The NHL introduced new branding for the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Monday, the first makeover in 13 years.
The redesign of the logo features a photorealistic image of the Stanley Cup trophy, new fonts and a new shape.
“We felt it was time for a fresh and energetic change,” NHL vice president of creative services Paul Conway told ESPN. “Some of that was coming out of COVID and, having two new broadcast partners, the time was right for us to explore what a new, reimagined Stanley Cup can look like.”
The new illustration of the Cup includes the etchings of player names engraved on the trophy, granting a request made by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.
“We had originally presented the Cup illustration to Gary during the approval process. He thought it looked great but he said, ‘It’s missing the etchings,'” Conway said. “It really brought it over the finish line. It’s the only sports trophy with every winner etched on it. Why wouldn’t you want to tell that story?”
Designers created two fonts called Victoria SC Serif and Windsor Sans, recognizing the 1925 Stanley Cup champion Victoria Cougars as well as Montreal’s Windsor Hotel. The NHL was founded at the hotel in 1917.
The logo is framed by the shape of a championship banner and can be customed for all 32 NHL teams.
“All players dream of having their name engraved in immortality, and it is every NHL team’s mission to raise a championship banner,” said NHL chief brand officer and senior executive vice president Brian Jennings. “And we wanted to visually capture and evoke the majesty of Lord Stanley in a manner that both respects the history and represents of the future of this great game.”
The 2022 playoffs return to a standard 16-team Eastern and Western Conference format last used in 2019, before the pandemic.
–Field Level Media