BTLNHL #28: Los Angeles Kings

The distinction of having the third worst team logo in the NHL goes to the LA Kings.

The Kings would be much higher up the list if they hadn’t changed their official logo from last season to the current one. They switch it up over the summer by pulling the reverse-Starbucks: instead of taking a detail-oriented logo and continuously zooming in, they decided to take a detail-oriented logo, zoom out, and add clutter. Yeehaw!

But this new design is not without logic, and it’s a definite call-back to their logo during the Gretzky era, with the homeplate shape (um…they know we’re not playing baseball, right?) and the return to black-and-white. But in this case, the logic is somewhat flawed.

Creating a pleasantly detailed logo like they previously had (did you notice the nice little detail of the jewels that double as suns?) and then just shrinking it down and placing it within a container is generally not a well-conceived design option. Why?

One, you’re condensing all the information in an already small area, creating elements that are not really visible. If you look at the image at the top of this post, you can barely tell it’s a crown, and you will never see all the details, creating just a general mess. If you condense, you have to simplify as well.

Two, you’re just creating a temptation to add more information that may or may not be necessary, and anything you add has to be weighed very carefully. If you make it too busy, it becomes a messy blob. For example, how’d you like to see this on the back of your computer screen? That’s Apple’s original logo. We should all thankful that they hired an actual competent designer to design a new one.

The other thing is the font choice for “LA”. It’s truly awful in it’s context. It actually reminds me of either a Chinese pagoda or  bamboo, and we all know how much in common bamboo and hockey have. To be fair, it’s the same font they used for their alternate logo from last year, but design is also all about context, and in the new logo, it’s too big, too strange looking and just doesn’t work without “Kings”, which gives the “LA” text much more context.

And what’s with the stripe through the middle? Is it really necessary?

I’m not a huge fan of the purple from their previous font, but at least purple is considered a regal colour, which makes sense with their name. Black-and-white? Well, it’s a bold choice, but when the background for your jerseys are a clean sheet of white ice, black and white aren’t really going to stand out much.

So, apparently LA wanted a new look this year, and they went with a tiny crown with too much detail, in a baseball shaped homeplate with bamboo font. Yeah. They used the same logo as last year in a way that doesn’t work, combined with a legacy logo that never made much sense and using the same font that doesn’t work in this context. That’s just horribly lazy designing. Nothing innovative, just reusing old elements.

I feel like I’m being overly harsh, and I apologize if I sounds overly aggressive, but these are the worst logos, and I’m just trying to explain logically why they’re a bad design. Stay with me. I will get cuddlier, like fuzzy bunnies and cute puppies.

But for now, LA Kings holds down position at #28. See that guy in the top-right corner of the image at the top? He’s just seen the new logo and is shocked and disgusted. Trust me, I know that look. It’s the same look I gave when I saw this (canceled) new logo.

The BTLNTL Countdown Posts

BTLNHL Finals: Boston Bruins v Detroit Red Wings
BTLNHL #3: Philadelphia Flyers
BTLNHL #4: St. Louis Blues
BTLNHL #5: Montreal Canadiens
BTLNHL #6: Pittsburgh Penguins
BTLNHL #7: Chicago Blackhawks
BTLNHL #8: Toronto Maple Leafs
BTLNHL #9: Phoenix Coyotes
BTLNHL #10: Vancouver Canucks
BTLNHL #11: Edmonton Oilers
BTLNHL #12: New York Rangers
BTLNHL #13: Calgary Flames
BTLNHL #14: Buffalo Sabres
BTLNHL #15: Winnipeg Jets
BTLNHL #16: Minnesota Wild
BTLNHL #17: New Jersey Devils
BTLNHL #18: Nashville Predators
BTLNHL #19: Carolina Hurricanes
BTLNHL #20: New York Islanders
BTLNHL #21: Ottawa Senators
BTLNHL #22: Tampa Bay Lightning
BTLNHL #23: Columbus Blue Jackets
BTLNHL #24: Washington Capitals
BTLNHL #25: San Jose Sharks
BTLNHL #26: Florida Panthers
BTLNHL #27: Dallas Stars
BTLNHL #28: Los Angeles Kings
BTLNHL #29: Colorado Avalanche
BTLNHL #30: Anaheim Ducks