Ranking the uniforms of the NHL

When the NHL moved to Reebok's Edge uniform template, the Avalanche suffered a huge downgrade. The striping pattern on the new template sent the Avs' uniforms spiraling down the ranks. They went from having one of the best uniforms in the league to now having arguably the worst uniform set in the NHL.

The good news is that the logo and colors are a proper evolution from the Capitals' initial visual identity. The bad news is that the sweaters are a mess of piping and definitely look like a modern mess. 

Like the Avalanche, the Flames suffered a massive downgrade thanks to Reebok taking over. Calgary had one of the best uniform sets in the NHL before the Edge cut them down. Now, all we have to enjoy from the Flames is their occasional throwback night.

The Senators do have a very nice alternate uniform, but their primary set is another example of random piping bringing down what could be a very nice uniform set.

The Blue Jackets don't have a very good logo, and their uniforms are relatively generic when compared to the rest of the league. It's red, white and blue with simple modern piping. There's nothing too exciting going on here.

The shade of yellow is brilliant (including the snazzy yellow helmets) and the logo is solid, but the piping is a bit of a mess, the numbers on the back are strange and the latter two factors bring down what could be a very solid uniform. This is a good idea in theory, but the execution just isn't there.

This is another example of a solid color scheme being brought down by poor execution. The main culprit here is the clutter on the front of the sweater. If "VANCOUVER" was removed from the front of the sweater and the crest received a little bit more green, then this uniform would be higher in the rankings. But for now, it's fine where it is.

From afar, these uniforms are the spitting image of what the Toronto Maple Leafs have worn for decades. The bolts on the shorts are a nice touch, but they don't do enough to distinguish the uniform from being copies of the blue-and-white neighbors in Canada.

If you take away the silver, lighten the blue from navy to royal and take the numbers off of the front of the jersey, then this would be perfect. If it sounds like what the Sabres used to wear from the 1970s until the mid-1990s, that's because it is. These uniforms aren't horrible, but all we can do is pine for the old days when we look at them.

The previous all-red look brought back memories of the old USSR hockey teams, so seeing the dogs of the desert freshen up their look was a welcome sight. These still aren't the best uniforms in the league, but they're an upgrade over what they used to wear. 

The Wild suffer from an identity crisis. The home uniform looks nothing like the road uniform. In fact, it would probably be a safe bet to see the Wild come up with a new home uniform that's closer to both the road and alternate uniforms. The red home uniform just sticks out like a sore thumb in the set.

The good news is that the classic logo from the Mighty Ducks era is displayed proudly on their brilliant orange alternates. Sadly, that alternate jersey is miles ahead of the primary pair of uniforms that they wear on most nights.

There's nothing that's bad about these uniforms, but there's nothing spectacular about them, either. The crest is very nice and they do have one of the best logo sets in the league, but the uniforms aren't exactly eye-catching.

Like their friends in Florida, the Hurricanes' home uniforms could be easily mistaken for a more famous team's home uniforms if you looked at them from afar. The Hurricanes' home uniforms are a bit too close to the Red Wings' home uniforms, but the road uniforms are solid on their own.

If this list was done for the 2013-14 season, then the St. Louis Blues would be at the bottom. However, the changes they made were such a huge upgrade that they now have very decent-looking uniforms. That's how far the Blues have come ever since they refreshed their look.

Another team that's come a long way thanks to a recent uniform change is the Florida Panthers. Their new uniforms are far and away better than what they wore last year, and the logo change is a very nice upgrade over their previous look. Welcome to the 21st century, Panthers.

If the Islanders just had two uniforms, they'd be a bit higher on this list. Instead, their awful black and white alternates are an anchor on the rest of their set.

The Sharks made one tiny change to their uniforms for the 2016-17 season: They removed numbers from the front of the sweater. That small move was such a big improvement for them, and they now have a much cleaner-looking uniform as a result. 

The Kings just look right in black and silver, and they've had one of the best uniform sets in the league ever since they returned to the color scheme that they had during the days of Gretzky.

The Stars probably benefited the most from a recent update of their uniforms. Instead of having drab black and gold uniforms, the Stars now sport a brilliant shade of green that's reminiscent of the team's roots in Minnesota. Their unique green uniform stands apart from the rest of the league in a good way.

The Bruins may be the lowest-ranked Original Six team on this list, but that absolutely does not mean that these are bad uniforms. In fact, it's quite the opposite. The Bruins have a very solid set of uniforms, and this is arguably the best that the Bruins have ever looked.

In 2008, the Oilers brought back their classic uniforms from their dynasty days as an alternate uniform. By 2011, they brought back the corresponding road uniform and made the classic uniforms their new uniforms. Last year, they added an orange alternate. Simply put, going back to the past was an excellent idea for the Oilers on multiple occasions. 

The Maple Leafs have updated their classic leaf logo and made it their new primary logo. It's a big improvement over the old "Ballard Leaf," and the uniforms are simple classics.

The royal blue and red tenants of Madison Square Garden have managed to maintain an excellent visual identity for nine decades now. That won't change anytime soon, and the Rangers will continue to be one of the best-looking teams in the NHL.

The Devils have been in existence since 1982. They've only had two sets of uniforms. They went to their current set in 1992. The Devils hit perfection with this look, and they have absolutely no reason to change anything about what they currently wear. 

The Red Wings have mostly resisted the temptation to add an alternate uniform to their set. That's probably because they nailed it with their two home/road uniforms. They've made very few changes to their set since the 1930s, because it's hard to improve upon excellence. 

The Habs' red sweater has basically been the same design for a century now. This look has stood the test of time, and it's become one of the most iconic looks in all of sports and Canadian culture, in general. This is the quintessential hockey sweater.

The Flyers may have had the same primary logo since entering the league, but their uniforms have undergone changes over the years. However, the team realized that the look from the 1970s was the best one, and the Flyers have been wearing a slightly updated version of that ever since. That's good for us, because it's a beautiful set of uniforms.

It's a good thing that the Blackhawks have risen to become one of the model franchises in the NHL. It was sad to see the team struggle for decades while wearing such nice uniforms. Now, Hawks are playing a winning brand of hockey while wearing one of the best uniforms in all of sports, much less the NHL.

Pittsburgh made a lot of hockey fans and fans of sports logos and uniforms happy when they went back to wearing their throwbacks on a permanent basis during their playoff run to the 2015-16 Stanley Cup Final. Those same people were made even happier when the Penguins decided to make the throwbacks their new home uniforms and also brought back the white versions as their new road uniforms. The Penguins have completed their shift back to black and yellow, and it couldn't have come at a better time.