THE DUCKS LOOK

How It All Began

On October 2, 1992, Walt Disney Pictures released the hit movie “The Mighty Ducks” and created a new wave of excitement among the nation’s youth and ice hockey. Starring Emilio Estevez and a band of kids who learn to play and win as a team, “The Mighty Ducks” grossed $51 million at the box office and served as the inspiration for the name of the Walt Disney Company’s NHL club.

The original official team colors and logo were unveiled on June 7, 1993, and Mighty Ducks merchandise was immediately propelled into one of the top sellers in all of professional sports.

Purple, jade, silver and white were chosen as the team’s colors while an attractive crest featuring a duck head-shaped hockey mask was chosen to give the club its own unique identity. As a testament to the logos popularity, the Ducks original jersey was named the “most fashionable” uniform in all of sports at the inaugural ESPY awards in 1997.

Third Jerseys

As times changed, so did some of the Ducks looks throughout the team’s first 12 seasons. The club has appeared in three different alternate jerseys over the years (each pictured). Anaheim’s first alternate sweater was a cartoon Duck breaking through a sheet of ice. The club moved to a more classic approach with its next two sweaters, using black with dark plum, silver and white accenting as its color palate for the last alternate jersey worn during the 2003-2004 and 2005-2006 seasons.

A New Look Unveiled

In the spring of 2005, Henry and Susan Samueli entered into an agreement with the Walt Disney Company to purchase the Ducks franchise. In the Samueli’s first year of ownership, the Ducks set franchise records for overall wins (43) and standings points (98).  Entering the 2006 Playoffs as the Western Conference’s sixth seed, the Ducks upset the third-seeded Calgary Flames in a thrilling seven-game series and went on to sweep the Colorado Avalanche before losing to the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Finals.

On June 22, 2006, a new era began for the franchise as the team became officially known as the Anaheim Ducks.  In addition, a new logo and color scheme was unveiled.  The new look and identity of the Ducks were a collaborative effort, mixing opinions of fans as well as Ducks players, ownership and management. All parties involved unanimously decided to go beyond simply altering the original concept of an aggressive duck character.

In shaping the new design, the focus was sharpened to create an overall image that expressed excitement, speed and a competitive edge. In addition, a classic color palette of black and metallic gold was developed, with an accent of orange as a metaphorical link to the team’s Orange County home.

The result is a strong, typographic mark anchored by a stylized “D” that echoes the image of a duck’s foot or footprint. The custom typography has a powerful forward momentum and is made up of metallic gold letters with orange drop-shadows and a black holding shape. The new uniforms are an evolution of the earlier sweater design but with gold, white and orange sweeping stripes influenced by the curves of the “D” in the Ducks logo.


A Twist on the New

Starting in the 2007-08 season, the National Hockey League and Reebok teamed to create the Rbk EDGE Uniform System to meet the performance demands of today's NHL player. The result of more than two years of research and testing, the system features technologically advanced materials and fabrics that are more breathable, more water-resistant, more comfortable and more compatible with equipment.

The Rbk EDGE Uniform System is worn by all 30 NHL teams in their respective colors and designs. The introduction of this system during the 2007-08 season marked the first time in the history of North American professional sports that a uniform innovation was implemented League-wide.