The long awaited reveal of the Seattle name, colours & logo is finally here! They even surprised us unveiling their jerseys & uniforms as well! We might have to wait until the 2021-22 NHL season before the team can hit the ice but for now let's just take in their stunning new look.
Team Name: Seattle Kraken
Despite reports and rumours that the team was going to name the team the Kraken, we weren't too sure about it. We originally thought the colour scheme of "salmon" red, light teal & black that they were using in their marketing seemed to go better with the name Sockeyes, not Kraken. Well, we were right & we were wrong - mostly wrong. The team was hiding their main colour from us all along... the deep sea blue! With dark blue as their primary colour, it fits perfectly with the name and the rest of their colour scheme:
After 215,000 fan votes, 50+ fan forums & speaking engagements, the team learned that the Kraken was the overwhelming favourite among their fans. Here is what the team said about what their new name represents:
"Our maritime city with a proud history of adventure is deserving of a hockey club as untamed as the sea herself. The Kraken represents the fiercest beast in all the world. Too large and indomitable to be contained by man (or finned mammal). It instills one message in all opponents whether in our waters, or theirs…Abandon all hope." - seattlekrakenhockey.com
The Logos
The team unveiled three logos to make up their new branding: the primary logo, the secondary logo & their word mark. The primary logo is a calligraphic, beveled "S" representing the nautical style of the ships that set out to sea on the Pacific Northwest. More importantly, the "S" pays homage to the Seattle Metropolitans who wore the "S" on their jerseys playing in the NHL in the 1910's.
Hidden in the dark space of the logo is the Kraken's tentacle emerging from the sea reaching out to pull you in. You also get a glimpse of the Kraken red eye without seeing the rest of the body. The team said the most terrifying thing about the Kraken is what you can't see and they wanted to evoke that mystery within their logo. Very cool & effectively executed for sure.
When first seeing the logo, it seemed as though they were trying to show 8 tentacles with the 8 teal sections of the S to represent the number of legs an octopus has, but they do not mention that in their description. Here is some more information behind the logo that they explained:
The secondary logo combines Seattle's Space Needle into an anchor design and it will serve as the shoulder patch on their jersey.
Their word mark continues the nautical, beveled style from their primary logo, spelling out the work "KRAKEN".
The Jerseys & Uniforms
If that wasn't enough for one day, the Kraken also released the designs of their jerseys & uniforms today too! The jersey designs are just as strong as the logos. The unique colour scheme and striping sets them apart from the rest of the teams. No other team has two shades of both their primary (deep blue) & secondary (teal) colours on their jersey & logo and that pallet really makes everything pop!
The striping style is inspired by the striping that is on most Seattle ships: navy blue base with green (or teal) striping on top. The team said the striping on the sleeves also represent the Seattle landscape. The icy blue represents the mountain skyline, then it shades darker and darker into the deep blue sea, and the red stripe symbolizes the mysterious beast sprawling under the waters.
The team only released a realistic version of their home jersey so we played around with it to show you how the aways will look...
They even showed concepts of what their entire uniforms will look like as well.
They will sport dark blue helmets, gloves and pants. Their primary mark will be on their pants and their word mark will be used as their helmet decal.
Well, what a day!! Don't think an entire NHL brand has ever been revealed all at once like that! In recent years, the Jets & Golden Knights revealed their name & logo first before any jerseys & uniforms. Couldn't say enough good things about Seattle's brand new look! Everything a hockey brand should have: a great name, simplicity, uniqueness, and a tribute to the city & hockey history. It checks all the boxes and we can't wait to see the team hit the ice. Unfortunately we will have to wait some time for that. Right now the expansion draft is scheduled for June 2021 (though that will likely be delayed since the next NHL season is expected to finish later than normal) and they will start their inaugural season in October 2021. Can't wait! So with Seattle's new logo & uniforms revealed, the Senators & Sabres are next up! Stay tuned for their unveilings along with with many new third & fourth jerseys that are on the way for next season. Still lots to come, stay tuned!