by Andrew Uttaro.

More recently it’s been visible in on-ice action via the rookie games.

This also answers the question posed when the Sabres first revealed their 50th anniversary logos. There were two designs but it was unclear which one would be present on the uniforms. Now we know.

For what it’s worth, the San Jose Sharks used their 25th anniversary patch as an excuse to ditch the chest numbers permanently. I was hoping the Sabres would follow suit. As long as they fix it next year with the return to the original colors, I think we’ll all be happy.

Golden Knights fuel third jersey speculation with center ice redesign

Lastly, the Vegas Golden Knights stirred up a little intrigue on Tuesday with a photo of their new center ice design for 2019-20.

Then on Friday they tweeted some smartphone wallpapers that really highlight the details of the design. The flourish element in the outer circle and along the center red line match the embellishments in the jersey crest and gold sleeve stripes.

What makes this design unique is they’ve filled in the circle with gold. Teams typically will place a logo at center but leave the inner circle white. This has fueled speculation about the Knights’ forthcoming third jersey—which is rumored to be a metallic gold.

Just a few weeks ago, team owner Bill Foley went on the record with The Athletic to say the new sweater should be released in October. He also thinks they’re better than the current jerseys, so there’s that. He refuses to say whether the jersey is actually gold, but reading between the lines it seems fairly obvious.

And that wraps up this edition of Loose Threads.

Looking ahead, I’m not sure what surprises we’ll get in the coming week but I do know we have at least three jersey unveilings on the schedule for next weekend.

On Friday night, the Jets will show us their Heritage Classic jersey. Saturday morning brings a new Blues sweater and later that afternoon the Oilers will make their third jersey official. Mark your calendar!