New Jersey(s) -- Part II

The reason I will not be looking at all the new duds NHL teams will be sporting this season is not all of them have been unveiled yet. Some squads will be showing theirs off during training camp – for example, the St. Louis Blues are scheduled on Sept. 15.

So … continuing a look at the new jerseys to be unveiled in 2007-08.

WASHINGTON CAPITALS – A: So, they play a stone’s throw from the White House and for the last decade, or so, the Capitals proudly have worn the black, bronze and blue.

Yeah, doesn’t quite roll off the tongue.

Washington decided to go back to red, white and blue, and – in what seems to be a common theme with a lot of teams – an update look of their classic jerseys. When the Caps first played in 1975-76 (Quick quiz: what other team entered the league as an expansion team that season), they had a wordmark that doubled as their logo.

What’s a wordmark? Exactly what it sounds like: think about the New York Giants helmets when they won their Super Bowls.

Eventually, when teams bring back third jerseys, probably in 2008-09, it’s a safe bet this shoulder patch will be the logo that will be on the front.

Sure, it’s an eagle spreading its majestic wings to form a “W,” but do you also see the outline of the Capitol? And to think their two best players are Russians.

(Quiz answer: Kansas City Scouts)

CALGARY FLAMES – B: OK … here are the good elements – tie-down on the neck … that they kept the dark jerseys the same; to me the black pops on this one. Those are two things that jump out.

Two things are more subtle – one good, one not so good.

Whenever Calgary and Edmonton play, it’s often referred to as the “Battle of Alberta.” These are two cities that clearly do not like one another. What Calgary has done with their shoulder patch is use the crest of the Alberta flag.

Never mind the blue background – this is absolutely brilliant and unique, and it will tweak the Oilers just a little. After all, Edmonton joined the league in 1979 with the WHA merger. The Flames relocated from Atlanta in 1980.

The not so good? The Flames are one of six Canadian teams in the NHL. Why do the Flames feel the need to use the Canadian flag as a patch?

That will do more the torque off the Oilers. The Canadiens may have something to say about it, as would the Leafs, Senators and Canucks.

The bad? The piping up the sides and back make this look – as someone on a message board remarked – look like fallopian tubes. Have to agree for now, and this is why it doesn’t get a higher grade.