This choice is a bit controversial for Avalanche fans. When Colorado broke out these maroon alternatives in 2001, they seemed to interfere with their already outstanding home and road set they’d been wearing since the team started playing in Denver in 1995.
The Avalanche logo was moved to the shoulders and spelling out “Colorado” diagonally across the front in white, at that time, was a bit derivative because it’s a style the New York Rangers have had for decades, and the Pittsburgh Penguins recently used for their own alternate jersey from 1992 through 1997. Fans loved the Avs logo, and they’d just come off winning their second Stanley Cup. Why mess with the best, right?
But the look of this jersey is really good, and the style made it a true alternative to their instantly classic look. While they shelved this look in 2007, they introduced a light blue version of this alternate from 2009 through 2015 that also worked really well.
While the blue is cool and the maroon shoulder yoke adds a nice touch, the original maroon style just looks and feels right. Either way, I guess we’re fans of diagonally spelling a location’s name.