The Chicago Blackhawks will don new sweaters when they hit the ice next fall, but the look won’t be too different.
The NHL and adidas released new uniforms for the 31 teams Tuesday in Las Vegas. Adidas signed a deal with the league to become the official manufacturer of the league’s uniforms in April 2015, taking over the role from Reebok, which had been the NHL’s outfitter since 2007.
Naturally the jerseys leaked, but here’s a good look at the home uniform from Tracey Myers:
BEHOLD! The #Blackhawks' jersey. Minor change with the collar. Otherwise, same. Classic. pic.twitter.com/aoSTKhVzCq
— Tracey Myers (@TramyersCSN) June 21, 2017
Here’s the road look:
And the new road look from @adidashockey #FormTheFuture pic.twitter.com/3sDcm2JLRM
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) June 21, 2017
Chicago will only wear home and road uniforms under adidas, which is only having two uniforms per team to make it easier to implement league-wide changes with fewer complications.
While some teams have used an alternate sweater often, such as Colorado or Columbus, the Hawks haven’t worn their black uniforms since the 2010-11 season. However, Chicago has played in outdoor games the past five seasons with retro uniforms or the special Stadium Series sweater in 2014 against Pittsburgh.
It’s the second big announcement from the NHL this week after expansion draft protection lists were released Sunday. The league will announce home openers of all teams at 11 a.m. CDT Wednesday, followed by the awards show and expansion draft at 7 p.m. the same night on NBCSN. The full schedule release will be at 2 p.m. Thursday before the league shifts to the draft Friday-Saturday at the United Center in Chicago.