Uniforms are how we identify which team is which. Each team has their own colors and logo which are then included in the uniform players will wear every single game.
Uniforms are usually pretty well thought out, as millions of fans will be consistently exposed to them every year. You want your uniform to stand out, be unique, and appease fans.
Unfortunately, you don’t always get it right. Sometimes, we all make mistakes, or our good intentions lead us down the wrong path.
Uniforms are no exception to this rule. Teams don’t always get it right; sometimes, they produce real stinkers. This is the absolute worst uniform in history for all 32 NHL teams.
Anaheim Ducks: The Wild Wing jersey
The Ducks were founded in 1993, originally owned by Disney and named the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (named after a Disney movie of the same title). The jersey has undergone some heavy changes throughout the years, some prettier than others, but one jersey in their history sticks out over the rest. Worn for three games in the 1995-96 season, the Ducks debuted their Wild Wing jersey, that season’s alternate.
The jersey followed the same color scheme as the home and away jerseys, eggplant and green, but the design did not have the same appeal as the others. The original jerseys had a balance of cartoonishness and professionalism that combined well to make an aesthetically pleasing experience. The Wild Wing jersey abandoned that professionalism for a pure cartoon experience. The beautiful eggplant color that tied the jersey together is almost nonexistent in this one, removing all the appeal of the other two jerseys and replacing it with all the bad parts. A real stinker uniform this one is.
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Arizona Coyotes: The 1998-2003 alternate jerseys
Arizona has been fortunate not to have many ugly uniforms in its history, albeit they’ve had some pretty basic designs. The Coyotes existed when the original Winnipeg Jets team moved to Arizona and rebranded under new ownership. Since then, the Coyotes uniform has stayed relatively the same, changing from black, green, and red to just red and white and then changing back again.
However, in 1998, the Coyotes introduced their first-ever alternate jersey. The jersey takes the green color originally used as a highlight and makes it the main focus of the jersey. It abandons the coyote playing hockey logo for just the head of the coyote, with what is supposed to be sand painted on the bottom. The whole thing comes off as tacky and doesn’t go well together.
Boston Bruins: Original jersey, 1924-1925
Founded in 1924, the Bruins are one of the original 6 teams and have their fair share of uniforms. Most of their existence sees the same color scheme of yellow and black, and the designs haven’t varied much. Their ugliest jersey would most likely have to be one of the first-ever jerseys that was worn in their history. Without the classic color scheme or designs, this jersey was a simply brown turtleneck sweater with a bear in between the words Boston and Bruins. It’s not a very appealing uniform.
Buffalo Sabres: The Buffaslug jersey
The Sabres have had a lot of good jerseys in over 50 years of history in the NHL. Their iconic logo and beautiful color design are at least one good thing this franchise has always had. Well, almost always. One of their many historic moments in the NHL, unfortunately, involved one of the biggest misfires in NHL logo history.
Dubbed the “Buffaslug” for its resemblance to, well, a slug, this logo has got to be one of the worst in the sport’s history. It’s tacky, weird looking, and distracts from the rest of the uniform, which coincidentally wasn’t much to look at, mainly a solid navy blue. Thankfully 2008, they did everyone a favor and switched back to their old logo.
Calgary Flames: The Old Blasty jersey
Flames fans might not like this one. Founded in 1980, the Flames’ classic red and yellow has pleased the eyes of fans for years now. Their big flaming C logo is iconic in the NHL. However, even they were prone to mistakes, and they unfortunately added an alternate jersey in 1998 that would be dubbed “Ol’ Blasty.” A favorite among the fanbase, this jersey was nothing if not ambitious. It puts the classic red and yellow on the back burner as a highlight, replacing it with black as the primary color.
The worst part of this jersey is, by far, the logo. A horse head with flames spewing out the sides, this thing is an eye sore. It’s hard to look at, but also incredibly distracting, so you can’t look away. Ol’ Blasty is the weakest link among the Flames’ uniforms.
Carolina Hurricanes: 2018 alternate jersey
The Hurricanes had a tough act to follow when the Hartford Whalers moved to Raleigh in 1997. They had to make a splash, and soon, given the Whalers’ failure and the risky choice to move to North Carolina. They also had to follow up on what was once a beloved uniform. Sadly, the Hurricanes never did live up to the Whalers in that regard, as their jersey history has been rather plain.
In the 2018-19 season, the Hurricanes would debut a new alternate jersey to replace their former one, one of which was not very well-liked. They somehow took a massive step backwards, however, as this jersey is just a mess. The logo consists of two hurricane warning flags, which just look weird and out of place. The grey in the shoulders is off-putting and sticks out like a sore thumb. This jersey is hard to look at. Since its debut, however, the Hurricanes haven’t missed the playoffs, so maybe it’s a good luck charm?
Chicago Blackhawks: 2019 Winter Classic Jersey
Another six original teams mean there are a lot of jerseys to choose from. With an iconic, if not controversial, logo on their chest, Chicago has a long history of cool uniforms. From throwbacks to alternates, Chicago has rarely disappointed in jersey design, so it came as a bit of a shock in 2019 when their Winter Classic jerseys were just that: a disappointment. With black and white being the only colors, this jersey lacks any sort of umph. The logo on the chest looks like a stencil outline that was never colored in and leaves the whole jersey feeling unfinished. Definitely could’ve done better for such a renowned game.
Colorado Avalanche: 2016 Stadium Series jersey
The Avalanche haven’t changed their style much throughout the years. Formed in 1995 after moving from Quebec, Colorado has had the same logo and colors for years. They’ve varied it up a bit, as well as added alternates as well, but for the most part the burgundy blue jerseys with the A logo have been pretty steadfast. Their ugliest variant was in 2016 when Colorado participated in the Stadium Series.
These jerseys used the same colors, but in different placements. White became the main color, and blue and burgundy played secondary roles in the arms and armpits. Cramming the two colors together in such a small space makes it look pretty bad, and the C logo they adopted rather than their classic “A” doesn’t do much to help this look.
Columbus Blue Jackets: Original jersey
Introduced in the year 2000, the Blue Jackets are one of the younger teams in the league, with only Vegas and Seattle being officially younger (Winnipeg had a stint before Atlanta moved back there). The Blue Jackets have had some pretty good uniforms in their short years however, the blue and red offer a very military-like vibe that is unique to this team and this team alone.
While the colors are the same, it did take a couple of years to get that vibe they were going for. For their first three years, the Blue Jackets had a more basic jersey, with the red mainly being on one stripe and the majority of the jersey just being a plain navy blue. The logo was also tacky and underwhelming, featuring a “C” and a “B” intertwined together across a hockey stick that had a star on the hilt. The jerseys have come a long way since then, so it’s safe to say their first few years were a miss.
Dallas Stars: 1997 alternate jersey
The North Stars moved to Dallas and dropped the North in their name in 1993. They’ve found much success there, both in a solid fanbase and actual results. Their uniforms, however, haven’t been the most clean. Dallas’ jersey selection consists of a lot of bland black and neon. There are quite a few jerseys that could’ve been chosen to make this list, but the one that makes it today is the alternate jersey that debuted in 1997.
Originally made as an alternate, it would become the permanent road uniform from 1999 until 2003, with a white variant becoming the home uniform. The uniform is black and green, but the way the colors are designed is the issue. They have green on the inside of the jersey and are laced around black to form a star in the back and front of the jersey. It’s tacky and just doesn’t come together well at all. Our thoughts go out to the designer who made this jersey.
Detroit Red Wings: Detroit Falcons jersey
Another original six team, the Red Wings originally entered the league under the name the Cougars. Red and white has always been their color, but they wouldn’t become the Red Wings until 1932. They were the Cougars from 1926-1930, and then they were the Falcons from 1930-1932. Thankfully they weren’t the Falcons for very long because those jerseys were ugly.
Primarily white with red stripes above and below the logo on the arms that look misplaced and inconsistent makes this jersey look dreadfully hard to look at. The ugly gold color used in the logo and numbers does nothing to appease it’s design and overall, you have a nightmare of a jersey. Thankfully they got rid of this thing after becoming the Red Wings just two years later.
Edmonton Oilers: The Teardrop jersey
The Oilers are one of the most historied clubs in NHL history and unfortunately part of that history is a very bad jersey. Founded in 1973 after moving from Alberta, Edmonton was where Wayne Gretzky played some of his best hockey. Five Stanley Cup victories wouldn’t stop Edmonton from debuting one of the worst uniforms ever seen in 2001 however.
Nicknamed the Teardrop jersey, this monstrosity was a bland navy blue with white on the sleeves and bottom. The design was dull and boring, but the worst part of it was the logo. An oil gear is shown rolling across the jersey, in a way that’s shaped like a tear drop. The gear would have five rivets to symbolize the five Cups Edmonton had won. The numbers on the back were big and bold in an archaic font that just comes off as over kill. Unfortunately they wouldn’t do away with this jersey until 2007.
Florida Panthers: 2022 Reverse Retro jersey
The Panthers always find a way to disappoint. The Reverse Retro trend was a marketing plan put in place by Adidas to sell more jerseys and it was a huge hit. They attempted to follow it up in 2022, with some great jerseys being revealed. Unfortunately Florida’s was not one of them. A sickening shade of blue is not complimented at all by the dull shade of red and yellow featured on this jersey. The secondary logo of a palm tree with hockey sticks is now the primary logo, and it’s just way too much. It was nice of them to try and pay homage to the city, but this just did not turn out well.
Los Angeles Kings: The Burger King jersey
As one of the first six expansion jersey’s the Kings have changed their uniform a few times over the years. They’ve had some iconic jerseys such as the black and white uniforms used throughout the 90’s and the ones they have today. They’ve also had some stinkers such as the 2020 Stadium Series jersey (that was not a good idea). However there’s one jersey they’ve had that by far beat the others in the worst ever competition and it would be given the name the Burger King.
In an attempt to bring purple back to the uniform the Kings introduced an alternate jersey in the 1995-96 season. It would be primarily white with a grey stripe from the shoulder down the middle, as well as one on the bottom of the jersey and on the sleeve. It would have a purple trim around the neck as well as purple lettering and a logo that featured a king with a purple beard that resembled the Burger King, hence the name. The color scheme doesn’t clash necessarily but the placement of the colors certainly does. The logo is too humorous to be taken seriously and overall this jersey deserved every bit of its reputation as a laughing stock. It would only last one season.
Minnesota Wild: 2007-2017 home jersey
The Wild was the NHL’s attempt to tap back into the Minnesota market after the North Stars moved to Dallas. They came into being in 2000 with immense hype and popularity, though not the best results for a while. Adopting a green and red color scheme as well as a name and logo that paid homage to the vast forests within Minnesota, the Wild for the most part built a good brand for themselves. The one black eye would be their home jerseys from 2007 to 2017.
Originally designed as an alternate jersey in 2003, this jersey would become their home jersey, replacing the original green primary scheme. This one would see the maroonish red color take the primary color slot, with green on the shoulders. When it became the home jersey they would also remove the green from the bottom of the jersey replacing it with red as well. The lack of green makes this jersey rather bland and boring, and to top it off it didn’t match their road jersey at all. Thankfully Minnesota would rectify this in 2017.
Montreal Canadiens: 1912 retro jersey
The most successful team in NHL history, Montreal is another original six team. They’ve maintained the same color scheme, logos, and design for pretty much their entire existence, with some minor tweaks and changes here and there and its worked for them for the most part. Their biggest mistake would come in 2008 when they would celebrate their 100th anniversary with a series of retro jerseys, and the 1912 one was an eye sore to all.
It featured the red white and blue color scheme divided up into stripes that covered the entire length of the jersey only to be interrupted by the small, plain logo of a leaf that said “CAC,” and the numbers and names in the back. With the way the stripes are designed is ugly enough but the lettering interrupting it in the way that it does makes it that much worse.
Nashville Predators: 2001-2007 alternate jersey
The beautiful Music City got its hockey team in 1998. Branded after the extinct sabretooth tiger, the name was voted on by the people of Nashville themselves. They’ve been a huge success in that market, beloved by their fans. Nashville has never really had an outstanding jersey, but they’ve avoided horrible ones for the most part until 2001 when they unveiled their first alternate jersey.
The jersey would follow the blue and yellow color scheme of the home and road jerseys, but would change the shade of yellow into a horrific mustard yellow. The logo would be changed to a tacky effort at making the tiger more realistic inside a small triangle. It really is the mustard yellow that makes this jersey so hard to look at though.
New Jersey Devils: 1982-92 home jersey
Named after the infamous Jersey Devil, the Devils have long enjoyed a successful stay in Newark. Founded in 1982 the Devils would adopt a red and black color scheme with a horned logo that has always just worked. Well, almost always. Their first attempt took some tweaking. Their original home jerseys didn’t actually feature any of the black that has worked for them so well, instead featuring a shade of green. While not absolutely horrific, these jerseys just didn’t fit the team as well as the red and black does, and that’s why they make this list.
New York Islanders: 1995-97 jerseys
The orange and blue of the Islanders is one of the coolest color schemes in the NHL. It sets them vastly apart from the other teams making their identity truly unique among the league. So, it’s anyone’s guess as to why they decided to change that in 1995 with one of the worst uniform decisions in sports history, and that is not an exaggeration.
Completely abandoning their original color layout and logo and replacing it with a primarily blue and turquoise with a weird orange and white outline that was designed to look like a wave rippling through the jersey was mistake number one. Mistake number two was having the wave offset the number in the back to make it look like it was riding that wave, instead making the jersey look like it was drawn incorrectly. Mistake number three was changing the original logo with a weird picture of what appears to be a fisherman holding a hockey stick. Thankfully the Islanders would do away with this uniform in 1998.
New York Rangers: 2014 Stadium Series jersey
Another original six team, another team that has kept its layout the same throughout most of its history. The iconic red, white, and blue of Madison Square Garden’s Rangers has been their calling card since their induction in 1925. With a few minor tweaks and changes over the years, such as darkening the shade of blue, the Rangers’ uniform is iconic throughout sports and will forever be known as a good fashion decision. You can’t say the same about their 2014 Stadium Series jersey.
This jersey darkens the shade of blue even more, and then moves it to the secondary color slot leaving it only on the sleeves, shoulders, and down the side. The primary color is now a simple white color and the logo is changed to a more classical font. This jersey lacks the brightness and the pizazz that made their ordinary uniforms great and the result is just a bland, run of the mill uniform.
Ottawa Senators: 2011-17 alternate jersey
The Senators are a unique team as they are actually the second NHL team to wear that moniker, with the first being moved to St Louis as an amateur team in the 30’s. Ottawa got its team back however in 1992, though without any of the success of the original team. For the most part, Ottawa has had its fair share of good uniforms throughout the years as well as a unique logo to set it aside from everyone else. That would change in 2011.
Ottawa would introduce an alternate jersey that was meant to be a callback to the original jersey worn by the original team. Why is that a mistake? Because the original team had a hideous uniform, making this uniform hideous as well. The top of the jersey would be solid black down the neck and shoulder, striping into red and egg shell at the elbow. Below the neck would also be striped with the same color scheme and the iconic logo would be replaced with a simple black “O.” There is nothing good about this jersey. The only redeeming quality is its choice in coloring which is overshadowed by how the designer chose to use them.
Philadelphia Flyers: 2002-07 alternate jersey
The orange and black has been symbolic to the Broad Street Bullies since their inception in 1967. With very few changes to layout, and absolutely no changes to the logo or color scheme for the vast majority of their existence, the Flyers have boasted the same iconic uniforms for years. It wasn’t until 1997 when they introduced their first ever alternate jersey that the color scheme was tweaked with at all. They reversed the colors, making it black primarily, with orange and white on the side, and would eventually make it their road jersey.
In 2002, they would make their first ever change to their iconic logo. This alternate jersey was made to be a throwback to the orange shirts they wore for many years. The white would be placed on the sleeves and shoulders and run down the top of the arm, as well as be placed at the bottom. The black would only be featured on the wrists and bottom. The placement of the white gives this jersey a tacky look, and the logo would be given an almost chrome design to appear more bold. Maybe they should’ve just left it alone.
Pittsburgh Penguins: 1997-2000 road jersey
The Penguins have had a couple of bad jerseys, most of which came before they adopted their classic black and gold. Since then the design for the most part has been fairly consistent and pretty easy on the eyes. The Penguins were one of the first teams in the NHL to introduce an alternate jersey and what a splash it made especially when they would make it their permanent road jersey.
This jersey was introduced in 1995 as the alternate and became their road jersey in 1997. The black and gold is still there, but it’s used terribly and some poor soul decided it would be a good idea to add silver. Mainly black, there’s a single stripe in the center of the jersey. The left side of the stripe is gold, while the right side is silver and they converge together at the logo. One sleeve would have a gold, white and silver stripe, while the other just had silver stripes. The inconsistency of the colors makes this jersey all over the place and hard to look at.
St Louis Blues: 1995-98 road jersey
St Louis has been pretty consistent throughout their years. With only a few adjustments to color schemes and layout, they could be counted on to show up in their good look uniforms more often than not. One of those changes was not so good however, and might’ve been better off not showing up at all. The Blues briefly experimented with red in their color scheme, and in 1995 it made its debut as a more primary color on their road jerseys.
The red does not fit this team. Featured on the jersey in both the sleeves after a yellow stripe, and then again at the bottom in an ugly looking slant, the red drags this jersey down horribly. The shade of yellow used clashes with it horrifically and all in all it’s safe to consider this layout a failed experiment. Thankfully it only lasted three years.
San Jose Sharks: 2022 Reverse Retro jersey
The third and least successful of the California teams, San Jose can at least boast that their layout has been pretty good for most of its existence. The classic turquoise and black used in the jersey as well as the cool as heck shark logo has been this team’s trademark since birth. Then the Reverse Retro happened and it seems the designer channeled the frustration and disappointment of Sharks fans into this jersey.
Meant to pay tribute to the former Californian team, the Golden Seals, this jersey adopts turquoise and yellow accent to a mostly white background. However, the bland Sharks logo, and the way the colors are used fails to capture what made the Golden Seals’ uniforms great, and instead we are left with a massive disappointment of a uniform.
Seattle Kraken: 2022 Reverse Retro jersey
The Kraken are the youngest team in the NHL, having only just completed their second season. That being said, they haven’t had much time to play with uniforms and they don’t even have an alternate jersey. Their current layout is pretty cool so unfortunately the choice for this list has to be the reverse retro jersey they unveiled last season. The blue in their uniform is made brighter and more prominent which makes for a bit of a distracting viewing experience. It’s not a bad jersey, just the ugliest of the three they have.
Tampa Bay Lightning: 1996-99 alternate jersey
The Lightning might have the coolest layout in the NHL. The cool lightning bolt logo paired with the black, blue, and white just works for this team and is so appealing to look out. Tampa has played with various layouts throughout the years and for the most part they’ve all been fairly cool. The one exception came in 1996 when they first unveiled their alternate jersey.
This jersey was experimentative by every meaning of the word, though it’s hard to tell exactly what they were going for outside of trying to be bold. The body is mainly blue until you get to the bottom where it becomes black with waves painted on. The shoulders were gray and the arms were black with yellow lightning streaked across them. The body also featured little silver and black lines that might be rain? It’s hard to tell what they are, but it’s not hard to tell that this jersey is a miss.
Toronto Maple Leafs: 1927 jersey
The Maple Leafs are the last of the original six teams. They haven’t changed their layout much throughout the years since becoming the Maple Leafs again in 1927 (they were called the St. Patricks for a while.) Conn Smythe would purchase the team at the end of the 1926-27 season and change their names as well as their uniforms.
While the St Pats uniform was cool, what it was changed to was not. Conn Smythe kept the green and white, but basically made it a plain white jersey with green lettering and logo. It’s extremely boring and makes it by far their worst jersey.
Vancouver Canucks: 1978-85 jerseys
This one might be one of the worst uniform decisions in sports history. The Canucks were founded in 1970 and for their first eight years sported a classic blue, white and green look that fans loved. Then in 1978 they decided to do away with all of that and replace it with an absolute monstrosity of a uniform. The colors were changed to a horrific orange, gold and black.
The road jerseys would be primarily black, with the home jerseys being primarily gold. Then you would have the other colors striped on in the shoulders. Rather than have a logo, they decided it would be cool to just have the colors come down from the neck in a V formation to represent Vancouver. These jerseys are hideous, and unfortunately went on for seven years.
Vegas Golden Knights: 2021 Reverse Retro jersey
Much like the Kraken the Golden Knights are a young team that has not had much time to play with uniforms. They introduced their first alternate jerseys in 2021 which is the same year they unveiled this entry. A horrific shade of red is the primary color and is accented by their class gold and silver. The logo is replaced with a star with two swords crossed through it which is relatively boring. This jersey falls fairly flat and is the worst of their existence so far.
Washington Capitals: 2015 Winter Classic jersey
Sporting red, white, and blue, the Capitals are the team that represent the capital of the US, so one would hope that their uniforms would do their best to live up to that. For the most part, Washington has had fairly simple uniforms that don’t really tend to stand out. They finally did stand out in 2015, but not in a good way.
Designed for the Winter Classic that year these jerseys are dreadfully boring. So boring that you can’t stop looking at them despite how bored they make you. A dull shade of red is accented by a few white stripes and a simple blue W that kind of just blends in with the rest of it. It’s flat, but you can’t look away until your eyes start to hurt.
Winnipeg Jets: 2019 Heritage Classic
This is the second Jets team to make their home in Winnipeg, with the first having eventually moved to Arizona. This Jets team was created from the failed Thrashers franchise, moved to Winnipeg from Atlanta. The last of the Canadian teams, the Jets have made a good home for themselves and are hoping to finally have the success to build off it. Their logo is cool and jersey design has been great for the most part as well.
However, in 2019 Winnipeg would release a dud for the Heritage Classic. Meant to pay tribute to the now dead Atlanta Thrashers, the Jets and the Flames both designed jerseys that took from the team in some way. Unfortunately, the Thrashers did not have good jerseys. This jersey shows a dull blue for the majority of it, and the red and the white do nothing to bolster it. The logo is plain and simple, but ironically might also be the best park of the train wreck that is this uniform. A fitting tribute for the train wreck that was Atlanta hockey.
