Even "Suck" Sells, Eventually

We were perusing the puck headlines over at "Puck Daddy," and came across a link to a story about the 2010 Winter Classic and the "benchmark for Classic couture success." In the linked story from the Boston Globe, Bruins principal Charlie Jacobs is quoted as saying about that standard (the Pittsburgh blue uniforms borrowed from the 1968-1969 design),

“That worked, because they’re not necessarily their team colors. There’s no black or gold. It’s a powder blue jersey, and that made it unique. It’s certainly recognized in their market. It’s not like the Pirates, Steelers, or anything else. It’s unique.’’

"Unique." OK, that's one way to describe it. Here's another... they were the uniforms of a team that sucked. The Penguins did not incorporate black and gold into their jersey scheme until the 1979-1980 season. In the dozen seasons leading up to that change, the Penguins topped 30 wins in a season only five times and were a .500-plus team only four times. The reason they made the change? According to the Pens' web site...

"On Jan. 30, 1980, the Penguins wore black and gold for the first time. With the Steelers winning the Super Bowl and the Pirates capturing the World Series title in the same year, the struggling Penguins hoped to gain fan support by aligning their colors with the other teams in the 'City of Champions.'”

Now we know the real reason the Caps weren't invited to the Winter Classic. Someone would have had them go retro...