NHL Playoffs 2020: Round 3 Countdown and Predictions

Superior visual branding completely whiffed in the second round, going 0-for-4 in our brand-based predictions. So, the makes us 5-for-20 for the 2020 playoffs so far. Woof. There’s still time to make up a little bit of ground, but even reaching 50% is a pipe dream at this point.

But, there’s still a couple jersey matchups to rank, so lets get to it, shall we?

• More: NHL Playoffs 2020: Round 2 Countdown and Predictions
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As a quick recap, here’s how this works. We’ll compare the overall branding of each series and see how they match-up. This includes the logos, alternate logos, jerseys, historical logos and jerseys, general legacy and everything else that builds a team’s brand.

But on top of that, the match-ups are going to be ranked according to which will be the best to watch from an aesthetic standpoint. Some jerseys work better together than others, and you’ll see why. After 8 post-seasons (not including 2020), we’re 62-for-120, or 51.7%.

Okay, like last time, let’s start with the worst jersey match-up of the two Conference Final match-ups.

I had originally thought this would be the better jersey match-up of the two Conference Finals…two sets of classically-designed jerseys with simple solid striping and liberal use of colours, what’s not to like? But there’s a lot of blue here, with only a bit of orange to break it up, so it comes across as a little bit basic. Don’t get me wrong, these are still two good jersey sets, but slap them together over a 7-game series and, well, there’s not much diversity to it.

Tampa Bay Lightning Visual Brand: Decent logo, pretty good uniforms, and a disastrous jersey legacy featuring some of the worst things that ever graced the ice, not to mention their latest addition to a Bolts third jersey library of horrors. Despite all that, they’ve embraced a superior classically inspired minimalist aesthetic overall and have mostly held to that.

• More: BTLNHL #22: Tampa Bay Lightning
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New York Islanders Visual Brand: Their current classic look is great…for the Islanders. The consensus is that they still don’t have a great logo, their jerseys are not too bad, and their third jerseys don’t stand up against some of the others in the league (and they have a history of some much, much worse ones). Oh, and Captain Gorton is still too recent to be completely forgotten.

• More: BTLNHL #20: New York Islanders
• More: Worst to First Jerseys: New York Islanders

Prediction: Lightning in 7 (in 5OT)

As I mentioned last round, the Golden Knights don’t have a great jersey set, but for them to look good, they need to match-up against a team the brings a lot of colour to offset the mostly grey Vegas jerseys – and preferably nothing that clashes with gold. Last round, Vancouver provided that. This round, it’s Dallas. The Stars bring tons of green which set off the gold quite well. Not as nicely as Vancouver’s blue, but it still works. The styles of the jersey contrast a little bit, but there’s much more diversity and visual interest happening here as opposed to the Bolts-Isles, so it gets the nod here.

Vegas Golden Knights Visual Brand: The Golden Knights get some decent kudos for their jerseys, but the consensus take on their logo is that it’s buried in the bottom half of the league. Understandably, there’s not really a visual brand legacy to help them out (or drag them down) either. What you see on the ice this season is all there is for Vegas.

• More: HbD Breakdown: Vegas Golden Knights Jerseys
• More: HbD Breakdown: Vegas Golden Knights (Logo and Alternate Logo)

Dallas Stars Visual Brand: Their jerseys are really nice (and their recent Winter Classic jerseys don’t hurt either), but for everything else, they’re pretty average. They have a good, but not great logo, and a visual legacy that includes some truly iconic jerseys, but also the mooterus. It’s a decidedly mixed-bag.

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• More: Worst to First Jerseys: Dallas Stars

Prediction: Golden Knights in 7 (in 5OT)

Agree? Disagree? Let us know in the comments below or join the conversation on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram!