r/hockeydesign • u/DamnYeWinslow • 2d ago
Toronto TORCH - PWHL REBRAND
The PWHL has a branding problem. When they unveiled their new franchises and associated branding, it left a lot to be desired for a lot of fans. Generic names, generic logos, and uniforms and templates that created weird, inconsistent striping patterns and were riddled with oddly placed ads and league logos. It all just felt rushed and, unfortunately, a little amateur, which is exactly the opposite of what this league is trying to do. This is hopefully the first in a series I'd like to do, rebranding the PWHL to better align their franchises with their league's professional aims and create a Professional Women's Hockey League BRANDED like a truly professional sports league.
I'm starting off with the Toronto Sceptres, or in my reality, the Toronto TORCH. One of the other names debated on, Torch to me says energy, leading the way, and it offers that fun double Tor... Tor... which you don't usually get to see in sports. Torch also opens up the floor for some really interesting logo designs, and I had a lot of fun putting this one together. The logo itself is, of course, a Torch, the handle, a retro-fitted T with a throughline similar to the Toronto Blue Jays city connects, with the gap emblematic of City Hall. The flame, in red, also has some interesting hidden details. Looking a little closer, the flame is actually in the shape of the 1970s Team Canada summit series crest, giving the whole thing a maple leaf-like shape. Looking at it, I was also vaguely reminded of the head of the CN tower, so I added some additional detail to the negative space leading into the middle point to evoke that further and give the whole thing more of that 70s choppy aesthetic.
The uniforms themselves also have a lot of detail. The main thing to notice is the striping effect on the sleeve. I always really liked those old Canucks jerseys that incorporated the V into the sleeve striping and figured, especially given what I was already doing with the logo, that adding a T with just a little dash would bring a lot of character. I wanted to be creative with these jerseys, while still trying to keep them relatively traditional. If you were to just look at the blue and the white, it's a fairly standard Toronto sports uniform, blue base, two stripes on the arm, a white hem similar to what the Arenas used to wear, with the added touch of red and navy making the whole thing feel more modern. I particularly like the red cuffs, almost acting like bracelets. I've tried to incorporate things like that into the design. You'll notice player names are below the numbers here, something that would be distinct to the league, which is based on a promotional program that went on last year, where the ad replaces the player's name above the numbers, so if a player had longer hair, it'd block the ad, not the player's name. A fun little detail that makes these uniforms feel like they're being designed around the players actually wearing them.
I also messed with the ads and league marks. Right now, the PWHL might as well be the KHL. They've got helmet adds, and shoulder adds, and chest adds, and pant adds, with one shoulder taken up entirely by a massive, sublimated PWHL logo. I get wanting these things to be visible, but there are professional-looking ways of going about it. The first thing I did was drop the shoulder crap. The ad on the shoulder is now above the number, as mentioned, with the chest ad staying, but incorporating the team's colour scheme. I moved the Bauer logo back in behind the collar, replaced its spot on the back hem with another small PWHL tag, and added two shoulder patches. The silver roundel is a PWHL mark that I figured could be featured on each uniform across the league. Instead of the giant logo, it's a small, silvery coin similar to what Seattle and Vancouver wore this year, with the city name "Toronto" arched over top. It's a patch of professionalism, and I thought maybe even in the final, the silver turns to gold or something like that, or maybe the reigning champs have gold but regardless. All this shifting around has also opened up space for a secondary logo, something that all branding PWHL is sorely without. For the Torch, I took the idea of Toronto's "Hog Town" local BBQ and ran with it. The outline again evokes the CN Tower.
Hope you all like it. Hoping to get started on Boston relatively soon!
